c. 1925 Gray Canadian Special 22-40 Tractor

Display Condition: Conserved, running
Engine: Waukasha, vertical inline, 4-cylinder, liquid-cooled
Fuel Type: Gasoline
Displacement: 8.04L (491ci)
Bore and Stroke: 127 x 158.8 mm (5 x 6.25 in)
Power: Drawbar - 16.4 kW (22 hp); Brake - 29.8 kW (40 hp)
Transmission: 2 forward, 1 reverse
Weight: 2971 kg (6550 lb)
Original Cost: C $2585 (estimate)

This c. 1925 Gray Canadian Special 22-40 was originally designed for work in orchards. Its manufacturer, Gray Tractor Company, found that the rear drive drum worked well in snowy conditions; from 1925 to 1933, the Canadian Special, made exclusively for the Canadian market, was the only tractor they produced.

W. Chandler Knapp, a New York fruit grower, designed a tractor which he called the Knapp Farm Locomotive for work on orchards. The first design was notable for having its two rear wheels joined together to improve traction. A later design replaced the rear wheels with a single full-enclosed drum that was driven by a chain. In 1914, the Gray Tractor Manufacturing Company in Minneapolis purchased Knapp's company, and the "drum-drive" tractor was renamed the Gray Model A 20-35. The "Canadian Special" 22-40 tractor was added to Gray's product line-up in the 1920s. Its drum-drive worked well in snowy Canadian winter conditions, but the design didn't seem to take the operator into account; they would always be left out in the elements and leaning over the side to see where they were going.

Chronology:
1914 - The Gray Tractor Manufacturing Company purchases Knapp's company and renames his "drum-drive" tractor.
c. 1920s - Gray begins manufacturing a tractor for Canadian conditions.
1925 - This Canadian Special 22-40 is manufactured in Minneapolis.
1957 - Stan Reynolds acquires this Canadian Special 22-40 from Mrs. Pell from Brownlee SK.
1984 - This Canadian Special 22-40 is added to the Reynolds-Alberta Museum Collection.