Balrog

The Balrog is an eight-wheeled amphibious off-road vehicle. The first one left the company's factory in Lodi, Wisconsin, in 1989. The makers designed it for rough country in the United States, and for the bush of Canada and Alaska.

Design

The body is a pre-formed, welded aluminium unibody. Its concave underside gives as much ground clearance as possible. The maker describes it as light but strong enough to carry loads of more than 3,000 lb (about 1,360 kg).

Drive is fully hydrostatic. A diesel engine runs two hydraulic pumps that feed eight hydraulic wheel motors. The hardest part of the design was dividing the oil flow between the wheels. The company solved this with its own manifold system, so the remaining wheels keep their drive even when some lose contact with the ground. According to the maker, tracks are therefore needed only in deep snow or soft sand.