The Rarest of the Rare: Top 5 Vintage Equipment Stories of 2023
Check out a Guinness World Record steam tractor, a 1951 "Mighty Mouse dozer, a 1919 Best 25 rescued by helicopter, and more.
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Stories about vintage construction equipment and their collectors continued to be popular in 2023 for Equipment World audiences.
Among the stories was a Guinness World Record steam tractor built from scratch 113 years after it debuted and was lost to time. There was also a 1951 Mead “Mighty Mouse” Dozer, and a 1919 Best 25 crawler tractor that was saved by helicopter rescue from a remote area of California. Many of the stories have companion videos showing the machines in action.
We’re glad to see readers enjoy these stories as much as we do in telling them.
We’ve listed the top five vintage-equipment stories of 2023 below, along with links on how you can access them if you want to read – and watch – more. You can also check out our Vintage Equipment section on equipmentworld.com to see our full collection.
Kory Anderson and the 150 Case Project
1. Guinness World Record Steam Tractor: 150 Case Built from Scratch after 113 Years
In 2017, Kory Anderson and dozens of volunteers set out on a mission to build a replica from scratch of the largest steam tractor ever built. Sixteen months and 15,000 hours of work later, the dream became a reality.
And like the 150 Case it is modeled after, Anderson’s 150 is the largest steam tractor in the world – made official by Guinness World Records.
You can also watch a video of the behemoth in action on this story.
This 1951 Mead "Might Mouse" dozer owned and restored by Robert Dahs of Ohio can "lift its weight in wildcats!’” declares its brochure.Equipment World
Robert Dahs has a knack for finding unusual vintage equipment and restoring it. That includes a 1951 Mead “Mighty Mouse” Baby Bulldozer, which looks more like a kids’ toy than a construction machine.
The mini dozer was made by the Mead Specialties Co. in Chicago. Though it looks like a toy, it was by no means made for kids.
“A rough, tough, hard hitting little machine that can ‘lift its weight in wildcats!’” reads the brochure for the Baby Dozer.
Jim Lashaway operates his 1918 Russell steam tractor for an old-time rock crushing demonstration at the Historical Construction Equipment Association's annual convention September 23 in Bowling Green, Ohio.Equipment World
The second steam tractor in the top 5 is a 1918 Russell that belongs to Jim Lashaway, who demonstrates how to fire up the old tractor in a video attached to our story.
“The Boss” logo on the back side of the tractor – a bull standing proudly on a rock – symbolizes what Russell & Company at the time called, “The strongest farm traction engine built.”
“Steam power is probably the most awesome power there is,” says Lashaway.
The 1919 Best 25 chassis gets a lift.Matt Veerkamp and Shawn Stover
You won’t believe the lengths this avid antique Cat collector and his friend went to in rescuing this century-old Best 25 crawler tractor out of the remote desert of California.
Along with a lengthy hike carrying tools on their backs, they hired a helicopter to bring the rusty old tractor from a long-defunct mine. Then it was completely restored.
We’ve got the video to prove it.
George and Alan Marsh found this rare Scoop Shovel attachment on a Facebook auction. It was made by the Thew Shovel Company for its Lorain cranes. The Marshes' crane with the Scoop Shovel is a 1956 Lorain TL-25.Equipment World
Historical construction equipment aficionados were doing double-takes when walking past George Marsh’s 1956 Lorain TL-25 crawler crane.
It wasn’t the 66-year-old crane itself, which is not so rare, but the attachment on the front of it that was catching attention at Historical Construction Equipment Association’s annual convention.
The Scoop Shovel, as it was called, was made by the Thew Shovel Company, which built Lorain cranes. And as far as George or anyone else at the show was aware, it’s the only one known left to exist.
You can read all about it and watch it in action.
