David Brown

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David Brown 770 selectamatic at Belvoir Castle show 2008

David Brown Limited is a British engineering company, principally engaged in the manufacture of gears and gearboxes. Their major gear manufacturing plant is in Swan Lane, Lockwood, Huddersfield, adjacent to Lockwood railway station. Previously from the 1930 till the 1970s they were a Major tractor builder. Selling the tractor production line to Tenneco (J.I.Case) during the 1970s recession.

Company General History

David Brown 25D at Lymswold show 2008

David Brown 25D Aircraft Tug in as found condition at Cromford Steam Rally 2008

David Brown 30D reg no. 457APO

A David Brown Super Cropmaster at Bakewell Show 2008

A David Brown 1200 with cultivator in the Working area at the GDSF 2008

Founded in 1860 as a pattern manufacturing company, by 1873 David Brown had focused on gear systems, and by 1898 was specialising in machine cut gears. The company then moved in 1902 to Park Works at Huddersfield, were the firm is still based. David Brown died in 1903 and Percy and Frank his sons took over and began manufacture of complete gear units with bearings and shafts worm drive gears. Gearing manufactured by David Browns and powered by electric motors manufactured by Brook Crompton (Electric) Motors, whose factory was in Brockholes are used to rotate the top of the BT Tower in London.

By the end of the First World War the workforce had increased from 200 to 1000 as they started building propulsion units for warships, and drive mechanisms for armaments. In 1913 they established a joint venture in America with Timken for worm drive units. By 1921 the company was the largest worm gear manufacturer in the world.

The company in 1930 took over P.R. Jackson Ltd, another local firm of gear manufacturers and steel founders. David Brown II became MD in 1931 following his farther Percys death, with Frank becoming chairman. The Firm formed another overseas joint venture with Richardson Gears (Pty) Ltd of Footscray, Victoria, Australia in 1934. The company obtained a patent for a tank transmission using controlled differential steering system, known as the Merritt-Brown system in 1935.

Tractor Building

(section requires expanding) They first ventured into tractor production in a joint project with Harry Ferguson in 1936 building the Ferguson-Brown tractor. David Brown became one of the biggest British tractor manufactures for a period post war, with a major manufacturing plant at Meltham Mills, Meltham West Yorkshire England. The company broke new ground where others were only to follow later, being a pioneering company ultimately lead to their downfall. The Ferguson brown had a load of innovative features including alot of the components being of cast alloy construction, which was light but could be prown to damage. The Ferguson-Brown used a Coventry Climax engine for the first 350 tractors. Browns developed there own engine which was fitted to subsequent production. Total production was 1350 + 1 built from parts in 1940 after production finished.

Then when Ferguson joined up with Henry Ford to allow his "Ferguson System" three-point linkage to be used on the Fordson N tractors the agreement was terminated prematurely by Ferguson's actions. Prior to the end of the manufacturing agreement with Ferguson, David Brown had foresaw a future in tractor production and designed his own tractor the 'VAK1' in secret. It was launched at the 1939 Royal Show.

During the war David brown built many tractors for the Royal air Force (RAF) that were used as aircraft tugs (VIG) and and for pulling the bomb trolleys for aircraft re arming. These tractors are distinctive with Truck like tyres wrap round body work, and HD bumpers front and rear, some being fitted with winches.

In 1942 they started building a Tracklayer version the DB4 after an earlier attempt the VTK1 had failed to work as an aircraft tug. The DB4 was built for the Army engineers and solved some of the problems found with the VTK, and got round an embargo on imported machines for military use.

By the 1970s tractors stated to be offered with cabs as an accessory and by the late 70s had to be supplied with Safety cabs to provide rollover protection, or be fitted with ROPS safety frames. By the 1980s cabs had to be sound reducing as well.

The 90 series tractors introduced in 1979 were part DB derived designs and but the larger models were from the Case range from America.

Last tractor off the line in March 1988 was a Case 1594 (s/n 154BJB11528785).

Car manufacture

In 1947, the company acquired Aston Martin and in 1948, Lagonda. The investment by David Brown led to the DB series of Aston Martins. The most famous being the DB5 type loaned to the producers of the 'James Bond' series of films, this resulted in a huge amount of publicity & resultant sales rise.

Both car companies were sold in 1972 to Company Developments Limited, when Aston Martin was in financial trouble, for a nominal £100. And David Brown was hit by banking fall out from the recession and Rolls Royce (aero engines) getting into trouble.

Restructuring

In 1970, the family disposed of its stake to its management who floated the group as a public company in 1973. David Brown was acquired by Tenneco corp. and integrated in to their J.I.Case tractor operating division in October 1978. In 1984 Tenneco acquired the tractor business of the International Harvester Company. By 1988 the Meltham factory shut with production moving to the IH factory at Doncaster. Branding was changed to Case-International, and Lines rationalised (See Case IH article)

• (Dates in original article sound a bit late to me)? changed based on other sources as wrong.

David Brown Industrial Gears was acquired by Textron Inc. in October 1998. The company, trading as David Brown Engineering Ltd, is head quartered in Huddersfield, and is now a leading supplier of heavy transmission systems for industrial, defence and marine applications. These include transmissions for the British Challenger 2 tanks and American M2/M3 Bradley Fighting Vehicles . Basically carrying on there original gear and transmission business, as a subsidiary of Textron Inc.

David Brown tractor model range

David Brown 880 Implematic of 1964 reg no.BNU 931B

David Brown 50D Crawler in ex farm condition

A David Brown 990 Selectamatic

• Ferguson-Brown - 1936-39
• DB VAK1 - 1939-45
  • DB VAK1A - 1945-47
  • VAK1C Cropmaster - 1947-54
• DB VTK1 - 1941-42 Tracked Tug for air ministry, most converted to tractors as it failed to work
• DB VIG1 - 1941-49 Air ministry aircraft tugs
• DB Aircraft tug
• DB Cropmaster 3PL
• DB4 Crawler - 1942-49 (110 built)
• DB Taskmaster - 1948-65
• DB 50TD Trackmaster - 1950-63
• DB 30TD Trackmaster - 1953- ?
• DB 25, DB 25C, DB 25D - 1953-58
• DB 30C, DB 30D - 1953-57
• DB 50D VAD - 1953-59 6-cylinder
• DB 900 series 1955-57
• DB 2D (VAD 12) - Row crop /toolbar 1956-64
• DB 950 series - 1958-61
• DB 750 - 1965
• DB 770 - selectamatic 1965-71 36 hp 3-cylinder
• DB 775 - (up dated 770 for export)
• DB 780 - 1967 46 hp 4-cylinder
• DB 850 series - 1960-65
  • DB 850 Implematic - 1960 3-cylinder
• DB 880 Implematic - 1961-65 46 hp 4-cylinder
• DB 880 Selecamatic - 1965-71 46 hp
• DB 885 - (up dated 770)
• DB 900 - 1957
• DB 950 - 1958
• DB 950 Implematic
• DB 985
• DB 990 Implematic - 1961-65
• DB 990 Selectamatic - 1965-71 55 hp
• DB 995
• DB 996
• DB 1190 - 1979 48 hp (2WD Only)
• DB 1194 - 1983 48 hp
• DB 1200 - 1967 67 hp (72 hp 1968)
• DB 1210
• DB 1212
• DB 1290 - 1979 58 hp
• DB 1294 - 1983 61 hp
• DB 1390 - 1979 67 hp
• DB 1394 - 1983 72 hp (turbo)
• DB 1400
• DB 1410 Hydra-shift
• DB 1412 - 1974 91hp
• DB 1490 - 1979 83 hp
• DB 1494 - 1983 83 hp
• DB 1594 - 1983 95 hp 6-clyinder
• DB 1690 - 1979 103 hp 6-cylinder
• DB 1694 - 1983 108 hp (turbo)
• DB 2090 - 1979 120 hp (2WD only)
• DB 2290 - 1979 139 hp (2WD only)
• DB 2390 - 1979 171 hp (2WD only)
• DB 4690 - 1979 233 hp (4WD Only)
• DB 4890 - 198? 273 hp (Scania engine)
• DB 3800 - Gasoline (US)
• DB 4600 - Gasoline (US)
• Implematic
• selectomatic

Specials

• DB 770 Orchard
• DB 885 Vine yard
• DB 1390 Orchard

• DB Oliver built for export

Case Versions

• Case 970 Agri-King 101 hp

Crawler Tractors

DB Bulldozer in the S.E. Davis & Son collection 2008, (Blaw Knox built Blade ?)

• DB 30T
• DB 30TD
• DB 50 Trackmaster - 1952-53 50 hp 6-cylinder
• DB 40TD
• DB 40TD - Track shovel (by Meiller) possibly 10 only built ?
• DB 50TD - 1953-65

Preserved Machines

• David Browns are a popular model for collectors, with a good selection of them on display at a lot of the shows. There are quite a few of the Aircraft tug versions about that look more like a truck with tarmac tyres, and often twin rear wheels.

Collectors Groups

• David Brown Owners Club [1]
• David Brown 2D Register, E-mail:horti-man@clayhill05.wanadoo.co.uk

See also

• List of Tractor Manufacturers
• List of Construction Plant Manufacturers
• List of Collections
• Ferguson-Brown - Early joint venture
• Oliver - Sold some DB models rebadged.
• Case Corporation formerly J.I.Case - Successor to DB
• International Harvester - Merged with Case to form Case IH
• Case IH- Formed by merger of Case & IH, now part of CNH.
• CNH - Parent co of Case IH Division.
• Shows and Meets
• Show Reports

References

• Classic Tractor Magazine various articles
• Tractor & Machinery Magazine various articles
• David Brown Tractors 1965-1988 by Anthony J. Heath, ISBN 1-903016-03-7

External links

• Power Transmission Products - David Brown
• David Brown history
• The David Brown Tractor Club, Spinks Mill, Meltham