First with Live PTO???

However the first Independant PTO recognized by Nebraska Tests was the Cockshutt 30 and 40 in the 1940s The Oliver unit is and was the same thing. Some folks will claim Oliver had a number of 88 on the market with IPTO ahead of Cockshutt. It was never advertized as such. Cockshutt held the Patent rights, could be a very good reason. I wouldn't bet much money on whether Cockshutt or Oliver were first.

The Cockshutt 30 was first sold in 1946, the Oliver 88 in 1947 and the Cockshutt 40 in 1949. It is interesting the Cockshutt saw the need for to go two ways with the PTO in the beginning; independant or not and that this affected whwhether the transmission was equipped with a high and low range (non-indeopendant PTO).

I think we have some unwritten history here in the fact that Nebraska Test Lab reports the first tractor tested by them with IPTO as being the Cockshutt 30 in 1946. Some folks claim Oliver had 300 - 88's on farms in 1945.

I have my thoughts on this whole matter. Looks to me as though Cockshutt developed and Patented IPTO. It wasn't until they built their own tractor in 1946, that anyone sent it to Nebraska for testing. I don't think we know the whole story behind this matter. Right now I give the first IPTO to Cockshutt even the 1928 Hart Parr unit. The history of man indicates many folks sat on ideas for years, not having the resources to develop them. This one still gives me questions.

A couple of side notes: 1) many ideas are ahead of there time and lack a clear market, the necessary materials, technology or the social forces/norms in place to see them adopted. 2) many ideas are used and not pattened and some times patents are issued to refinements on these earlier ideas. Just because some one has a patent on a specific aspect/improvemnt of an item does not mean they invented it in the broad sense.

Cockshutt has a lot to be proud of. This may include the modern version of the independant PTO, but they did not invent the independant PTO nor were they the first to bring it to market. What happened between Oliver and Cockshutt in the 40's is still largely a mystery, but it does not affect this particular issue.

If I have time, I will try and dig up the patent granted to the Cockshutt PTO and see what exactly was claimed. You don't happen to have the patent number (US or Canadian) do you?

I have read quite a bit over the years about Hart Parr, Oliver, Cockshutt, etc. Most of that reading has left me with some unanswered questions. Near as I can tell without getting into parts books and cross reference material that IPTO of the 1940's was the same in both Oliver and Cockshutt. My only argument on this matter is the Nebraska Test Lab. recognizes the Cockshutt 30 as the first tractor with IPTO tested at the Lab. It has always been my opinion, if the tractor didn't cut it at Nebraska, it's not worthy of any mention, nor did it have any commercial value.

I never said the Cockshutt 30 was not the first tractor tested at Nebraska with an independant PTO. I would guess they were fortunate that they did not send the non-independant (with hi-low range transmission) version for testing instead. Nebraska did not require that a tractor be tested with every option or variation.

The Cockshutt 30, as Tramway Guy said, was the first tractor so equipped.

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