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Towmotor Forklifts Corporation Ohio USA
 

  

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  Home Towmotor   >  Towmotor page II 



TOWMOTOR II
often miswritten as Tow motor.


Welcome to the TOWMOTOR fansite !

This is page II
On this page are pictures and "history part 1" of this unique real American forklift.

Most pictures can be enlarged by clicking on it.
We hope you like it!



On my website:
- Towmotor homepage
- Towmotor page II

- Towmotor page III

- Towmotor parts
- Towmotor artifacts

- Towmotor forklift vintage advertising  



 

My brother and I with my brothers antique Towmotor.


 


     

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TOWMOTOR PICTURES
Page II

 
 





Hi Geert,
LT35, still hard at work in Ontario Canada, best one we've ever had!

 






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Heavy machine
And beautifull restored - look at the perfect paint job!

Mr Peterson uses this machine to lift 11,000 LBS pipes and even a 19,000 LBS cross head!
 




German Towmotor
Type G truck
 




Very old machine
from Vancouver, Canada

Hi i was digging around a storage yard for grumman parts, found this strange towtruck, after finding your informative site thought i would send pics. Vancouver, canada
Craig
 
pic 2   pic 3




Towmotor
In Californian lumber yard

Greetings,

I have an Awesome Towmotor that will pick up anything we try!
Jim
Carpinteria Valley
Lumber Co.
 
pic 2   pic 3
Good morning,

Attached are several photos of our vintage Towmotor Forklift. This unit was originally owned by American Hoist & Derrick in St. Paul, MN and stayed behind when the company moved to Wilmington, NC.

The Towmotor is now owned and operated by All Test & Inspection, Inc. of Blaine, MN. I have operated it regularly for the past 18 years moving test weights and loading trucks.

Thanks,
Scott Winters
Vice-President
All Test & Inspection, Inc.




 




From Italy

Salve, sono Stella Pasquale, dalla prov. di Taranto, Italy, sono venuto in possesso di un Towmotor una stupenda macchina, era in pessime condizioni e con tanto di mio lavoro di restauro Vi voglio far vedere il mezzo oggi.


Well, my Italian is a little rusty but Google translations told me...:
Hello, I'm Stella Pasquale, from Taranto, Italy. I came into possession of a Towmotor, a wonderful machine but it was in poor condition. But after a lot of restoration-work I think I can show you the good results!
 




From Holland

Mr Brattinga wrote me his firm still uses this vintage Towmotor. It functions well but has some 'age-related-defects'
 
Foto 2


 

Vintage by suprise!

Hi
I was restoring a Antique 1952 Chevy truck and bought a forklift to help me with the project. A forklift dealer sold me this and I didnot know this is also a vintage one :-)

Mine is V40B 4000LB Pnumematic tires.

Ganesh Gavara




 
Foto 2   Foto 3




B series

Beautifull machine, for sale in Toronto
  Example of TOWMOTOR quality!

Geert... what an awesome site.
I found my towmotor lt35 (year unknown) in a guys barn in Vermont, U.S.
I did not need a forklift and do not know what I will do with it, but I had to have it. I paid $150 for it. It had been sitting for years. I put a little fresh gasoline in it and jump started it. She purred like a kitten and everything works great!

(How's that as an example for high quality!)

Sean Gyllenborg
Morrisville, VT USA



  TOM the Towmotor




TOM the Towmotor

Hello Geert, Hello Willem. My name is Riechard and this is My forklift "Tommy". I bought it from a scrap yard. They almost killed it and was sending it off when I saw it. I am a mechanic in the comercial roofing bussiness and needed a forklift badly. That was about seven years ago. I had some repairs to do but in 5 hours it was good to go. It still works every day and works very well.

Klick here for the original tagplate !
 




Towmotor crane
type LT180

Very rare and special vehicle, only 11 were built!
And  all those wheels remind me of the Thunderbirds puppet show :-)
Mr David Keler of Keller rigging wrote me that's its good for 50,000 LBS (about 25 tons)
 




From an ice-cold Quebec:

Hi, I live in quebec, canada and I just purchased this tow motor fork lift, I enjoy it. I dont know the year or the model, the sticker is unreadeable. I know it will lift up to 12 feets and 4000lbs and It have dual front wheels.
 




Houston Texas

I work in Houston, Texas. I found your website because I have a Towmotor forklift, and I was curious about the history of the company. Attached is a photo of my machine. It is a model TC30, Serial Number 12X2033.
 
 







WWII Towmotor in a Norwegian museum

Hi
Here is two pictures of "Little Detroit of Norway" 's Towmotor forklift, paintet to blend in with the other vehicles. It "lives" with in an old military warehouse close to Askim in Norway.
"Little Detroit Norway" is a group of people that collects and restores old WW2 vehicles like GMC's, Diamond T's, Jeeps and stuff like that we use the Towmotor to do our heavy lifting and moving, it does the job whit flying colors !
Best Regards
Lars-Erik T. Nilsen
Little Detroit of Norway
   







Canadian farm Towmotor

Very old, maybe over 60 years. I was impressed by the mountains in the background, I found out I was there in 1997, 2002 and 2008. 
 




 
Towmotor forklift with a  boat to match :-)

Hi
Thought I would send a couple of photos in of my towmotor forklift. Its sole job is pulling my boat in and out of its garage.

Dave Curtis
 







 

It never rains in Southern California :-)


Geert,
I came across your site via a GOOGLE search..........very nice. I purchased this Towmotor a few years ago to help me with the restoration of large vintage big rig. I did not pay very much for it and it has performed excellent to say the least.
My assumption is that it is from the late fifties to early sixties.

Model 501-LP
Serial 501620119

Regards,
John,
Southern California

 




 
First Towmotor from Poland!
Mr Arownik sent me this pic of a Towmotor built in Denmark at the Vestergaard Brothers workshop in Copenhagen.
Read more ...
 







 
Second Towmotor from Poland!
Look at the roof, I have never seen such a roof before.


 
Dear Geert
Greeting from Poland
Zbigniew Kaczor
 







 
Oldie from Texas USA
Mr Pinton send me these pics of a machine that must be from the '40ties. (maybe ex-military) It's however still in use: most Towmotors do last for generations!
 







 
Nice paintjob!
Towmotor with Golden Wheels!


Here is a picture of our recently refurbished Towmotor Model 502SLP6024.  We recently changed the water pump, oil, hydraulic fluid, air filter, patched a radiator hole, and gave it a nice paint job. She works like a charm and is in all likely hood 40 years old.


Michael Gennaro
Camac Industries
973-300-5575
 
 







 
Very old Towmotor in Washington State

Hello Geert.
Here are a couple of pictures of my Towmotor forklift. As you can see it has been converted to propane. It runs well and lifts a bit more than the 6000lb capacity it seems to be rated for. Ask me how I know. :)
Anyways, I strongly suspect this machine to have been made some time in the 40's. Maybe even a military surplus truck. I do know that it is very, very old. It has a leaf spring type suspension and a cantilever type tilting system. I do wish it had power steering though. It is a pain to drive unloaded without it. Heavily loaded it drives fine :) It is fairly worn out and has had a hard life but still lifts very well! I couldn't have been happier with my $200 purchase. :)
Michael

P.S. I found this link with a picture of the factory. The picture is dated 1942 and the towmotor in the picture looks just like mine! Wow!


 
 







 
Towmotor - restauration

Here are some pictures of my before- and after forklift.
It is a 1966 model 392 with a 112ci continental engine in it. The name plate on the side of the engine says Caterpillar with all the cat info on it. Great web site by the way, hope you like the pictures. If you would like any more info email me.

Dan T
Manhattan KS
 

LT 40 from US aircraftcarrier

Hi All,
What great site. Be great if some factory records could be put on net for all owners to check what they have, and yr of manufacture etc.
This LT40 was on Aircraft Carrier that was in NZ during WW2. Was used for over 40 yrs by large daily news paper. Its in very good order except the starter is non existent, will find one im sure, Unless any one has a spare?? Machine Serial no 404786,,

Cheers to really great page,
Chris New Zealand.



 

 




 
Two very rare Towmotors.

Hi,
Here are some photos of two odd Towmotors located in rural South Australia. I don't know the history of either of them, they come with a couple of trolleys. One has a Continental engine the other a Lycoming. They are both now in good hands and will have life breathed back into them.

Regards, Matt.

More pics: 
2  3  4
 



 
Proud Towmotor owner
Pat Costello, 'Sparky' for friends.

Hi Geert,
I have the Tow Motor and Plan on Restoring it this winter.

I LOVE your site!!! I am from St. Paul, MN and own Hinding Heating and Air Conditioning Company.

These Tow Motors are addicting aren't they??? I think Im going to get another one.

Thanks
Sparky




 
 



 
Towmotor marketing pictures
Mr Mike Mucci (91 years old in 2007) still had some old pictures used for advertising in the 1940ties.
Very interesting, very beautyfull and very rare!
Read more...
 






 
Hello:
photos of my 56 6000 lb tow motor, Army machine, we use it around our shop, pretty much restored, we love it, give's us that classic look as we restore hot rods.

Thanx keep up the good work on these old tow motors
Dj

Visit us At :
https://www.hotrodsetc.net
Home of Spit-Fire Exhaust Flame Throwers
Do it Right ! Do it with Spit-Fire
 









 
Geert,

Here is my Towmotor Model 44, s/n 445010.  It still runs great.  We use it all the time!  I wonder if the year it was built can be found in the serial number?  I think you have another of these one sent by Roger in Arizona.

V/R

DH Clark
 



 
LT 45

Hi Geert,
Here is a picture of my LT-35 Still runs great here in Sunny California...

 
Morningstar Productions,
California USA
 



 
Old Yeller !

Hey Geert,  This is old yeller. She picks 46,000 pounds maybe more. It is a lot bigger than my 39,000 pound taylor! I will send some pictures when I give her the shakedown.  regards,
Larry Schmitz
San Diego,
California.
 



 

San Diego machine
We love our Towmotor. She is an old girl, but we wont give up on her.

Richard C. Price
San Diego, CA

 

  Towmotor with Holden Engine !

Hi,
I was looking for a workshop manual when I found your site. Here is a picture of my Towmotor. It has been re-powered with an Australian Holden (GMH) 6 cylinder engine. I bought it second hand to use on my farm. It will get a full overhaul and some new paint next year.

Cheers,
Daryl (Australia)


Mr Graham Warner, THE forklift specialist from Australia writes that this model Towmotor also originally was built with a Holden engine.

 
 



 
From Chicago Ill.
cool webpage you have. i was looking for parts and i got your webpage. i got 2 towmotors as a trade for some work i did. im not sure of the model year but i
think there from the 1950's because the hydrolic controls are exposed and not hidden in the dashboard. they both run but need complete rebuilds as they have been idle for 15 years. here is some pics for you . have a nice day.  i will send new pics when i restore these fine machines.
jeff d
chicago illinois

 
 



 
Heavy 'B serie' TOWMOTOR
Jerry's Marine Boats from Lake Geneva Wisconsin USA


Klick here
for a vew more pics
 



 
Older model for sale in NY.
Geert,
Here's another older Towmotor Forklift. Machine is for sale, presently located in Hudson, NY, USA.
I don't have the exact model number in front of me but it doesn't seem to be a model number I am seeing elsewhere.

Jim
 



 
Dutchmasters Toronto
Greetings.  See attached photos of our Towmotor in daily use at Dutchmaster Nurseries, Toronto Canada.  We are looking for parts to recondition it. The I.D. plate is missing so for openers, we wish to identify it for the purpose of sourcing parts for it.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you kindly... and great web site by the way...

Jerry
 
 
before...


and after restoration



 
Towmotor from Rhode Island

Hi there,

I e-mailed you earlier this year about a Towmotor we were restoring. Here are some pictures of the completed project.

It has a Continental F135 motor, we found brakes, transmission and motor parts still available through Caterpillar. I have included a picture of the data tag as we still don’t know what year this model is, maybe you might know from the serial number? 

We use it regularly to move boats around and split atoms!

It’d be great if you could put a picture of ‘Flossy’ on your website.

Regards,
Scott and Stuart

Viking Marine
Tel: 401-662-3855
Fax: 401-662-1143


 

 



 
For Sale in Belgium

 

Towmotor Heftruck type G

Vestergaard-Denmark

 

Model 462SG4024

Max lift 330 cm

Basic capacity (forks) 4000 lbs

 

Erik Lorré
9230 WETTEREN
BELGIUM
Tel  +32 473 83 38 59
 



 
Hello Geert!

I find your great site when I was searching some parts to my father's forklift and decided to share also some photos of it. Model is Towmotor 502P -70, it is equipped with full free lift mast and runs with gas. It has been in every week use on our farm here in Lapua, Finland since 1981. It has been very trustable, only some problems with powersteering and distributor. There has been a great help of it during these years when we have owned it.
Thanks, Mika



 
 



 
I just took over ownership of a marina and got an old TOWMOTOR with the deal and am in the process of getting it working again. If  anybody has any info on something this big and old to help me in restoring it, please let me know.
Thanks.
Chris Justus,
S
outh Bay, Long Island NY.
 



 
Hi geert, my name is Patrick Clark and today I bought a 1958 six wheeled towmotor.
C
heck out this one boys. she's a winner. Flathead six runs very smooth. Goes offroad with a load. After sitting for a few months she'll start right up. I found her in the desert in California. I sold an old toyota forklift I was using and bought this one because it has a cool look to it and 2 more tires than my old one which means more stability when loading high roof or carrying heavy weight on uneven surface. Enjoy the pictures, Patrick.
 






 
Discovered in Zeeland
I spotted this Towmotor in the Dutch province of Zeeland.
(The man who discovered 'New Zealand' came from this province)
 



 
Towmotor in New Zealand
 
Hi there, As promised a photo of our towmotor
serial number 46053328. recently bought when my electric forklift died. It runs extremely well. I had to do the brakes and replace a couple of hoses. I have no idea how old it is. I run a small Toyota specialist parts business so it will only get light work
 
Thanks
Graeme Luxford 

 
 



 
Arizona USA
Here is a pic of a towmoter I just bought. It needs some work on the starter and carburetor but Ive had it running and used it a few times already.  I cant find a serial # or data tag on it.  It may have been covered when the roll cadge was added. Great site you have and I send more pics when I get a chance to work on it some.
Im in Mesa, Arizona USA.  Thanks Roger
 
 



 
1920 TOWMOTOR
Geert - This is a Tomotor Tractor No. 1022 Model B  - built in 1920. Unbelievable ! That was the second year Towmotor existed.
It is in the Maritime Museum in Brisbane, Australia

Dick Bailey
 



 
Heavy machine
 



 
Mr Bosma's Towmotor
Mr Larry Bosma from Harry's Motors send me this picture.
(Sanborn IA)


 
 







 

From California
I live in San Jose California  U.S.A. I rescued these Towmotors locally in San Jose. It's a 1954 LT35 & 1966 LT350.
One Fork Lift is for spare parts. Iif anyone is in need please contact me at pbhamilton@att.net The other one I’m restoring back to original with new parts and paint.  If anyone has any parts for these Fork Lifts please let me know. I like to meet other people who might be restoring these LT 35 Towmotors or have parts I could use. I will send you some more pictures of the restoration. 

Thanks, Phil Hamitlon.


 
Click here fore some pics of the restauration of mr Hamiltons restauration

 



 
Mr Langs Towmotor in Helena, Montana USA.

"
Geert, Hi. I found your site while looking for information about Towmotor forklifts. I have just bought one in australia that was working on the wharves unloading ships for many years. It is about 6.5 tonne (witha 2 tonne counterweight)  and can lift up to 4 tonne, has a sidevalve (flathead) 6 cylinder motor, and pneumatic tyres (dual wheels added later). And a 2 stage lift ram, power steering, on gas, and with power brakes. Gears are manual two forward/reverse with a hi/low split. Apart from worn steering I can't find anything wrong with this machine after about 40 years of hard work on the wharves and in a sawmill,

Regards Andrew Lang


 
  HISTORY PART I

In 1965 Towmotor Corporation was sold to Caterpillar. For a long time the machines were sold with both names on it.

Towmotor Corporation changed its name to Caterpillar Industrial Inc. in the late 1980's. 
Then, Caterpillar and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (Japan) formed a new company in Houston, Teaxas in 1992 -- MCFA.  MHI owns 70% of the company, Caterpillar 20% and Mitsubishi Corp. 10%. So, MCFA is really the 'ancestor' of the original Towmotor Corp.

(Thanks for the info: Mr John Hansen - Vice President of MCFA --  Mitsubishi Caterpillar Forklift America Houston, Texas, USA.) 


 
 



 

Subject: 1964 Towmotor

This is a 1964 Towmotor model 850 SLP 200 24.  Coast International (rigging & millwright co.) works this powerful horse regularly.  It has a V8 International engine and runs great.  What makes this lift ideal for rigging is that it’s narrow and under eight feet tall with a capacity of 20,000 Lbs.

It’s truly a work horse!

Bob Knosby

Coast International Services.
Charlotte, North Carolina USA

 



 
Small Towmotor from the Biggest state in the union.
Send by Ed DeVoll - a Texan in the 4th generation. But guess what: Ed has a little Dutch blood in his veins!
 




On my website:

- Towmotor homepage
- Towmotor page II

-
Towmotor page III

-
Towmotor parts
- Towmotor artifacts

- Towmotor forklift vintage advertising  

- Allis-Chalmers forklifts
- Allis-Chalmers parts
 




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Marcus Blackstone wrote me:
Here are the pictures of our Towmotor known to us simply as "The Yellow Forklift"

Thank you for putting up a wonder site to see your Towmotor as well as others around the world!

Sinserely,
Marcus Blackstone
USA