Deere Tractor Tanks Built For War

2013 - Volume #37, Issue #4, Page #23

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Though John Deere has a deserved reputation for building quality tractors and implements, the company’s 1940 tractor tank was not one of them.
  Two prototypes of steel-encased Model A’s equipped with a pair of turrets and machine guns never made it past the Army’s testing grounds in Aberdeen, Md. That was a wise decision, says Brian Anderson, who knows exactly what the tractor tank was like because he had one made in 2005.
  Raised on an Iowa farm and a Marine veteran of the Vietnam War, he was fascinated by the tractor/military tie when he read an article about the Deere tank. Friends Leo Milleman and Curt Clark, both physicians, shared his interest, and as tractor collectors and members of the Two-Cylinder Club decided to have replicas built – Anderson’s with a narrow front and his friends’ model with a wide front. The one condition was that they first find the authentic era machine guns.
  After locating and buying (disabled) 1919 A4 .30 caliber machine guns, Anderson hired machinist Lynn Jorgenson and restorer Paul Lehman to start with a 1940 Deere A tractor and build a replica of a tank based on a short description and nine B&W photos. The project took 8 mos. of full time work, and Anderson’s narrow front tractor tank was completed in November 2005. Then Jorgenson and Lehman had the wide front model built in 2006.
  “It’s not just a tractor with a lot of steel,” Anderson says. “It has hydraulics with 125 working pieces that were all made by hand.”
  The replicas were built as accurately as possible – right down to finding the original paint to match the prototypes.
  “The original versions had 3/8-in. steel, on the 4,200-lb. tractor,” Anderson says, which was too much weight for the 28 hp tractors. The replicas are built with 3/16-in. steel (weighing 5,500 lbs.), and the restorers ground edges smooth unlike the jagged edges on the original prototypes.
  Anderson and the physicians have copies of the original Aberdeen Army test results, which indicated many flaws in the design. Besides poor visibility, the turrets didn’t have enough room for ammo boxes and when machine gunners shot, the hot casings fell back on them.
  “The gunners had to be real small to fit, and it had to be deafening in those steel turrets,” Anderson adds. When they cut a hole in the floor for the casings to fall through, the snow and mud flew up inside the turrets.
  According to an elderly farmer who said he helped build the prototypes, gunners also had to be careful not to shoot the rear tires.
  The driver between the gunners had visibility challenges too, along with poor maneuverability because of the front axle castor and a steering wheel that went out of control when the tank hit a pothole.
  From the little information he could find, Anderson says the original prototypes were built within a few months at the direction of C.D. Wiman, the great-grandson of John Deere. Wiman thought the tractor tanks could be built at low cost ($6,500 to $8,000) and quickly (100/day) to help the military with training and secondary campaigns, and they could pull equipment to the battlefield.
  Officials quickly rejected the tractor tanks when they were tested in February 1941.
  Despite, or perhaps because of, their short-lived history, the replicas draw plenty of attention when taken to events and tractor shows.
  Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Brian Anderson, 57000 245th St., Ames, Iowa 50010 (ph 515 232-8958; brian@knapptedesco.com; lmilleman@mchsi.com).

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Deere Tractor Tanks Built For War AG WORLD Though John Deere has a deserved reputation for building quality tractors and implements the company’s 1940 tractor tank was not one of them Two prototypes of steel-encased Model A’s equipped with a pair of turrets and machine guns never made it past the Army’s testing grounds in Aberdeen Md That was a wise decision says Brian Anderson who knows exactly what the tractor tank was like because he had one made in 2005 Raised on an Iowa farm and a Marine veteran of the Vietnam War he was fascinated by the tractor/military tie when he read an article about the Deere tank Friends Leo Milleman and Curt Clark both physicians shared his interest and as tractor collectors and members of the Two-Cylinder Club decided to have replicas built – Anderson’s with a narrow front and his friends’ model with a wide front The one condition was that they first find the authentic era machine guns After locating and buying disabled 1919 A4 30 caliber machine guns Anderson hired machinist Lynn Jorgenson and restorer Paul Lehman to start with a 1940 Deere A tractor and build a replica of a tank based on a short description and nine B&W photos The project took 8 mos of full time work and Anderson’s narrow front tractor tank was completed in November 2005 Then Jorgenson and Lehman had the wide front model built in 2006 “It’s not just a tractor with a lot of steel ” Anderson says “It has hydraulics with 125 working pieces that were all made by hand ” The replicas were built as accurately as possible – right down to finding the original paint to match the prototypes “The original versions had 3/8-in steel on the 4 200-lb tractor ” Anderson says which was too much weight for the 28 hp tractors The replicas are built with 3/16-in steel weighing 5 500 lbs and the restorers ground edges smooth unlike the jagged edges on the original prototypes Anderson and the physicians have copies of the original Aberdeen Army test results which indicated many flaws in the design Besides poor visibility the turrets didn’t have enough room for ammo boxes and when machine gunners shot the hot casings fell back on them “The gunners had to be real small to fit and it had to be deafening in those steel turrets ” Anderson adds When they cut a hole in the floor for the casings to fall through the snow and mud flew up inside the turrets According to an elderly farmer who said he helped build the prototypes gunners also had to be careful not to shoot the rear tires The driver between the gunners had visibility challenges too along with poor maneuverability because of the front axle castor and a steering wheel that went out of control when the tank hit a pothole From the little information he could find Anderson says the original prototypes were built within a few months at the direction of C D Wiman the great-grandson of John Deere Wiman thought the tractor tanks could be built at low cost $6 500 to $8 000 and quickly 100/day to help the military with training and secondary campaigns and they could pull equipment to the battlefield Officials quickly rejected the tractor tanks when they were tested in February 1941 Despite or perhaps because of their short-lived history the replicas draw plenty of attention when taken to events and tractor shows Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Brian Anderson 57000 245th St Ames Iowa 50010 ph 515 232-8958; brian@knapptedesco com; lmilleman@mchsi com

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