Road motor roller fans can enjoy a rare treat at this year’s Tractor Fest being held at Newby Hall and Gardens near Ripon.
Three historic pre-war motor rollers will form part of an extensive display at this year’s show over the weekend of 6th and 7th June.
And with just six weeks to go until the annual tractor, engine and car extravaganza, motor roller enthusiasts from across the country are putting the finishing touches to their machines ready for exhibiting.
David Gardner from Northallerton has been passionate about stationary engines since he started rallying with his father and brother in the 1980s.
After admiring an Aveling & Porter motor roller in a private collection he was determined to own one of his own.
A roller found in Switzerland was too costly to transport to the UK, so David was excited to spot an online advertisement for a ‘big roller’ which proved to be a rare 1932 14 tonne Aveling & Porter motor roller.
David will be exhibiting his roller at Tractor Fest for the first time this year.
One of only three in the country, the roller will be the biggest at the show and was built in the UK for road construction on the continent, before being purchased by a collector and returning to the UK some ten years ago.
David said:
“Designed in 1923, the roller had a ground-breaking engine - the first cold start diesel engine using high-pressure fuel injection.
"It hadn’t run for more than 30 years and I’ve been painstakingly restoring the Blackstone open crank diesel engine for some time now, so Tractor Fest gives me a firm deadline for completion of the project.”
At the other end of the size scale, Derek Rayner of York is showing his rare Motor Units roller at Tractor Fest.
A roller enthusiast since school, Derek is vice chair of the Road Roller Association which is exhibiting at the show.
Derek’s career with British Rail meant that when he saw a motorised roller advertised, he recognised it as a one of only 200 such rollers manufactured by Coventry-based Motor Units Ltd.
This one had previously been used by the LNER. Operational from 1935 on the Hull-Barnsley line, the roller is powered by a Villiers 250cc two-stroke engine, and was used to compact ash, the byproduct from burning coal, as part of platform construction.
On retirement it was used by a grounds contractor to maintain British Rail staff’s cricket pitch in Hull.
Bought at auction for £35 in 1975, the roller is one of only 26 remaining in the country.
Following extensive detective work on its history, which included tracking down a missing toolbox and lid which would have been fitted to the original machine, Derek took the roller apart and painted and rebuilt it.
The engine was restored by a friend’s father who serviced lawn mowers with the same engines. Christened ‘Rosette’, the roller is now licenced to run on the road.
Derek is also the proud owner of ‘White Rose’, an Aveling & Porter steam roller which he acquired in 1964 and which he has spent many years restoring.
Derek said:
“As vice chair of the Road Roller Association, I am delighted to see motor rollers being given such a prominent role at this year’s Tractor Fest. We can’t wait to share our enthusiasm for these machines.”
Joining David and Derek as part of the motor roller showcase is Anthony Coulls from Shildon, County Durham.
A lifelong roller enthusiast, Anthony is senior curator of rail transport and technology at the National Railway Museum.
He is the proud owner of a motor roller on which he played as a child growing up in Leamington Spa in the 1970s.
Anthony’s Wallis & Steevens motor roller was manufactured in Basingstoke for use by the Air Ministry in 1944.
The post war years saw the roller moved, like many others around the country, into a park in Leamington Spa to be used as play equipment by local children.
Anthony said:
“I acquired the roller from Warwickshire County Council some 30 years ago for the grand total of £1.50!
"The engine was full of sand and didn’t run, but my friend, Trevor Daw, undertook its refurbishment in 2013 to use on his smallholding at near Warwick.
"The following year, I was delighted to take the working roller on a visit back to my school in Warwick to help mark its 1100th anniversary.”
Subsequently the motor roller was exhibited at Beamish before going into storage.
Tractor Fest will the first show it has attended.
Anthony said:
“I’ve been passionate about rollers since attending rallies with my steam roller enthusiast father – a tradition carried on by my 19-year old daughter, Charlotte, who now owns her own steam roller.
"I’m looking forward to sharing my roller’s heritage with a whole new audience at Tractor Fest.”
Find out more about Tractor Fest 2026 and get your ticket here: https://www.newbyhall.com/event/tractorfest-6th-7th-june-2026/
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