The 60th Anniversary of White David Browns.

1966 is generally recognised in the UK as the beginning of white David Browns, as this is when they began to appear on British farms. However, the evolution of this is rather more complicated than it initially appears! As we will see, it wasn’t precisely aligned with the introduction of the Selectamatic hydraulic system.

Canada was a good market for David Brown in the 1950’s, but they had yet to reach over the border into the USA, except in a small way during the early 1960’s. As the size of tractors was constantly growing, companies in the USA were beginning to supply the shrinking lower end of the market with imports, rather than building small volumes themselves. It was the Oliver Corporation that approached David Brown to supply tractors in their colours and styling. A deal was done where the David Brown 850 and 990 would become the Oliver 500 and 600 respectively. A plentiful, cheap supply of gasoline (petrol) was available in the USA due to the composition of their crude oil, so petrol powered small tractors were still popular. The David Brown 850 engine had been derived from TVO and petrol engines, parts were still available to offer both petrol and diesel powered versions of the 500. The 600 was only available as a diesel.

However, an opportunity to sell many more tractors in the USA arose in 1964. Ford had disenfranchised some of their tractor dealers; they grouped together to find an alternative supplier. David Brown were invited to take some of their tractors to the USA to demonstrate to this group. The Implematic tractors were well received, but the opinion was that they looked dated and the predominantly red colour didn’t stand out from the crowd of other red tractors, such as International and Massey Ferguson. Their suggestion was rather radical; it was to copy the colours of the Bolens garden tractors that they were already selling, which was brown and white with red detailing! A base in the USA was established and the deal with Oliver was terminated, having supplied just over 2,000 tractors. The first white tractors arrived in the USA in May 1965; they were based on the 3 cylinder 880 Implematic and 990 Implematic, both diesel powered. Branded as ‘David Brown Diesel’, they were fitted with a different nosecone and painted in the new colours. As with the 3 cylinder 880 Implematic, there was no ‘cross box’ under the seat; this was also deleted at this point on 990 Implematics.

Meanwhile, the 770 had been introduced in January 1965. Despite being the first model to use the Selectamatic hydraulic system, it retained the old colours and styling; it was envisaged that only USA bound tractors would carry the new livery, as had been the case with the Oliver arrangement. All other markets would receive Selectamatic versions of the 880 and 990, together with the 770, all in red and yellow. It was probably presumed that the new colours would meet with resistance elsewhere, but once others had seen the re-styled models, they wanted them too!

It was therefore decided to officially launch the full Selectamatic range in the new colours and styling at the Smithfield Show, in London (December 1965). The bonnet styling had been revised slightly from that used on the hurriedly prepared early versions sent to the USA; the nosecone had been in one piece, attached to the original Implematic bonnet top. This had been a complex pressing that was difficult to produce, so the new style was in four sections. Tractors using a petrol engine derived from the three cylinder diesel engine were added to the USA range later, but that’s another story.

Just to add to the confusion, six 880 Selectamatics had been built in the old style before the decision to go all white. At least one of these survives. This sort of thing wasn’t unusual at Meltham, right to the end; it is said that there were several Case 1194’s that appeared in the red Case IH colours before it was decided that it should be discontinued, together with the 1294!