This is my first post, so please make allowances.
I have been offered a Bristol Europa crawler loader as a renovation “project”. I have never attempted anything like this in my entire life, but it has always been a dream of mine to own and use some sort of crawler. It presents a lot of hurdles, not the least of which is my inexperience. To counter this, I have the support of a very experienced tractor service engineer, who has agreed to be my mentor (or perhaps tor-mentor).
But before I commit to the project, I have been investigating issues that could prove show-stoppers at worst, or a darned nuisance at best. I have not had the best of success, and I am posting on this forum in the hope that someone knows the answer (or knows someone else who may be able to assist).
What am I dealing with?
A Bristol Europa, Tractor number 10549, which last ran around 20 years ago, when it was half driven, half-dragged to its current location (one track was working, the other was stuck – Steering Clutch??). It has since ‘rested’ in the open.
My first issue is getting it to my home. I need to know how heavy it is, so I can arrange the appropriate lifting and transport kit. I thought that the best place to find its weight would be one of the manuals. That led to my second issue. What manuals? So far, the only one I have been able to obtain is the Parts manual for the ANGLEDOZER/DUPLEX/EUROPA MODEL PD. From this manual I have concluded that most of the parts in these models are the same (different parts for different models are specifically noted in the text). I am at present trying to obtain the Operators manual for the PD model (That is the nearest I can get). I have tracked one down in New Zealand.
If I can gain some documentation, I would then go on to seek “advice/hints/tips”, etc from others who have trodden a similar path. In my investigations I have sought out Forums (fora?) and registers. Not much luck there. The British Construction Equipment Forum has a specific Bristol thread which looked very promising, but when I tried to register, I was informed that “registration has been disabled by the administrator”. I also sought out a register of Bristol tractors (I already have the Tractor number, so I thought it would be a good place to start). I found one which covered just the Bristol 10. Its curator, Jeff Steed, kindly pointed me in the direction of an individual who ran the register for the Bristol 20 up to the end of the line. Unfortunately, when I contacted them, I learnt that he had sadly passed away this January – another COVID victim.
The final issue (at least for now) is that of spares and how to get them. I was hoping that, had I been able to make some contacts via the Forum and/or the register, I could get some idea of the ease (or not) with which they could be obtained. But with no luck in my search for contacts, this is also proving somewhat of an obstacle.
I seemed to be running out of options, so I roamed the net and found this site. The Europa hardly fits into the category of Garden and Horticultural machinery, but this is an active group and I wondered if there were members who, if they were not directly experienced, might know someone who is and would be willing to set me on the straight and narrow.
So, if anyone out there is willing to share their knowledge and experiences, I would be most grateful.
TractorMike
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