👋 Hey friends! In this video, we are featuring the American manufactured Allis-Chalmers that were a rare enough beast in the agricultural scene in Ireland.
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Originally launched in 1953 in America the ED-40 was not available on these shores until much later. We saw one in Cork earlier this year which was probably imported by McGee’s of Ardee who were a major farm machine importer and had the Allis Chalmers franchise for Ireland.
The ED-40 was introduced at the Smithfield Show, London in 1960 by the UK subsidiary of the American Allis-Chalmers Corporation. The ED40 was of a more heavy construction than previous Allis-Chalmers. It was said to have all the features that arable farmers required but was designed and built in a manner that made it a universal farm tractor. The UK operation had a plant in Lincolnshire and they hoped it would take on the might of Massey Ferguson and Fordson who were by then the market leaders.
The ED-40 had a 13700cc, 40 horse power, four-cylinder diesel engine. Top speed was 17mph. The engine was made by the Standard Motor Co, Coventry - interestingly it was the same engine as used in the earlier Coventry built Massey Ferguson 35 tractors. The ED-40 drove attached equipment through a rear three-point linkage which was powered by an engine mounted hydraulic pump. This provided hydraulic power whenever the engine was running.
McGee's of Ardee had the Allis-Chalmers franchise since the late 1930s. At that time. apart from a limited number of Fordsons. the only new tractors available were the McGee Allis-Chalmers models. The first model they sold was probably the steel wheeled paraffin powered ‘United’ commonly known as the ‘U’.
McGee’s were said to have “made a considerable contribution to the development of Irish farm mechanisation. They were also considered as an “academy’ for producing farm machinery dealers. Many prominent farm machinery dealers in the industry began their careers at "the MaGee’s". Another interesting note about the impact of McGee’s business, the Great Northern Railway operated a station in Ardee at the time. While the passenger service closed in the ‘30s freight remained open. This is because the carriage of agricultural machinery and produce out of Ardee was the principal factor in the line remaining open for goods traffic.
Allis-Chalmers ED-40 tractor spec.:
- Engine - Standard Motor Co
- Engine spec - 1370cc, 40 horse power, four-cylinder diesel
- Eight speed transmission
- Top speed of 17mph
The ED-40 we saw in Cork had a ‘Winsam cabin’ cab which was a brand sold in the 1950s & 60s. These were for tractors before manufacturers started fitting their own in the early 1970s after roll bars or safety cabs became compulsory on new tractors. They were sold to the local dealers who sold them as an extra on new tractors till the manufacturer started offering their own safety cabs.
In the style of ‘taking coals to Newcastle ‘some of the English WD-40 were exported back to the US. The Allis Chalmers ED40 was the last model to be produced in England at the Essendine Factory in Rutland at the ended in 1968.
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Information sources:
1. Armstrongauctions.co.uk
2. Digitalcommons.unl.edu
3. Gibbardtractors.co.uk
4. Heritagemachines.com
5. Irishexaminer.com
6. Louthcoco.ie
7. Mural.maynoothuniversity.ie
8. Tractors.fandom.com
9. Wheelsandfields.com
#allischalmers #ED40 #mcgeesofardee #vintagetractor