Design
Cultivator was designed to cut a trench 7 feet 6 inches (2.29 m) wide and 5 feet (1.5 m) deep and it would dispose of the spoil on banks either side of the cut trench. It could dig at 0.42 or 0.67 mile per hour (0.68 or 1.08 km/h) or travel at 3.04 miles per hour (4.89 km/h) on the surface.
When configured in digging order, the overall length of the machine was 77 feet 6 inches (23.62 m). The machine came in two parts that were hinged together. The head of the machine did the excavating and could be raised or lowered for ascent or descent.
The head of the machine was 30 feet 6 inches (9.30 m) long and 7 feet 3 inches (2.21 m) wide and 8 feet 7 inches (2.62 m) high and weighted about 30 tons. The head had a plough blade for cutting the top part of the trench to a depth of about 2 feet 6 inches (0.76 m), raising the excavated soil and pushing it to the sides of the trench. The lower part of the trench was cut to a depth of 2 feet 6 inches (0.76 m) by a cylindrical cutter superficially resembling the cutting blade of a cylinder lawnmower. Conveyors raised the excavated soil which was added to the plough's deposits at the side of the trench. The overall depth of the trench was 5 feet (1.5 m) and the spoil provided an additional cover of about 2 feet (0.61 m).
The body of the machine came in two halves so that it could be divided for transportation, the front portion of the body was 23 feet 4 inches (7.11 m) long, 6 feet 3 inches (1.91 m) wide and 10 feet 5 inches (3.18 m) high and weighed about 45 tons; the rear portion was 28 feet 4 inches (8.64 m) long, 6 feet 3 inches (1.91 m) wide and 8 feet 7 inches (2.62 m) high and weighed about 55 tons.
The body was driven by two 2-foot (0.61 m) wide tracks and on the surface steering was possible by means of dog clutches on the gear-box output shafts. When digging, only small changes in direction were possible by means of hydraulically operated steering doors, one on each side of the machine. There was an arrangement to draw an adjustable amount of spoil back into the trench and under the vehicle's tracks so as to counter any tendency to heel over.
Read more about this topic: Cultivator No. 6
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