Landships II

Hello

 I have run across this information on the Lefebvre:

In July 1914 a tractor made its apperance which could have been the answer to the French artillery testing commission's quest for a vehicle with good cross-country performance in any condition. This vehicle lso had the distinction of being the first with the half-track configuration, though it also had rear wheels. Mechanically it was based on Schneider tractor parts. Its designer, Lefebvre, was by the American Holt crawler tractor. The Lefebvre tractor had steel wheels for normal o running but carried crawler tracks at the rear which were arranged to run a round small bogie wheels attached to a pivoted frame structure. The front end of the frame could raised or lowered by worm gearing from handles adjacent to the driving position. On coming to rough ground, the driver would lower the track frames. To give added traction, ballest weights could be carried in a box at the rear. Though intended for agricultural work, It was suggested to the Army that the Lefebvre Half-track tractor be examined and evaluated for military service. The proposal coincided with the outbreak of the First World War, and in the rush to mobilise, nothing was done about this promising design.

All the Best

Tim R.