THE INCREDIBLE QUADRACTOR

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. . . AND IT HAS OTHER USES

The attachments for plowing, rototilling, and mowing fit easily and quickly into place on the underside of the Quadractor, and can be raised or lowered by a small electric winch. Because of its unorthodox design, the machine has no power takeoff. Instead, an auxiliary Briggs & Stratton engine mounts on the chassis to operate whatever implements are required.

Snow removal poses no great problem, either. Though the machine is too light to push a snowplow at much of an angle, it has enough traction to fill a "straight forward" plow blade . . . and the vehicle can then be easily maneuvered to deposit snow out of the roadway. Not long ago-no doubt spurred on by Vermont's arctic winters-Bill Spence somewhat whimsically designed a 155-horsepower snowblower for his brainchild, as well. The accessory weighed nearly a ton, cleared a full six-foot path with ease . . . and had the staff of the Green Mountain State's Highway Department scratching their heads and comparing costs. Needless to say, a smaller-and much more practical-homeowner's unit is now on the drawing board.

TRACTION, INCORPORATED:A GRASSROOTS HISTORY

I visited Bill Spence's farm and walked among the litter of rejected gears and gadgetry in the old barn where the first prototype Quadractor was assembled 10 years ago. Of course, that initial design has been modified and improved several times with an eye toward mass production, but in 1974-after years of testing-the final drive (and the machine's other unique features) received their patents. Tool-up has occupied the last half decade and production is now underway in earnest at Traction Inc.'s factory in North Troy, Vermont.

The firm's manufacturing facility is as dynamic and independent as is Bill Spence himself. Almost every part in the Quadractor is made right on site: gears, shafts, pulleys, and steel framing. Andwith the corporation's own hydroelectric generating station scheduled for completion by August of this year-a steady rate of production will be assured at the plant . . . regardless of power outages or other public utility shortcomings.

Because there's a steel foundry right at the location, quality control is guaranteed entirely from the start, too . . . and this care is reflected in the firm's final product. On the day I was there, workers were casting chambers for the gear train and welding up clutch housings. I saw four partially assembled Quadractors on the line . . . but the company's ultimate goal is to reach a production rate of one unit every 20 minutes by mid-1980.

Increased production isn't Spence's sole concern, though. Research and development also carry a lot of weight at the Traction facility, and the people there are not only busily designing additional work implements for use with the machine, but are presently experimenting with alternate fuels-such as alcohol and methane-in order to make the Quadractor an even more versatile tool.

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