Cat Stock Blog

CBS News ran this video on its Sunday morning program in February 2007. The number of assertions proved wrong since then makes it almost comically upbeat, and therefore worthy blog fodder (ridicule is implied merely by posting it).

Watch CBS Videos Online

(Note there’s an annoying ad at the beginning).

More Caterpillar appearances on CBS.

How about we step away from the scene of this bear market mauling for a moment and enjoy the simple pleasure of gawking at pictures of stuff you’ll never see on Antiques Roadshow. Like formerly rusty old wrecks from the early days of Caterpillar. (Look, this has to be work-safe or the Cat.com overlords will ruin all our fun).

Given the size, complexity and butt-ugly appearance of an aging tractor, it’s fairly remarkable that so many people get a kick out of nursing them back to showroom condition. It’s also interesting how many ancient-machine restorers step away from their workshops and build Web sites devoted to these beasts.

Antiquecrawlers.com is one fine example. I loved this old pic from the 1930s:

The author says that’s his dad at the controls of a Diesel 75.

Here’s one he fixed up himself.

Another site: Crow’s Nest’s Caterpillars page. Here’s restored Caterpillar D4 with a HT-4 Traxcavator loader:

Finally, here’s an old Cat used to bulldoze snow in Maine from this guy’s site:

Here’s what it looked like when he started.

My Antiques tag archive has previous old-tractor posts.

OK, back to fretting over the state of the global economy.

Probably not a Caterpillar, but a very interesting use of tracks:

Link via BoingBoing.

What is that contraption, anyway? Seems there’s a popular tourist destination off the British coast called Burgh Island. You have to cross a narrow sand isthmus to get there, but at high tide the isthmus is under water. So, a ferry was invented to take people there without soaking their pant legs. The picture above is from 1936. An updated version of the ferry is still in use (with fat tires instead of tracks).

WikiPedia has more info on Burgh Island.

The Antique Caterpillar Machinery Owners Club is a must stop for wandering down memory lane. Here’s a pic from a recent get-together. Now those are some old tractors. The club has chapters in several states, plus New Zealand and the UK. You can also stop by the bulletin board to see pictures of folks plowing snow in their old dozers (have to register to see ’em though.)

For an amazing junk-to-gem restoration, check out this link. A guy takes a pile of rust in the form of an ancient D2 dozer and works it back into showroom condition.


Antique Caterpillar Machinery Enthusiasts is another fine resource. The photo gallery includes an array shots from a 1914 Holt 75 that in 1919 became the first Caterpillar used in Australia. Cool.

While we’re on the subject of old Cats, it’s always fun to see what’s selling on eBay. Cats hold their value pretty well, despite the abuse the endure.