The Big Reveal: See this fully restored 1928 Caterpillar Model Twenty Tractor at the Caterpillar Visitors Center

What’s the first thing that comes to your mind when you hear Caterpillar? A big, yellow machine building a new highway or hauling earth? It’s hard to miss these yellow giants.

But before Caterpillar machines were painted their signature Caterpillar yellow color, they sported gray paint and red wavy Caterpillar logos.

Take a look at the fully restored 1928 Caterpillar Model Twenty Tractor that will be featured in the Heritage Exhibit of the new Caterpillar Visitors Center opening Oct. 20 in downtown Peoria, Illinois.

Kent Bates, a 35-year Caterpillar retiree and member of the Antique Caterpillar Machine Owner’s Club, began the restoration of this Model Twenty this past spring. Over the course of five months, Bates searched and gathered parts from across the country to make this restoration authentic and 100 percent complete.

The machine’s original serial number, L1137, is still on the tractor and indicates it was built in 1928 and came off the assembly line in San Leandro, California.

This 20 horsepower, gasoline-powered, track-type tractor is a testament to the quality built into every Caterpillar machine from the company’s early history.

From heavily guarded undercarriage, “anti-rumble” fabric between the sheet metal canopy and frame, and steel from a top supplier to leather boots and seals, this is a tractor meant to operate for decades. One other interesting note about the Twenty is that there is no welding on the original machine; everything is either bolted or riveted.

See more images throughout the restoration process.

The Caterpillar Model Twenty Tractor’s durability and design earned it a featured spot in the Heritage Exhibit of the new Caterpillar Visitors Center.

In just 22 days, you can come see this restored antique tractor in person and learn more about the company’s rich heritage and legacy of enabling customers’ success.