STOP PRESS

As we go to press, we understand that the 2023 Morris Leslie vintage working weekend in 2023 will take place on July 22/23rd at Errol Airfield.

ear protection is definitely required on these classic machines.”

Aviemore-based Marcus MacBean, as previously featured in Earthmovers, has a large collection of classic Caterpillar equipment. His mount for the weekend was a very tidy looking Cat 977 tracked loader. His son Lochlan was on their Cat D4-7U dozer with a period-correct Hyster winch, capable of pulling a French-built towed grader, under licence from Cat.

In the cut area Philip Brown was at the controls of another Cat D4D dozer, saying, “In the past I’ve spent a lot of hours earning my living on these old dozers. Compared to the modern kit, they are a bit of a handful with all the different levers to operate, but it’s nice to come out and have a play on them again at a great event like this.”

Tracked Tractors

Making a welcome visit to the 2022 event was Tom French, owner of the Cumnockbased road haulage, plant hire and earthworks business. Tom brought a varied selection of his Caterpillar tracked agricultural tractors to the event, where he spent time at the controls of his D6 pulling a six-furrow plough.

On static display were two showroom condition 1947 D7 and D5 Cat tracked tractors. Both had spent their working lives in agricultural applications in the Cambridge area, before being fully restored to factory fresh condition under Tom’s ownership. When bought at auction, his D4D model was kitted out as a mobile welding plant, presumably for a pipeline application. With all that extra kit removed, it was happily pulling a set of Simba discs to cultivate an adjacent field.

Tom said, “I’ve always liked Cat machines, as we started the business in 1967 with a Cat 933 Traxcavator. As our business has grown over the years, it’s allowed me to indulge in my passion for collecting and owning classic tracked Cat tractors. Today’s ground conditions are ideal for showing the tractors off, as it is dry. Travelling across hard clay saves a whole lot of time by not having to clean out the tracks too much, before putting them back into storage.”

Charity Event

Visitors to the 2022 Morris Leslie classic working weekend were given the opportunity to make a contribution to Scotland’s Charity Air Ambulance, as the SCAA’s Maureen Young explained, “The amount raised for SCAA at this event was £1335.31, which was tremendous. Morris Leslie as a company is very supportive and raises funds through all sorts of events throughout the year. We’re extremely grateful for their support, which helps us to save and improve lives across Scotland.”