David Brown farm tractor books - history

David Brown Tractors

This book provides a comprehensive history of David Brown tractors, covering the period from 1939 to the company's closure in 1988. Jonathan Whitlam details the models produced at the Huddersfield factory in Yorkshire and their evolution over time.
The author highlights many of the innovative features introduced by David Brown, including hydraulic systems and transmissions. The book traces the development of early models, such as the Type A tractor created in collaboration with Harry Ferguson, and later independent models, including the Cropmaster, 900 series, and the Selectmatic range introduced in 1965. It also covers the 90 and 94 series and other machinery inspired by David Brown.

In addition, the book discusses the company's mergers with the US-based Case and International Harvester, leading to its eventual decline during a global economic downturn. This work offers a concise yet thorough account of David Brown's legacy as a prominent British tractor manufacturer.

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David Brown Tractors 1936-1964 (2nd Edition) (Nostalgia Road)

The story of the David Brown tractor is a key chapter in British agricultural engineering history, beginning over 60 years ago in the heart of Yorkshire's wool textile industry. The book explains in detail how tractors were built in Huddersfield, a town better known for its worsted cloth, choral society, and football team.

Covering the period from 1936 to 1964, it traces the development of David Brown tractors, highlighting their significance in the farming world.

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The David Brown Tractor Story (Part 1) 1936-1948

This is the first of three books exploring the history of David Brown and its products. It traces the company's origins in Huddersfield, Yorkshire, where it began as a wooden pattern maker in the 1860s. By the early 20th century, David Brown gained recognition for pioneering machine-cut gears, becoming one of the world's leading gear manufacturers.

The company entered the tractor industry in 1936 through a short-lived partnership with Harry Ferguson. Though unsuccessful, this collaboration provided valuable experience, leading to the launch of David Brown's first tractor, the VAK1, in 1939.

During World War II, agricultural tractor production was limited, but the company secured important defense contracts. It manufactured Spitfire gears, tank gearboxes, aircraft-towing tractors, and heavy crawlers. These developments positioned David Brown for post-war success.

This well-researched and richly illustrated book details the company's early years, concluding with the introduction of the VAK1/C Cropmaster, one of Britain's most popular tractors of the 1950s.

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The David Brown Tractor Story (Part 2) - Agricultural Tractors 1949-1964

This is the second volume in a trilogy of books that look in depth at the history of David Brown tractors, and a remarkable record of a proud company during probably the greatest period of its history. Part Two focuses on the period during which the motto of this celebrated Yorkshire company was "Mechanising the world's farms" - no idle boast.

Focusing on the company's agricultural tractors, the book starts in the era of the famous Cropmaster model, which pioneered so many industry "firsts" including the high-speed direct-injection diesel engine. It heralded the beginning of an intense period of engineering innovation as the range was enlarged to include crawlers, a six-cylinder wheeled tractor and a novel toolbar machine.
David Brown's goal was to capture the world's markets with a range of six tractors and 60 implements. It nearly all fell apart after the product line became overloaded, coupled with the somewhat underwhelming appearance of the ill-fated DB 900 model in 1956, but the company regrouped and channelled its resources into a new series of middleweight wheeled tractors that brought even greater success.
Moving into the early 1960s, and the final years of David Brown's 'red' tractors, the hugely popular 880 and 990 Implematic models began to have a dramatic affect on sales - helping to confirm Meltham's position as Britain's third largest tractor manufacturer.

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