A Design That Was Built To Endure
By: Landis Zimmerman

By 1930 The Cleveland Tractor Company had been building crawler tractors for 14 years and held the title of “the largest exclusive crawler tractor manufacturer.” They had manufactured a number of outstanding larger tractors, which put them in a good solid position. Now it was time to produce a more modern and up-to-date machine to replace the obsolete model W. With its single-speed forward and reverse transmission and very few operator comforts, it wasn’t what the customer was looking for anymore.
In the late 1930s, Cletrac made additions to the factory totaling $1,000,000 in new equipment. A major part of this was electrical heat-treating equipment. This was in anticipation of the new models, 15 and 40-30 which would soon be introduced. The assembly plant was also expanded to increase the factory capacity by one third. Truly, this was the dawn of a new era for the The Cleveland Tractor Company.
On January 1, 1931 all the new Cletrac model 15 along with model 40-30 was introduced to the public. The model 15 was an all-new machine from the ground up. Gone were the single-speed forward, transverse belt pulley, and pan-type seat. Steering levers replaced the steering wheel.

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