Miniature Tracked Deere Tractor, Implements

2015 - Volume #39, Issue #5, Page #43

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“Building all these machines was a challenge, but one that I really enjoyed,” says Dallas Denison, who built a miniature version of a tracked Deere tractor and a gravity wagon, anhydrous ammonia applicator, and anhydrous tank to go with it.
    “I started with the tractor, and once it was done, I just kept going,” says the Dundas, Minn., retired truck driver. “I didn’t have any plans or build it to any particular scale, so nothing is an exact replica. I bought a 1/24-scale Deere 9430 tractor as a guide to build the tractor, and I made a lot of trips to the local Deere dealer.
    “I just started cutting, and if it looked right, I put it together. My friends Donald Weed helped with the hydraulics, and Mike Korzan helped with the mechanics.”
    The tractor is modeled after a Deere 9430 T and measures 6 1/2 ft. high and 8 1/2 ft. long. It’s built on the frame of an old Owatonna self-propelled swather and rides on 15-in. wide, 5-ft. 10-in. long rubber tracks. Power is supplied by a 200-cu. in., in-line 6-cyl. Ford engine, which drives a hydraulic pump and a homemade hydrostatic transmission.
    The tracks are off a skid loader and were reworked to fit the tractor’s gearing. The 22-in. rear wheel rims are off a truck, and the 14-in. wheel rims on front are from a trailer house.
    Denison used 16-ga. sheet metal to build the hood and cab. The top part of the tractor is built as one unit and is designed so that, by pressing a switch under the hood, the back end of the tractor lifts up and the front end tips down.
    “All the hydraulic valves and gearing are underneath the cab, but there isn’t much room to crawl in under there. The folding design I came up with provides an easy way to access those components,” says Denison. “By opening the hood, I can reach in and flip a switch to lift the cab’s roof so it’s easier to get into the cab.”
    Gas shocks are used to raise or lower the cab’s roof and to open or close the hood, and modified gas shocks with knobs attached are used to open or close the side windows. Denison drilled out the shaft inside each shock and drained the gas out, then welded a small metal block with a hole drilled into it onto the shock and ran a screw through it. “Turning the knob lets me tighten the window in any position,” he says.
    The anhydrous ammonia applicator rides on 12-in. wheels and has 2 wings that fold manually. “There are hydraulic cylinders on the machine, but they’re just for looks,” says Denison. “The shanks are off a field cultivator, and I made the coulters.”
    The 22-in. dia. ammonia tank is a modified liquid propane tank. “The tank was originally 48 in. long, but I welded in new material to lengthen it by 10 in. in order to get the right proportion,” says Denison.
    The gravity wagon measures 5 1/2 ft. high by 6 ft. long without the tongue. It’s made mostly from 16-ga. sheet metal. Denison had large vinyl murals showing harvest scenes made and attached them to three sides of the wagon. He also added a door with steps on the back, allowing him to store folding lawn chairs inside the wagon whenever he goes to shows.
    The wagon rides on 16-in. pickup tires. Denison bought new wheel hubs which had a different bolt pattern than the pickup tires, so he cut the centers out of each wheel and welded the new hubs in. He used 2 1/2-in. dia. pipe to build the wagon’s axle.
    Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Dallas Denison, 12138 Faribault Blvd., Dundas, Minn. 55019 (ph 507-645-9873; mddenison@gmail.com).

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Miniature Tracked Deere Tractor Implements TRACTORS Made-It-Myself “Building all these machines was a challenge but one that I really enjoyed ” says Dallas Denison who built a miniature version of a tracked Deere tractor and a gravity wagon anhydrous ammonia applicator and anhydrous tank to go with it “I started with the tractor and once it was done I just kept going ” says the Dundas Minn retired truck driver “I didn’t have any plans or build it to any particular scale so nothing is an exact replica I bought a 1/24-scale Deere 9430 tractor as a guide to build the tractor and I made alot of trips to the local Deere dealer “I just started cutting and if it looked right I put it together My friends Donald Weed helped with the hydraulics and Mike Korzan helped with the mechanics ” The tractor is modeled after a Deere 9430 T and measures 6 1/2 ft high and 8 1/2 ft long It’s built on the frame of an old Owatonna self-propelled swather and rides on 15-in wide 5 ft 10-in long rubber tracks Power is supplied by a 200 cu in in-line 6-cyl Ford engine which drives a hydraulic pump and a homemade hydrostatic transmission The tracks are off a skid loader and were reworked to fit the tractor’s gearing The 22-in rear wheel rims are off a truck and the 14-in wheel rims on front are from a trailer house Denison used 16-ga sheet metal to build the hood and cab The top part of the tractor is built as one unit and is designed so that by pressing a switch under the hood the back end of the tractor lifts up and the front end tips down “All the hydraulic valves and gearing are underneath the cab but there isn’t much room to crawl in under there The folding design I came up with provides an easy way to access those components ” says Denison “By opening the hood I can reach in and flip a switch to lift the cab’s roof so it’s easier to get into the cab ” Gas shocks are used to raise or lower the cab’s roof and to open or close the hood and modified gas shocks with knobs attached are used to open or close the side windows Denison drilled out the shaft inside each shock and drained the gas out then welded a small metal block with a hole drilled into it onto the shock and ran a screw through it “Turning the knob lets me tighten the window in any position ” he says The anhydrous ammonia applicator rides on 12-in wheels and has 2 wings that fold manually “There are hydraulic cylinders on the machine but they’re just for looks ” says Denison “The shanks are off a field cultivator and I made the coulters ” The 22-in dia ammonia tank is a modified liquid propane tank “The tank was originally 48 in long but I welded in new material to lengthen it by 10 in in order to get the right proportion ” says Denison The gravity wagon measures 5 1/2 ft high by 6 ft long without the tongue It’s made mostly from 16 ga sheet metal Denison had large vinyl murals showing harvest scenes made and attached them to 3 sides of the wagon He also added a door with steps on back allowing him to store folding lawn chairs inside the wagon whenever he goes to shows The wagon rides on 16-in pickup tires Denison bought new wheel hubs which had a different bolt pattern than the pickup tires so he cut the centers out of each wheel and welded the new hubs in He used 2 1/2-in dia pipe to build the wagon’s axle Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Dallas Denison 12138 Faribault Blvd Dundas Minn 55019 ph 507 645-9873; mddenison@gmail com

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