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Paul Rackhams Holt 75 up for sale


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If its the only WD used Holt 75 left in the world, would there be a chance of it being deemed so significant that the goverment would put an export bar on it. Like it happend with Henry Birkin's blower Bentley

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If its the only WD used Holt 75 left in the world, would there be a chance of it being deemed so significant that the goverment would put an export bar on it. Like it happend with Henry Birkin's blower Bentley

 

Lets hope so. As I understand it, the Holt tractor is an important stepping stone in the development of the tank, starting military use of a tracked vehicle to move artillery.

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Lets hope so. As I understand it, the Holt tractor is an important stepping stone in the development of the tank, starting military use of a tracked vehicle to move artillery.

 

Hopefully the Tank Museum will start fund raising and be able to apply for a Lottery grant.

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  • 2 months later...

There was huge pre-sale interest in the 1918 Holt 75, which has been meticulously restored and boasts WW1 provenance; this lot received masses of media attention. While this leviathan came under the hammer there was a reverential hush as the crowd knew this was the 'big one'. With an opening bid of £100,000, bidding then crept up in £5,000 increments to £125,000. Due to the level of work involved in getting this historically important machine into such incredible condition, the vendor was not willing to let it sell at this level. However, some nifty negotiation after the fall of the hammer means that we can now report that this magnificent beast sold for £150,000.

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Which is less than it cost Mr Rackham I understand.

 

From a pre-sale report in the Eastern Daily Press:

 

Mr Rackham said it took 12 months to bring the ageing machine back to its former glory – complete with gas lamps, and working 75-horsepower four-cylinder engine – with the cost of the purchase and the restoration work amounting to almost £140,000.

Add to this the auctioneer's fees and I expect there might be a decent meal for two to be had out of the balance……...

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holt_tractor

 

Seems to suggest that the front wheel was a Holt 120 feature and the 75 was steered by the tracks only. Is this correct? It doesn't necessarily look to be, after googling round the subject.

 

I suspect that the Wikipedia page needs help, it sounds like it it saying that the front wheel or the tiller were covered, when it probably means that the whole tractor was.

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