In 2011 I found an old 1941 model H International (McCormick Deering) sitting in a patch of weeds, it had been sitting there for years. The man that owned it was sending it to the scrap yard the next day, I asked him what he thought he could get out of  it at the scrap yard and he said he hoped for anywhere from 5 to 7 hundred dollars.

I told the man if he would take 5 hundred dollars cash on the spot I would take it home, he agreed and so began a lengthy three year restoration.

The tires had rotted off from sitting on flats in the dirt for so many years, the rims had rusted through and the inner tubes would not hold air.

The paint had faded to a dull shade of pink or salmon, the motor and chassis were covered with a thick layer of dirt and oil, vital parts were missing and the machine as a whole, looked as if it had been turned over and caught on fire.

We sent the tractor to be steamed, sand blasted, primed and painted. When it came back it was the bright red International color and even with parts missing you could see hope in this restoration.

We found a company that specialized in tractor parts for restoration projects. Steiner not only had the parts I was looking for they also had technicians that could answer all my questions. I ordered thousands of dollars in parts and never once received the wrong part.

It is now the Summer of 2014 and as I look at this old tractor I can’t help but wonder about the day it was bought and taken to a farm. The farmer would have climbed up high on the seat and looked down the long hood. Everyone that saw the sturdy bright red International would have been envious. The farmer that just brought this powerhouse home was no doubt the proudest man around.

The big, massive machine with all of its horsepower and torque must have made this farmers life so much easier than whatever he had been using.

The big red 1941 model H International is now seventy-four years old, it has plowed, pulled and harvested.It has see a bountiful harvest and it has seen crops fail, it has seen things change; seasons, crops, the landscape, owners and the way of the times.

The big model H has come full circle now, it came from being the bright and shining pride of a farmer in 1941 to sign alone and forgotten in a patch of weeds, on its way to be crushed and shredded and now to its original beauty and usefulness. I wish the man that bought it originally in ’41 could see it now.

I want to thank all of the friendly and knowledgeable people at Steiner, you were always helpful and patient.

Taylor Hignite
Busy, Kentucky