Introduced in 1962, the Allis-Chalmers 562 motor scraper was the largest scraper the company ever produced. It was the centerpiece of a system Allis-Chalmers called the Modular Concept, in which the prime mover, scraper, and various rear ends could be combined as the contractor saw fit through the use of "compact bridging and linking units"- gooseneck and draft frame, hitch pins, wheel assemblies, and control lines. To judge by a report prepared by the Euclid Division of General Motors in March 1964, the early 562s were somewhat less than a success. Studying a fleet of 20 562s used by J. A. Thompson on a site prep job near Los Angeles, the report identified several serious issues. Central was an availability of only 75 percent, meaning that out of Thompson's 20 scrapers, four or five were laid up for repairs at any given time. The Allis-Chalmers engines and Twin Disc transmissions were "constantly" breaking down, and because they had to be removed and reinstalled as a unit, a dealer had to keep a 25-ton truck crane on hand to lift these heavy assemblies. Eight of the scrapers had to go to the dealer for rebuilds. The report notes that Thompson's 562s suffered these failures at only about 18 months age and 3,000 hours of use, while also having undergone "many other repairs, too numerous to mention."
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