Falkom is a Dutch manufacturer of recovery vehicles, based on the whole range of European truck chassis. That’s from light 4×2 trucks to heavy 10×4 jumbos.
Customers, prospects and anyone else who was interested in Falkom’s products were welcome at their open house days, held on May 12 and 13. It was an international event, as I noticed at least five different languages among the visitors (numerous Dutch accents and dialects not counting).
Regardless the bed, body or equipment a truck gets, the starting point is always a factory chassis-cab, as supplied by one of the heavy vehicle manufacturers. Here we have a brand new MAN TGL, a fine example of such a chassis-cab.
You must have noticed the recovery trucks in the background. They’re bright yellow for a reason, after all. But first we’re going to have a look inside the production facilities, where the magic happens.
There was this trio to start with, still in an early stage of the whole transformation.
A DAF CF 300 FAN (6×2*4) with some major frame modifications and reinforcements.
Now this is how to showcase your craftsmanship and explain it to the public, with a drawing of the final product and some basic information in three languages. Not to mention that it saves me a lot of time to find out what it’s all about and then translate it.
See what I mean?
This Mercedes-Benz Actros 6×2*4 already got its crane, made by MKG from Germany.
From the sliding deck trucks to a collection of imposing (future) wreckers, a Mercedes-Benz Arocs 4×4 was one of them.
It’s for sale, so grab your chance and surprise everybody with your new Mercedes-Benz SUV. Or is it a crossover?
This brawny Benz is going to Denmark, once finished.
The big winches are made by Sepson, a Swedish company.
Destination, after all is said and done: the UK.
What a mighty piece of machinery! This 770 hp brute was ordered by the local Scania dealership.
I’ve never seen anything like this before, I guess its job is moving mountains in Switzerland.
Too bad, I forgot to take a picture of the drawing on this Scania 8×4*4 with a Fassi crane, IIRC.
On the opposite side of the same shop floor, a line-up of sliding deck recovery trucks, almost completed.
Outside, in the lot, was a new Iveco Daily 70C18 with a sliding deck on display.
The double cab Daily is rated at 7,000 kg GVW (15,400 lbs) -hence the number 70 in its model designation- which means it’s the heaviest of the range.
The Iveco is equipped with a FAS 3000 system, the lightest in Falkom’s class of sliding decks.
As for the heavy wreckers, this project, based on a Scania 8×4, seems to be in its final stage of production.
The outrigger on the right side, directly behind the cab.
There you go, FAW 25000, so a wrecker with 25,000 kg (55,000 lbs) lifting capacity. Falkom’s heaviest wrecker is the FAW 30000, go figure!
All pictures in the upcoming report, aka part two, were taken under a bright blue sky. Many sliding deck trucks and wreckers were present, driven to the event by their owners from the Netherlands and abroad. And there were sliding deck, wrecker and rotator demonstrations, so stay tuned!
Very interesting, thanks for sharing!
Great stuff, Johannes! The old truck salesman loves reading your information.
Thanks for the wonderful trip thru the recovery vehicle displays.
When I operated my restoration shop, we had a 28′ enclosed car transport trailer, and in the beginning I had a 1969 Ford F-350 Super-Duty with a dually rear. We cut and lengthened the chassis and built twin ramps for the wheels to ride in, the ramps angled at 22.5 degrees. That truck was later replaced with a nice used Ford F350 with a Jerr-Dan hydraulic rollback [sliding deck].
While we always thought of the Jerr-Dan unit as being a “big dog” wrecker, when I see these examples I realize our truck was not that big! [Not even close!]
I was in Germany back in the late 1990s and was surprised to see a sliding deck truck with a folding crane arm, similar to trucks shown here. It parked next to a car illegally parked in downtown Heidelberg. I was curious as to how they expected to remove the car, because there were cars parked in front and behind the car in question. I watched as the wrecker put out a pair of stabilizers and unfolded the crane. The operator put a lifting cradle around each tire, and the crane lifted the car up and onto the flat bed. It took only a few minutes for the entire operation, and left me wondering why, even today, we don’t have such equipment in the USA.
WOW!! Plenty of “BEEF” on display there; thanks for the look!! :):) DFO
Very cool Johannes, I’ve always been interested in towing and recovery vehicles. Certainly some different technology in Europe vs North America.
Thank you for sharing that!
I (also Dutch) had the pleasure of working with a lot of Falkom equipment over the years in my towing/recovery days, they really make some of the best out there.
Amazing how modular and customizable a single chassis is. Interesting how everything from structural reinforcement to accessories are simply bolted to the chassis for ease of installation and removal for servicing. Everything is designed and fits perfectly.
Yes, it’s interesting you don’t see anything this sophisticated in the U.S. Thank you for posting these pictures + commentary.
Kids, let’s go to the toy shop!
Thansk for the tour and thanks to Falkom for the effort in getting the shop to look this good just for Johannes!
I looked up Rydam – one of the UK’s premier agent for such equipment and much more, including Faymonville trailers. Are these related to Falkom?
Quite right Roger, many visitors were sitting and staying really close to the king-size BBQ and the beer/beverage suppliers. Outside, in the sun. Not me, of course. I already had breakfast and milk…
No connection whatsoever between Falkom (NL) and Faymonville (B/LU).
The body work on the heavy trucks is absolutely stunning.