The David Brown Taskmaster was one of the longest-running models in the Meltham range, listed from 1948 to 1965. It was sold in the years when the company also built the Cropmaster and, later, the Implematic tractors.
David Brown Taskmaster at a glance
| Maker | David Brown Tractors, Meltham, Yorkshire |
|---|---|
| Production | 1948–1965 |
| Range-mates | Cropmaster, then the Implematic tractors |
| Tracked machinery of the period | DB4 tracklayer, 1942–1949 |
| DB4 replaced by | Trackmaster 30 in 1950 |
| Aircraft tugs | VIG for the Royal Air Force |
| Works | Meltham, West Riding of Yorkshire |
| Company | David Brown, founded 1860; tractors from 1936 |
| Exports | at one stage 80% of tractor production |
| Company sold | to Tenneco (J.I. Case) in 1972 |
No Wikipedia page exists for the Taskmaster itself. This article is based on the maker’s page, David Brown Ltd., which lists the model and its production years; it is based on one source.
History of the David Brown Taskmaster
Tractors at Meltham
David Brown was founded in Huddersfield in 1860 and became a gear manufacturer, moving to Park Works in 1902. In 1934 the company took over an old silk mill at Meltham, on the south side of Huddersfield, and in 1936 began building tractors there with Harry Ferguson. The Ferguson-Brown used a Coventry Climax engine for its first 350 tractors; Brown then developed his own engine, and 1,350 were built in total, plus one assembled from parts in 1940. The partnership ended in disagreement, and Brown designed the VAK1 in secret; it was launched at the 1939 Royal Show and over 7,700 were sold, most during the Second World War.
The Taskmaster years
The Taskmaster was listed from 1948 to 1965, which makes it one of the longest-lived David Brown models. Its early years overlapped with the VAK1C Cropmaster of 1947–1954, and its later years with the 950, 850, 880 and 990 Implematic tractors. David Brown’s other work of the period included military and industrial machines: the DB4 tracklayer of 1942, powered by a 38 h.p. Dorman diesel with a five-speed gearbox and built for army engineers, was replaced in 1950 by the Trackmaster 30, while VIG aircraft tugs were built for the Royal Air Force.
Exports and the sale to Case
The tractor division grew to ten subsidiaries around the world, exported up to 80% of production at one stage and sold through 2,508 agents in 100 countries. A worldwide recession brought tractor sales down, and in 1972 the operations were sold to Tenneco of America, owner of J.I. Case. Case used the David Brown name on some of its own British tractors until the early 1980s.
Design and features
- Long production: listed from 1948 to 1965, through three changes of the range.
- Early companion: it was sold alongside the Cropmaster in the late 1940s and early 1950s.
- Late companion: by the early 1960s it shared the works with the Implematic tractors.
- Meltham-built: made at the Yorkshire works that had built tractors since 1936.
David Brown Taskmaster versions
- Taskmaster (1948–1965): the model as listed in the David Brown range.
- VAK1C Cropmaster (1947–1954): the stablemate of its early years.
- 850, 880 and 990 Implematic (1961–1965): the stablemates of its last years.
- DB4 tracklayer (1942–1949): the military tracklayer of the same period.
The Taskmaster was sold with the Cropmaster and later with the 850; the 950 belongs to the same works. More machines are in the David Brown collection.
Sources
- David Brown Ltd., English Wikipedia: tractor range and production years, company history
