Why did Cat go with hand clutch

Well to start with Holt and Best used hand cluches. Hand cluches are adjustable when plate wears a little and clutch slips you undo a lock of some sort a bolt or ping ,turn it a bit and clutch is tight again and 22 has spring presureplate that only has ajustment for the linkage.
I beleave they only used the foot clutch on the 2ton,10,15.little15,little20 and the 22

Dan most makes of direct drive track tractors have or had hand clutches.
The over centre heavy duty clutch needed for larger crawlers does not lend it's self to a foot operated clutches mainly because they have to lock in "over centre" yr'd have a pretty worn out leg eh !!!
Regards Gordon.

Dan most makes of direct drive track tractors have or had hand clutches.
The over centre heavy duty clutch needed for larger crawlers does not lend it's self to a foot operated clutches mainly because they have to lock in "over centre" yr'd have a pretty worn out leg eh !!!
Regards Gordon.

I don't know the origins of the hand clutch but I suspect Cat copied the design from someone else like many of their "innovations" or they were acquired through purchase of other manufacturers. I don't know all the brands but Cletrac had double plate spring loaded foot or assisted foot clutches from the beginning.

The Cat's aren't all hand clutch, the grader's and the DW 10's were foot operated double disc spring loaded clutches.

Adding to Gordon's observation. The heavy over center push/pull clutch engagement is the key. Unlike one's arm, our foot only pushes one way, not pulls. Plus, the mechanical advantage of one's arm is that it has over a two foot throw on the long clutch lever. One's foot on a pedal, has only about half the travel of the arm on the clutch lever, which makes the foot only about as powerful as the arm, "one way". When I first installed my new clutch plate in my D4 7U, it took two arms to pull the clutch lever over center. I only use my left arm now, as nowI have a stonger left arm. 😄

It always seems the most interesting going to an old john deere where you have to push the lever with your right hand to engage instead of pulling with your left.

Hi, 15sp4250.
Fiat was another one that got it bass ackwards. You had to push the clutch lever forward to engage it but at least they had it under the LEFT hand.

Some IH TD24's came out with a foot clutch. I don't think that version was kept in production very long.

Hi, 15sp4250.
Fiat was another one that got it bass ackwards. You had to push the clutch lever forward to engage it but at least they had it under the LEFT hand.

Some IH TD24's came out with a foot clutch. I don't think that version was kept in production very long.

Toy Cats have foot clutches like a car .. Real Cats have hand clutches .. 😄
You haven't lived, until you've had to put in 12 solid hours on a Cat with a hand clutch, massively-sprung, non-power-assisted steering clutches, a transmission shifter, a FWD/REV lever, two CCU levers, a hyd blade lever, no muffler, no cab, choking dust, or freezing rain .. and then spent every 10 seconds out of every 20 seconds .. twisting your neck and body around, to check on what a trailing machine such as a Carryall is doing .. 😮
I can only marvel at those old guys who wielded TWO CCU's, and TWO Carryalls, along with most of the foregoing controls, and working conditions .. 🙄

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