Case 450 vs. Komatsu D31P

I'm NOT colour-blind. I still look at each machine on its merits and in the light of my experience of them. If YOU buy on COLOUR, you're not very smart.

In my humble experience, all other things being equal, I'd take the 'Kummagutsa' over the (Just Inadequate) Case any time.

I also note in this series of posts that one person claimed that Case was the first with Full- power turns in their crawler tractors. I don't know if it gave them full-power turns or not, but Cletrac were making diff-steer crawlers way before Case even had a crawler tractor division. (Which, incidentally, they acquired by buying out TerraTrac.) You may like to run that one by Blake Malkamaki at Cletrac.org. (Link below.)

I suspect that the early Holt and Best tiller-wheel steer crawlers may have had a diff which would have given them full power on both tracks while turning. That would be a helluva long time before Case got into the act.

I also KNOW that many British WW1 tanks had separate gearboxes for each track and that the tank was steered by changing the gearbox for one track up or down to slow or speed up that track. That was FOR SURE a LONG time pre-Case.

Who-ever you were, if you are going to make STATEMENTS, at least have the integrity to be informed about the topic on which you are making said statement.

You have a wonderful day. Best wishes. Deas Plant.

• Cletrac.org

You can please yourself about what statements you make where or when but, if you want to maintain some semblance of credibility, it might pay to be sure of your facts before making them. Or, "Be sure brain is switched on before putting mouth into gear".

I don't want to make any enemies here but I want even less to see MIS-information being bandied about.

As mentioned in one or two previous posts, most of the people who come to this forum are probably hobbyists or newcomers to the crawler tractor scene. Is it not then the responsibilty of those of us who have some experience in these matters to give the best information and advice we can?

For me, this is the end of this matter. I hope it is for you too.

You have a wonderful day. Best wishes. Deas Plant.

Oliver were still making tractors based on the Cletrac models when Case bought out Terratrac. These tractors had Cletrac's controlled differential steering which Cletrac had been using since it started making tractors back in about 1917 or '18. The fact that they were making tractors when Case got into the crawler market, in my book, makes Oliver/Cletrac a 'MODERN' manufacturer.

And if you want to make 'QUALIFIED' statements, then add the qualifications. Nowhere in your original post did it say 'modern'. It just said 'first'.

You might like to check out the link below for a similar discussion on another forum. I didn't KNOW, so I asked.

You have a wonderful day. Best wishes. Deas Plant.

• Diff steering at Cletrac.org

There are two schematics on the site below, one of a 60's Case 310 steering and the other of a 1933 Cletrac steering. You 'Case First' folks might like to take a look but suit yourself. It's no skin off my nose.

You have a wonderful day. Best wishes. Deas Plant.

• Case Pics.

Full power turns is something Case has had first, and still has. On mine it's "lever" steer. (on the floor) You have a hi-lo on each track. To make a full power turn, you push one lever ahead to power shift the track into hi, leaveing the opposite track in low. The tractor will then make a full power turn. It also has brake pedals, to "brake" pedal steer similar to the others. New Case machines have the same system, but as i remember the levers are on the arm console? I haven't run a newer machine in so long at the moment i've forgotton how to run one. Can someone help me out here?? Robert