Earthmovers & Excavators – October 2019

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USED MACHINERY REVIEW

R

ecently,whilsttravellingthroughsome

ofQueensland’smostscenicregions,I

cameacrossa reallyoldAllisChalmersDD

Model grader sitting on a spare block beside a

mechanical repair shop.

Being a weekend with no-one about I decided to

take a quick look at this little beauty.

No sooner had I opened the cruiser door when

a chap pulled up in a work ute and opened up the

shop, so I made a beeline to meet him.

“Well that belongs to a mate of mine,” he says,

“it came here on the back of a float after suffering

a gearbox failure – was in full work mode after a

full resto some years back. It is a very tidy unit

providing I can source the parts for the old girl. I

think he is repairing it and putting it up for sale.”

No more questions asked from me, other than

can I look closer at it and take some photographs,

but we both gave each other a “nod and a wink”

and left the rest of the morning to yarn about

other things.

HISTORY

Dantoldmethatthemachinewastotally

operationalandworkedona largelocalproperty

tasked with constructing the rural internal roads

for the locals.

Exposure to the weather certainly takes its

toll up here in Queensland. There were a few oil

leaks in the engine bay and the interior had fallen

prey to spiders looking for a safe haven for winter

but externally the DD had all the hallmarks of

recent use.

Although we may be limited on the history

of the grader itself, we are not limited on the

history of Allis Chalmers or the brand’s Australian

dealer, Tutt Bryant. Allis Chalmers Tractors and

its predecessor Monarch Tractors have been in

Australia since the 1920s but had little impact

until Tutts took over and pushed the market,

especially after World War 2.

It was when Leo Tutt took over in 1938 by

importing crawler tractors and then the W

An Allis Chalmers DD Model grader

might be a bit rough and ready, but

that’s the way it was, remembers

Ron Horner

This machine is a

newer version and

has the solid square

billet incorporated

into its build.

Above: This diesel model

used to be very popular

OLD

school

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