Talus MB-4H amphibious tractor

Talus MB-4H
Talus MB-4H RNLI Launch Vehicle
Type	Launch vehicle
Manufacturer	Clayton Engineering Limited
Length	4.475 m (176.2 in)
Width	2.66 m (105 in)
Height	2.75 in (0.070 m)
Weight	9.8 Tonnes
Propulsion	4 wheel drive
Engine model	Caterpillar 3114, 4 cylinder, 4.4 litre, Turbo Diesel
Gross power	105 hp (78 kW)
Drawbar pull	5 Tonnes
Speed	22 miles (35 km)

Talus MB-4H is a four-wheel-drive launch tractor which was specifically designed for the RNLI, to launch and recover inshore lifeboats from beach launched lifeboat stations. The Tractor is produced by the British company of Clayton Engineering Limited who are based in Knighton, Powys. The tractor plays an important role and is reliable link within the operations required to be carry out the task of saving lives at sea.

Until the development of this tractor the RNLI had been relying on the adaptation of commercially available tractors which proved to be inefficient and costly. Clayton engineering worked in close liaison with the RNLI on a design brief specifically aimed at the ILB launch requirements. This brief included to be totally waterproof with an excellent ground clearance and the best steering ability possible.

Clayton’s design team developed a prototype at their facilities in Knighton which was tried and tested at several lifeboat station locations around the country to evaluate its performance at as many different working environments as possible. Once these trials had been completed successfully the first tractor was sent to New Brighton on the Wirral, Merseyside. Arriving in November 1990 the tractor and its carriage were used to launch the stations new Atlantic 21 inshore lifeboat.

The MB-4H has been designed to work over varying beach environments and can easily launch and recover inshore lifeboats via a A85 DoDo (drive-on, drive-off) launch cradle/carriage. It will comfortably work at full power into up to 2 metres (6.6 ft) of calm water. The tractor is divided into two sections with the front section housing the power unit, hydraulic oil tank for the front axle, hydraulic pumps, cooling systems and the fuel tank. The rear section houses the rear axle, hydraulic winch with 100 meters of cable, the operator and his/her controls, batteries, electronic control panel, and the drive gear. The driver's seat within the cockpit can face forward or rear, with duplicated controls front and back, allowing the operator flexibility during deployment or retrieval of the DoDo trailer and payload. This allows the combination to drive to the launch site and then reverse round to launch the lifeboat into the sea. The rear-facing controls have the addition of a third foot pedal which is the dead-man control for the winch. The MB-4H has an automatic hydrostatic transmission which gives the tractor an ever-variable ground speed which corresponds to engine speed and ground/sea-bed conditions. To give the tractor excellent handling ability, the vehicle has a pivot steer type with all electrical, mechanical and hydraulic links passing through central wire-reinforced hose. The design allows the tractor to have a steering articulation of 40 degrees to the left or right and results in a turning circle of only ten metres.