Le Tourneau Logistical Car

Robert Gilmour LeTourneau, 1888–1969). Although LeTourneau retired in 1966 when he handed over control of his business to his son Richard, he still continued to spend time at the drawing board working on new designs. However, he died in March 1969 after suffering a severe stroke. Robert Gilmore LeTourneau continued designing new earth moving equipment right up until his death in 1969 Le Tourneau Logistical Car VC-12 Tournatrain , 1954 Originally conceived to assist logging in trackless wilderness, LeTourneau, famed for its earthmovers, devised the first of its land trains, the VC-12 Tournatrain, in 1953-1954 with a lead cab and three trailers. A 500hp Cummins diesel powered a generator that then fed electric motors at each wheel, thus spreading the power application across 16 wheels to enhance traction. A later iteration of the Tournatrain added a second Cummins and four more trailers to put 32 drive wheels to the ground. Though pitched to the Army, LeTourneau never found a buyer for the VC-12. The Army did, however, offer to fund the 1954 TC-264 Sno-Buggy, an eight-wheeled super-sized Tonka toy that used a butane-fired Allison engine to run the generators that fed power to four electric motors. A four-wheeled, non-powered trailer went with it. Le Tourneau Logistical Car VC-22 Sno-Freighter , 1955 Early in 1955 , however, LeTourneau contracted with Alaska Freight Lines Inc. to build the VC-22 Sno-Freighter to supply the construction of the Distant Early Warning surveillance system across Alaska, Canada and Greenland. With a pair of 400hp Cummins diesel engines and five powered trailers, the VC-22 hauled up to 150 tons of cargo. Le Tourneau Logistical Car LCC-1 Sno-Train, 1956 The Sno-Buggy impressed the Army during its trials so much, the Army decided to combine traits of the Sno-Buggy and the Tournatrain into what LeTourneau called the YS-1 Sno-Train, and what the Army called the LCC-1. It used a single 600hp Cummins and three trailers for a total capacity of 45 tons. Released in 1956, it served in Greenland for DEW resupply runs until 1962. Le Tourneau Logistical Car TC-497 Overland Train Mark II, 1961 Six years later, (1961) LeTourneau made one final stab at building the ultimate land train. Designed to traverse arctic conditions as well as sand and desert, the six-wheeled TC-497 Overland Train MkII used four solar gas-turbine engines (at 1,170hp each, that’s 4,680hp total) to spin generators that delivered juice to 54 total motors – one for each of its wheels. Of its 12 trailers, two were dedicated just to carrying the turbines and generators. Известность компании "ЛеТурно" принесли уникальные образцы самых крупных в мире внедорожных транспортных средств, предназначенных прежде всего для военных целей. В 1919 г. ее основал инженер Роберт Гилмур ЛеТурно (Robert Gilmour LeTourneau, 1888–1969). Он разработал самоходный скрепер с шарнирносочлененной рамой и бензиновым мотором, вращавшим генератор, от которого ток подавался на электромоторы, вмонтированные в широкие металлические колеса, получившие затем название мотор-колеса , а вся схема стала именоваться электромеханической или электрической трансмиссией. Впоследствии она легла в основу большинства машин марки "ЛеТурно". В 1942-1944 г "ЛеТурно" разрабатывал на конкурсной основе специальный 40-тонный транспортер Т4 (4x4), состоявший из двух одноосных тягачей с 220-сильными двигателями "Кадиллак" (Cadillac), между которыми подвешивалась платформа для перевозки основных танков М4. Фирмы Mack, Cook Brothers, Kenworth, Corbitt и Sterling разрабатывавали аналогичные конструкции. Sterling - Т26Е1 8x8 а Corbitt - Т20Е4 8x8 и T-33 12 ton . В сборке на Detroit Arsenal транпортеров XM376 / XM377 Le Tourneau вероятно также принимал участие совместно с Mack. В 50-х годах компания участвовала в программе Goer совместнос с Caterpillar и Clark .