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Digger Man

Digger Man Blog

by Nick Drew  |  Thu 07 Apr 2016

The forgotten BIG dozer

Back in the 1960’s and 1970’s most people’s big dozer of choice was the Cat D9 but there was another less glamourous contender the Allis-Chalmers/Fiat-Allis HD41.

The forgotten BIG dozer
Weighing in at 70 tons and powered by a 524hp Cummins VT-1710-C four cycle turbocharged engine, the tractor made its first appearance at the Chicago Road Show in 1963 and was described as the biggest dozer ever built at the time. However anyone who wanted to buy one had to wait until 1970 when it was finally put into full production. EPSON MFP image Photo: Digger Man Blog Archives. The machine featured a torque converter and its power-shift transmission offered three speeds in forward and three in reverse. Attachments included bulldozer blades up to 20 feet wide in semi-U and full-U options and a cushioned push block for push-loading scrapers. Our great contact in America, Anthony Lucibello, who has a real knack of tracking down some amazing old kit, has recently come across one of these machines at a yard in Rhode Island USA. 12933053_1555110528122015_5526279760400204052_n The machine discovered by Anthony is a Fiat-Allis 41B model which for its age is in fantastic condition. In a familiar scenario Fiat S.p.A of Italy had purchased a major share of Allis-Chalmers in 1974 forming a joint venture between the two companies. 12670893_1555110548122013_1783100292963825422_n This upgraded model was introduced in 1974 by which time the HD prefix had been dropped. The earlier models were apparently so powerful they would literally tear themselves to pieces, suffering badly from final drive issues and destroying tracks for fun! 12923156_1555110518122016_8737413375178181196_n Check out this video courtesy of PA Mining, which features a 41B in action stripping out clay. [youtube width="725" height="344"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmPdEjmysfk[/youtube]   The Digger Man Blog would like to thank Anthony Lucibello for sharing these great photos with us.  

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