Tractors for the Sawmiller.

Progress, Volume XVII, Issue 3, 1 November 1921, Page 66

Tractors for the Sawmiller.

By the courtesy of Mr. R. B. Gibbons, of the Colonial Motor Company, Limited, we have been supplied with a copy of “ Ford News ” of September, 1921, containing illustrations and description of a Fordson tractor converted for use on rails. The illustration given shows this little petrol locomotive drawing quite a big load of logs, and following is the item in reference to it “ The Fordson locomotive is doing excellent work in the lumber camps of British Columbia

and is proving very popular with the lumberman. It is being used principally for handling logs, cedar bolts, piles, poles, ties, lumber, rock, sand, cement, gravel and coal. It is also being used successfully for laying tracks and ballasting; also for track lifting and for transporting men to and from their work.

In order to convert the tractor into a locomotive it is necessary to remove the rear axles, differential gears and pinions, substituting therefor a solid axle with bronze bearings. A steel frame is next put round the engine and the whole mounted on four 33-inch wheels—cast from centres with steel tires shrunk on.

It is equipped with hand brakes, sand box, steel cab and spring drawheads. This locomotive can be built to suit any rail gauge from 36-inch to broad gauge. Weight of the entire outfit is 7,000 pounds and its hauling capacity is 50 tons on level track; on four per cent, grade it will haul 15 tons and on a nine per cent, grade five tons.” We feel sure that if this form of traction could be introduced into this country it would fulfil a long-felt want among a great Inumber of sawmillers, and to this end the writer had made many enquiries from time to time during the past two years regarding the possibility of converting a tractor or motor-car for use on rails; but the above is the first definite information received regarding a tractor being converted to this purpose. Should any of our readers wish to secure further information concerning this form of tractor such could probably be secured for them by the Sawmillers’ Federation. —: :