Classic Machines Archives - Contractor Magazine

Classic Machines

Classic Machines: The Wabco 35 Haulpak

While somewhat better known for its range of scrapers, LeTourneau-Westinghouse (later Wabco) sought to diversify and expand its product range in the late 1950s. The result was some of the best haul trucks of the day and a legacy that continues. By RICHARD CAMPBELL The ‘35’ series of 35-ton off-highway dump trucks was first...

Classic Machines

Classic machines: The Caterpillar 615 scraper

Filling a hole in the (then) lineup of Caterpillar elevating scrapers, the Caterpillar model 615 was a great little machine with some features unique to the Cat scraper product range. By RICHARD CAMPBELL First introduced in 1981, the Caterpillar 615 elevating scraper came as a bit of a surprise to the earthmoving industry. Rated at...

Classic Machines

Classic machines: The Michigan 110-15 scraper

Clark-Michigan is a name more commonly known to New Zealand contractors for their range of wheel loaders rather than motor scrapers. However the Michigan range of conventional and elevating scrapers have been around since the early 1960s in various sizes although very few were imported into New Zealand. Our subject, the Michigan...

Classic Machines

Classic machines: The International-Harvester TD-24 revisited

The end of World War Two saw a massive increase in the demand for heavy equipment. Top of contractors' wish lists were large, high horsepower, track type tractors and Allis-Chalmers, Caterpillar and International-Harvester duked it out for top honours. By Richard Campbell. Allis-Chalmers made a bid in the large tractor stakes when in...

Classic Machines

Classic Machines: LeTourneau's Model A Tournapull

R.G LeTourneau conceived the idea of the self-propelled motor scraper while recovering from a near-fatal auto accident. He approached Caterpillar with the concept but they rejected the idea, so LeTourneau decided to go it alone. The rest, as they say, is history. By Richard Campbell One wonders how long it would have taken another...

Classic Machines

Classic Machines: International-Harvester's 495 PayScraper

A large brute of a motor scraper, the International-Harvester model 495 was the only three-axle, open bowl scraper ever offered by the Company and it played a big part in New Zealand’s early hydro-electric dam projects. By Richard Campbell We took a short look at the model 495 back in the December 2004 issue of The Contractor, but at...

Classic Machines

Classic Machines: The Terex 82-20 crawler tractor

Smallest of all the production Terex track type tractors, the 82-20 was designed to expand Terex’s market share of the crawler tractor business and take on it’s two main rivals in this class, Caterpillar and International-Harvester. By Richard Campbell Following in the footsteps of their successful C-6/82-30, 82-40 and TC-12/82-80...

Classic Machines

Classic Machines: Caterpillar's big three-axle single, the 660 scraper

With the arrival in New Zealand recently of a Caterpillar 660, the largest of Caterpillar’s single engined scrapers, it’s time we had a look at these extreme beasts in a little more detail. By Richard Campbell. Somewhat overshadowed by it’s legendary twin engined sibling, the Cat 666, it may surprise readers to know that there are...

Classic Machines

Forgotten companies: Carco

Many of the readership will identify the name Carco as being associated with logging winches and forestry equipment. However, Carco’s roots go much further back in history to the dawn of the track-type tractor. By Richard Campbell Originally founded in 1905 in Seattle, Washington, Carco (originally known as the Seattle Car Company)...

Classic Machines: Euclid's 16TDT twin powered scraper