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It comes as a $350 kityou can assemble withno machining. You canalso build it yourself

from a $5 set of plansNew idea in yard tractors a small, crawler-tread dozer that'sso simple you can put it together from a kit in a few hours.

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ere's the first low-cost yardtractor that works just like a bigconstruction bulldozer. Its widesteel crawler tracks grip the

ground over more than 500square inchestraction you can'tget with a wheel-driven rig. Thismakes it an ideal tractor for han-dling tough yard jobs like snowplowing, bulldozing, towing, andtilling. It also runs a lawn mowerand provides a power-takeoffsource. But it's a fun machine,too; it's great for snowmobilingand for off-road travel.

One of its great points is itsstability on hills. The Mini-Dozerw i l l climb and maneuver on 45-degree grades. A low center ofgravity and a wide track-spreadmake it safe. Continued

H

PS Home Workshop Editor

By CHARLES E.RHINE

B u ildY o u C a n

Y a r d - D o z e rM i d g e t

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By simply switching the forward drive

belt on the step pulleys, you can get threem axim um fo rw ard speeds2.4, 3.8, and 6.1m.p.h. The maximum reverse speed is 1.5m .p.h. The engine comes w it h a recoil ropestarter, but electric-start engines areavailable.

Standard yard-tractor attachments, suchas those sold by Sears, can easily be adaptedto fit the Min i-Doze r. Attachments de-signed especially for it are sold by the man-

ufacturer. They include a lawn mower,dozer blade, V3-ton trailer, lawn aerator,lawn roller, and fertilizer spreader.

The beauty of this tractor is that youcan build it yourself from a kit of parts thatgo together with screwdrivers, pliers, andwrenches. A l l parts are machined ; thebody and subassemblies are welded. Agood six-hp., four-cycle engine comes withi t , too. The ki t costs $350 w it h engine,

$300 w ith out. You can also buy it factory -assembled and ready to drive for $400.You get a choice of either cleated or smoothtracks. A second set of tracks of either styleis available for $80.

But for the man who's handy at build in gthings, a complete set of plans is availablefor only $5. The plans show you how tomake all the parts and put them together.

You can buy a lot of the partsstandard

rod, pulleys, belts, chains, and bearingsata local hardware store or mill-supply outfit.If there are any parts you don't want tomake or can't buy locally , you can get themfrom the manufacturer. A catalogue andprice list of all parts come with the plans.

The plans also show you how to make avery low-cost version using plywood forh b d d h d d i f h k

It's powerful and versatile

Lots of towing power comes from ground-grippingtracks and a high-torque transmission ratio.

Lawn mower is powered by the dozer engine.Tracks maneuver easily, give balance and traction.

orward. Push both con-ol levers forward. Onlyght pressure is needed.

Reverse. Push reversingpedal down with foot;both levers forward.

Wide turn. Center insidetrack lever; push forwardoutside track lever.

Sharp turn. Brake insidetrack lever; push outsidetrack lever forward.

You drive the yard-dozer with two levers and a foot pedal

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This is what you get for $350: welded-steel body,engine, tracks, pulleys, shafts, axles, bearings, belts,

bolts and nuts. No machining, welding, drilling, ortappingyou just assemble the parts.

the Mini-Dozer. There are no gears; aningenious arrangement of V belts, pulleys,and levers gives forward and reverse power,and clutching and braking action to eachtrack separately. Everything is controlled by

two hand levers and a foot pedal. You canlearn to drive it wit h a few minutes practice.

The tractor body is made of 12-gaugesteel, and all internal braces and supportsare 3/16" steel welded in place. The wheelsare cast iron with self-lubricating bearingsand ride on 7/8" steel axles. The treads aresteel plates welded to heavy-duty conveyorchain. The power train is a series of V beltsand pulleys that reduce r.p.m. and provideclutching action. The final drive to the rear

wheels is a chain-driven sprocket with a6.75:1 ratio.

As the illustrations show, the parts arefew and simple. This makes it easy tobuild and maintain. There's litt le to go

wrong. About the only parts that mightwear are the belts; these you can replaceat a hardware store or garage. They canbe changed in a few minutes. A completelubrication job consists of greasing fourwheels and three bearings.

The engine is a well-known brand, andtakes the care usually given to gas enginesof this size and type.

How it works. Each lever controls themovements of the track on its side. Thelevers are mounted on self-aligning bear-ings so they can pivot independently. Withhands off the levers, they are in neutral.The rear drive belts are slack in their pul-leys, so no power is transmitted to the

tracks. This is also a safety feature, sincewhenever you let go of the levers, they re-turn to neutral, and the tractor comes to animmediate stop.

Pushing forward on a control lever tight-

Small enough to haul in a station wagon, this yard-dozer is only 46" long, 33" high, and 37 " wide.

Two kinds of tracks cleated for pulling power andsmooth for lawn workswitch easily when needed.

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Control levers for clutching and braking mount onself-aligning bearings so they pivot independently.

With everything inside now in place (except the en-gine), you can see how simple the drive train is.

Tracks go on over two cast-iron sprocket wheels,and are tightened by nuts on the track spreader bar.

ens the constantly rotating clutch pulley inthe rear drive belt, putting the trackon that side in forward motion. Pull ingback on the control lever brings the brakearm to bear on the belt so that it issqueezed against a channel iron, brakingthe track it drives. Only slight movementand pressure are needed.

To go forward, yo u just push both leversforward. You reverse by pushing down the

reversing pedal with your left foot, andpushing both levers forward. You make awide turn by putting the lever controllingthe inside track in neutral (center position)and pushing forward on the lever control-lin g the outside track. To make a sharp tur n

(within the length of the tractor), you brakethe inside track while you push forward onthe outside track lever. You make turnswhile going in reverse the same way; theonly difference is that you do it while youhold down the pedal.

How to buy a Mini-Dozer. You buyeverythingcompleted machine, kit, plans,parts, attachmentsfrom C. F. Struck Corp.,Cedarburg, Wis . Struck is just starting pro-

duction on the Mini-Dozer, so if you wantto buy a completely assembled machine,it's best to check on delivery time. Butthere's no problem in getting plans. You just send $5 with your request and you'llget them by return mail.

Reversing mechanism comes preassembled; you justbolt it to the tractor body. Left foot operates it.

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