Over here in Australia in their hay day David Browns shit over things like the equivalent of Ford JD etc take my word for it they were everywhere anyhow great video I also have my father's 880 which he had delivered in 1969 and I am yet to restore it the selectamatic 880 was 46 HP at the flywheel the hydraulics are excellent the only that wrecked them was the miserable tight assed farmers that were to stingy to maintain them properly
Ferguson fell out with David Brown, he then co-operated with Ford until he fell out with them. Standard Motors in Coventry offered him space in their factory to build tractors. My Dad's 1953 Standard Vanguard Station Wagon had the same 2.5 litre gasoline engine that early Ferguson tractors used
The muffler and steering wheel aren't right. Should have a poppy red muffler and a orchid white steering wheel, they have 46hp at the flywheel. Hydraulic system is over engineered and can be completed to work on if you don't know how they work and service. But once you've got them working they are dead easy to use and shouldn't give issues if they see a bit of maintenance. Have a few DBs grown up with them and still use them on our beef and potato farm. David Brown was the first manufacturer to build harry Ferguson's converging 3 point linkage system before harry Did a deal with Henry Ford.
There's actually a David Brown 880 sitting in my "extra" building right now. It belongs to a good friend and his grandpa bought it new. It runs fine but, as mentioned, the hydraulics need work and, it also needs body work. He comes over religiously every weekend to work on it and, I'm sure that he'll have it operating and looking like brand new within the next couple months. They're definitely interesting machines.
I like going to the old iron power shows and seeing tractors like these. They're something different. I can go anywhere and see a restored John Deere model B, Farmall H, Ford 8N, or a WD45 Allis Chalmers.
David brown and JI Case actually had a partnership in the 70s, that’s why I’m surprised these tractor shows haven’t covered them in any video other than this one (that I’ve seen) because they were called David brown Case and sported the orange and white Case colors but there were actually just a David brown tractor, and they were sold at Case dealerships, there are actually quite a few David brown cases around my area because a local dealership used to sell a lot of them, my pawpaw has a 1410 which has a 4 cylinder turbo engine (a hoss of a tractor) and he has a 995 with a loader
The colour scheme was Orchid White and Power Red. We started putting Case name stickers on tractors exported to USA. And Case put David Brown stickers on the large tractors built in Racine that were to be sold here in England. We stopped building the large tractors in Meltham as it was more cost effective to concentrate production on what we did best, the small and medium size tractors. (I worked for DBT in the 1970s))
I’m Irish Living in America Pennsylvania. I grew up with My Father’s David Browns a 990 & 1200. Now I have a 770 & a 1212. I would love to see a David Brown Tractor Club. 🤔
I grew up in the burley belt of Western NC,used to see a few David Brown's around in the early 70s most were beat to death,Ford's and Ferguson were the most popular.
My grandpa used a 880 selectamatic here in norway. In valdres. Step hills. And it was good. But somthing in the stearning broke and because of water in the stearning frozen in the Winter. But all in all a good tractor
That 880 will be around 46hp at the engine but the torque out the little 3 pot engine is the key will comfortably keep up and in most cases beat a Ford 4000 especially for traction
we had the 885 selectamatic i think made from 1972 to 1979 i think. inn the 90s i used to drive it to lift round bales you could only just lift one and the back wheels would go down heaps , forks were heavy then id say 250kg so you had 650kg on the back for a 46HP tractor it was at the limit but could do it. They were everything in Australia in the 70s 80s 90s but now you hardly see any just a few left , there just like the MF 135 same period
I am very impressed from New Zealand where David Brown were dominant in Otago and Southland. Dad bought a 1971 990 brand new and I use it today. Curious about why these tractors sold well, I discovered that David Brown with modest engines put power in the ground and out pulled everything else.
Beautiful, great tractors, but then I am biased as I worked for David Brown Tractors in Meltham, West Yorkshire 1972 to 1979. I worked in export accounts. I remember one of our biggest dealers in USA was in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. I was so disappointed when visiting Philadelphia 25 years ago not to be able to go there. But driving through Perry county I saw a DB990 in a field in the white and power red colours. I had to stop the car and watch it working for 10 minutes. Later that day we passed a small dealership and I had to stop and look around. I saw from the ID plates that though they still said David Brown they all were manufactured at the J I Case factory in Doncaster, South Yorkshire.
At one time David Brown rescued and owned Aston martin cars he allso made the first ferguson tractor my father all ways had DB tractors on the farm including a DB D 2 tool bar carrier wich i used to drill and hoe all our vegetable crops with , shame when DB sold out to Case who closed them down but that is usual for big business , The only other brand of tractor we had was an ALIS CHALMERS 272 wich had a Perkins 3 cylinder the hydraulics were crude either up or down but as it only worked on light duties it did the job well and reliable tractor
I own both a 1212 Hydrashift and a 1210 Synchromesh, both built within 6 months of each other. The 1212 has a very simple, dual planetary box in front of a 3 speed manual box, giving 12 forwards, and 4 hydraulic shifts in each of the 3 ranges.....Dad has a 990 and 770.....I hope to do what this gentleman did with his collection in restoration.....Great video! Thank you! ( I hope to someday find an 880 to round out my collection)
I live in PA. I have 2 David Browns. A 770. And a 1212. I grew up in Ireland. My father used nothing only David Browns. Hoping to restore them some day. A farmer neighbor of mine has an 880. He absolutely loves it. And Fantastic fuel is a thing he loves. Would never sell it to me. 😂😂. I’m glad to see others saving them. Maybe we should Start A DAVID BROWN CLUB.
I HAVE A 1976 DAVID BROWN AND LIVE IT MARYVILLE TENNESSEE,.... I PLAN ON GOING TO THIS TRACTOR SHOW NEXT YEAR IN GRAY TENNESSEE AND VISITING WITH DARREN.
The hydraulics are as reliable as any other tractor, maybe a little more technical to repair. As another poster commented corrosion from water ingress in the oil when the tractor is standing is the most likely cause of problems. Nornal cause of water getting into the gearbox/hydraulic oil is split/missing gear lever gaiters, with another other cause of corrosion dirty external couplings. (The returning oil, for example from the external trailer tipping pipe) goes straight through the valve block. Keep couplings clean.
There’s a guy just north of Tazewell Tennessee that has 6, 7 of them i his yard and a Case 1190, which is a David Brown otter Case bought them. All look very good.
WE started with a grey Ferguson tractor befor 1950 the traded it for a David Brown 25 C this was a great tractor which was worked hard. We later sold it to a neighbour and purchased a 3 cylinder 880 another fantastic tractor.
We’ve got a 1212 we still use to pull tandem new Holland roll-a-bar takes over about 600 acres of hay up here in northwest Missouri! We’ve also got a 1210 for miscellaneous duties. Then we have a 1412 as well another 1210 for parts. Lots of David brown love from my father!
In the late 60's nearly every farm around about us in northern England ran DB's , we had a 880 3 cylinder implematic bought from just over the scotish border and 2 1966 selectamatic 880s one bought from the next farm which was added to ours and has worked on the same land all its 58 years and will be used again this summer , if it comes to a hill it does not die back unlike most modern engines.
David Brown built 2 gasoline (petrol) tractors especially for the North American market, the 3800 (1968-71) and the 4600 (1968-71) The were both tested at Nebraska - "3800" test #1018 & "4600" test 1019