Monsters Cars, forest killer
Unfortunately, humanity has a short memory, and remembers its "heroes" selectively. For example, today almost everyone knows that the most important inventors for our civilization were such people as Tesla, Einstein, the Wright brothers, Leonardo da Vinci, Henry Ford and Rudolf Diesel. Geniuses whose discoveries we use now every day. Meanwhile, mankind knew other inventors, whose names are unfortunately not on the list, but whose discoveries have become basic, framework for future generations.
One of such significant personalities was the American self-taught engineer Robert Gilmore LeTorno (1888-1969), without whose inventions we would not have most of the construction and quarry equipment now.
In fact, during his life, this man has received more than 300 patents of authorship, creating an absolutely unique for his time technique. For example, you probably did not know, but more than 70% of engineering machines used in the Second World War, were invented by him. And literally every excavation technique that you now see on construction sites and in quarries, was born only thanks to his genius.
This man, who received in his life only primary and special education in the form of "Motorcycle Maintenance Specialist", was able not only to invent, but also build so many amazing, huge and unusual machines that this story would suffice for the biography of several dozen people. Some of his "babies" were very successful. For example, all wheeled front loaders, scrapers and earthmoving machines were born thanks to him.
But there was also such special equipment in his history that struck the whole world with only a few samples, leaving an indelible mark in the history. And today we will tell about one of the activities of LeTorno - his invention of machines for sawing.
From the very beginning of his activity Robert had a craving for giganticism. In his understanding, only really big machines could cope with big tasks, and the word "big" meant more than 100 tons.
In 1960, LeTorno created the world's largest (this record is not broken even today) sawing machine called the Tree Crusher G-175, whose weight, as can be seen from the index, was incredible 175 tons. Equipped with an 850-horsepower 12-cylinder engine, this machine could pave huge swaths in the forest, because the width of its front wheel reached 10 meters, and it weighed more than 30 tons. It was not possible to cut the forest along the highway.
However, it was not possible to get there at first. Assembled in 1964 at the company plant in Texas, the car was disassembled and delivered to the front of the work in Mackenzie (Canada), where for several months it could not start working. From May to July, it fell only 320 hectares of forest, which was indecent, given the investment in it! But then things got better, and from the end of July to November 17, 1965 G175 cut down as much as 2250 hectares of forest, repeatedly crossing rivers on fords and a half meters.
But the great designer then did not understand his mistake, and in 1964 created a new machine - the amazing "Forest Toptun" model 6-110, which was fundamentally different from its previous counterparts.
This device was a walking technique, and was designed specifically for felling in swamps and flooded areas.
In fact, it was a walking multi-ton mechanism, the bottom of which was an intermediate support for the transfer of "paws". It simply moved along the thickets, with its weight and front powerful frame reminding under itself everything that it will get on the road. This, in fact, was a very ruthless and barbaric way to clear the territory and lay down the clearing in the forest.
The swine weighed as much as 120 tons and was equipped with a 475 hp diesel engine. At the same time, it exerted very little pressure on the ground, i.e. it was all-terrain, but had a wild thrust. The "legs" were driven by electric motors, and the equipment was turned in the process of lifting one of them.
But, even this swing turned out to be too clumsy and difficult to control. Again, it did not obey, ruthlessly destroying everyone and everything. In addition, it often broke, stalled, could not be delivered to the place and pulled out of the mire.
One of the latest experiments on the creation of sawmill huge machines was a series of Star Wheel produced from 1965 to 1967. This technique was equipped with "hexagonal" wheels, T-shaped pressure beam for felling, and 475 hp engines. And it was actively used for clearing clearings in the jungle of Vietnam during the war.
This series was the last in a series of LeTorno logging units. They say that only after the failure with it, the designer realized: big - not always good. Sometimes even in the solution of large problems are more effective compact size. After all, the main thing is not to possess something really heavy and powerful, but to be able to manage it and make it work for yourself.
