Famed Little Crawler On Track To Change

2024 - Volume #48, Issue #4, Page #25

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After over 50 years of being made by Struck Corporation, Magnatrac (Vol. 30, No. 6) is headed out on a new track. The new owner is enthusiastic about the future as he learns first and secondhand about the machines.
“I always dreamed of having one, and after buying the company, I brought an RT1150 home in the back of my pickup,” says Greg Linsmeyer, Niagara Fabrication. “They seem like toys, but the work they do is impressive. They have a lot of drawbar pull and great traction. They also have an unbelievable fan base of loyal customers, some with thousands of hours on their machines.”
“I plan to continue operations as they are while introducing more robust models with a more modular design,” says Linsmeyer. “Our goal is to grow the business into the light industrial market, beyond just homeowners.”
Attachments are one area he plans to grow. He notes that existing attachments were adapted from use with larger tractors. He intends to right-size them to the product line. “They work, but they could work better, and with more attachments, the Magnatracs can do even more,” says Linsmeyer.
He also plans to add horsepower and speed and increase comfort. “We’re looking at cabs and other operator protection,” says Linsmeyer.
Linsmeyer recognizes that upgrades and improvements will add costs to the machines, long noted for their low prices. He hopes that increased sales will reduce manufacturing parts. Until now, each machine has been effectively custom-built. Sales varied from 80 to 120 per year.
“We’ll continue to support older models back to 1994, anything with hydrostatic drive,” says Linsmeyer. “As we make improvements in new models, we’ll also add more components like track pads and cam controls that can be retrofitted to older machines.”
Two things that Linsmeyer has no plans to change are the Struck Gold color and using as many components made in America by Americans as possible. “American-made is getting to be more and more important, and we want to support that,” he says.
Linsmeyer says he’s heard from customers with Magnatrac mini dozers from the company’s early years. The history of the company was one reason he bought it.
“I’d been looking at it for the past 7 years, and when it became available, I wanted to keep it from closing its doors,” he says. “I’m getting lots of customer feedback on what to change.”
Since taking over the company, Linsmeyer couldn’t believe the archives of past products and parts. While current models include bulldozers, track loaders, and backhoes, discontinued models include zero-turn lawn mowers and little jeeps. Some may see the light of day again as he considers reintroducing some old products.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Niagara Fabrication, P.O. Box 4, Niagara, Wis. 54151 (ph 715-251-1809; www.niagarafab.com; www.struckcorp.com).

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Famed Little Crawler On Track To Change MISCELLANEOUS EQUIPMENT Earth Movers After over 50 years of being made by Struck Corporation Magnatrac Vol 30 No 6 is headed out on a new track The new owner is enthusiastic about the future as he learns first and secondhand about the machines “I always dreamed of having one and after buying the company I brought an RT1150 home in the back of my pickup ” says Greg Linsmeyer Niagara Fabrication “They seem like toys but the work they do is impressive They have a lot of drawbar pull and great traction They also have an unbelievable fan base of loyal customers some with thousands of hours on their machines ” “I plan to continue operations as they are while introducing more robust models with a more modular design ” says Linsmeyer “Our goal is to grow the business into the light industrial market beyond just homeowners ” Attachments are one area he plans to grow He notes that existing attachments were adapted from use with larger tractors He intends to right-size them to the product line “They work but they could work better and with more attachments the Magnatracs can do even more ” says Linsmeyer He also plans to add horsepower and speed and increase comfort “We’re looking at cabs and other operator protection ” says Linsmeyer Linsmeyer recognizes that upgrades and improvements will add costs to the machines long noted for their low prices He hopes that increased sales will reduce manufacturing parts Until now each machine has been effectively custom-built Sales varied from 80 to 120 per year “We’ll continue to support older models back to 1994 anything with hydrostatic drive ” says Linsmeyer “As we make improvements in new models we’ll also add more components like track pads and cam controls that can be retrofitted to older machines ” Two things that Linsmeyer has no plans to change are the Struck Gold color and using as many components made in America by Americans as possible “American-made is getting to be more and more important and we want to support that ” he says Linsmeyer says he’s heard from customers with Magnatrac mini dozers from the company’s early years The history of the company was one reason he bought it “I’d been looking at it for the past 7 years and when it became available I wanted to keep it from closing its doors ” he says “I’m getting lots of customer feedback on what to change ” Since taking over the company Linsmeyer couldn’t believe the archives of past products and parts While current models include bulldozers track loaders and backhoes discontinued models include zero-turn lawn mowers and little jeeps Some may see the light of day again as he considers reintroducing some old products Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Niagara Fabrication P O Box 4 Niagara Wis 54151 ph 715-251-1809; www niagarafab com; www struckcorp com

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