Tractor Stories Archives - Antique Tractor Blog

1953 Ford Golden Jubilee

01/23/2020 by ST Leave a Comment

A couple of years ago I purchased 20 acres of land in Graham, Texas. I needed a tractor. After months of searching I found a little beauty in Vernon, Texas. It was a 1953 Ford Golden Jubilee sitting in retirement, a case of neglect.

New Tires, a change of all fluids and a conversion to 12 volts and an upgrade to wiring and she was ready to work. And work she does, without skipping a beat. She runs like a sewing machine. My dad always told me to buy the best you can afford and take care of it. This attitude has stood me in good stead and I look forward to many happy hours in the tractor seat.

Art Carpenter of Graham, Texas

French Farmall Super Cub Vineyard Replica

01/21/2020 by ST Leave a Comment

Photos of a replica that I built of a 1958 French Farmall Super Cub Vineyard Tractor. In 1958 the employees in the Farmall tractor works in St Danizer France took 64 of their Farmall Super Cubs into their machine shop and made at least 30 modifications to these tractors, including the steering systems, front end, rear end, foot pedal system and the brackets to mount the fenders, seat, and foot rest plate. This resulted in lowering the tractor to the height of a LoBoy and 34” wide maximum. The purpose was to develop a tractor narrow enough to go between the rows of their vineyards. The experimental vineyards did well in testing except for one problem. Because of it’s narrow width it was “top heavy” and would tip over on slopes and rough terrain, and was never put into production.

It is always a favorite at shows and in parades and is often called ”the baby tractor” as most very young children are drawn to it. I built it literally from a pile-of-parts and have “reverse-engineered” what was done to construct it.
Everyone who has driven the “little tractor” says the same thing, “I was scared to drive it at first, but once I started it was so much fun that I did not want to get off.” Many of the new replacement parts came from Steiner and I wanted to show you what it looked like.

Johnnie Watts Jr of Livingston, Louisiana

Below is a recipe by my mother Mrs. Johnnie (Ida) Watts Sr (deceased) of Livingston, Louisiana

Blueberry Ice Box Pie

(2) 6 oz Graham Cracker Crusts
(1) Quart Whole Blueberries (fresh or frozen)
(1) 14 oz Can Condensed Milk
⅓ Cup (up to 3 ½ oz) Lemon Juice
(1) 12oz Tub Whipped Topping

Wash and drain blueberries
Remove and wash lids from crusts.
Add condensed milk and lemon juice to mixing bowl and mix thoroughly.
Add whipped topping and mix thoroughly.
Add blueberries and “fold-in” / stir-in with table spoon. DO NOT USE MIXER! Fruit should remain solid.
Divide evenly between 2 crusts, cover, and refrigerate up to 2 hours. Enjoy!

Caution! Each pie contains 7 oz of condensed milk and 6 oz of whipped topping. 🙂

P.S. Any solid fruit can be substituted for the blueberries.

Recipe makes 2 pies in 20 minutes for a minimum of $13 for ingredients.

Tractor Lifting

01/14/2020 by ST Leave a Comment

This tractor is a 1949 International Cub. Purchased new by Barney Eymunson from Farmers Supply Co. in Fawcett Alberta. Restored by his brother in law, Ronald Bell of Fawcett.

In this picture is Thorel Eymundson, Barney’s son, is lifting the front end off the ground, something he had done all through the years growing up….and here at age 73!

Tractor still runs great at 70 yrs old.

Dennis Bell of Grande Prairie, Alberta, Canada

1963 Allis Chalmers D19

01/10/2020 by ST Leave a Comment

This is a 1963 Allis Chalmers D19 Diesel. I bought it in 2008, motor was bad and had a few oil leaks. Went all the way through it from front to back. 8 years to do it in my spare time, was a lot of fun.

William Fuller of Cincinnatus, New York

January Featured Photo

01/08/2020 by RT 3 Comments

January’s featured photo was submitted
by Richard Rauenhorst of St. Cloud, Minnesota.

“My father purchased this Fordson tractor on November 23rd, 1979 for $750 and it’s been on the home farm since then. It did run but made a lot of noise. My youngest sister lives on the farm site now and took this picture some years ago. My sister said multiple people have stopped by to ask if the tractor was for sale and she tells them it is my dad’s tractor and they would have to ask him but he is in heaven. We grew up with Ford tractors.” – Richard Rauenhorst

This photo was chosen as a winner in our photo contest and is featured in
the 2020 Steiner Tractor Parts catalog. Check out the other winning photos here.

Need a catalog? Sign up here!

IH 966

01/07/2020 by ST Leave a Comment

When I was probably 12 my dad had his friend’s International Harvester 966, and field cultivator at our farm. He let me run 30 acres. I fell in love, I always wanted one. A couple years ago I bought a diecast model of one thinking that’s the closest I’d ever get.

But with a career change comes new things. I found this one 3 miles from work. I made a deal with the owner and his daughter back in February 2019. As of the middle of September 2019 I finished it just how I imagined it to be. I received lots of help from my father and my girlfriend who did some detail to the draft control lettering and also the shifter lettering.

Jeremy Haldiman of Jamestown, Missouri

Early 1947 John Deere A

01/03/2020 by ST Leave a Comment

Early 1947 John Deere A after a Winter storm on the Idaho Palouse in December 2018. The tractor was bought new by a neighbor in Eastern Oregon, where I grew up. After we got it my Dad replaced the original seat with a battery box seat which is how I plan to keep it.

David Sass of Genesee, Idaho

David’s photo was a winner in our 2020 Steiner Tractor Parts calendar photo contest.

Frank the Ford

12/31/2019 by ST Leave a Comment

My wife’s Uncle Frank (thus its name ”Frank the Ford”) purchased a new 4cyl 2000, 5 speed, with 2 stage clutch to bale hay with in 1963. After several years, it sat outside to rust away until her father and I swapped a restored 600 for it. At that time it got many new parts and paint and served him well for many years. He would not let any family members but me operate the tractor at the point when he became unable to raise his leg high enough to operate the two-stage clutch pedal with his tiller attached. At 90 yrs. of age, he compelled us to buy the tractor and equipment. Some 5 years ago his daughter and I decided that Fall of 2019 was time for another restoration. He is no longer with us and we wanted to preserve it.

It now has an electronic ignition with a 12V re-wound generator (for authentic looks), new brake shoes, new gas gauge, new steering wheel, new two stage clutch, rebuilt hydraulic lift cylinder, new tires, belt, hoses, governor, and many other small parts. All except the generator and tires came from Steiner. It has a vertical exhaust as we split wood with it and for obvious reasons that works better than the under-slung original. We had the hood and fenders professionally cleaned up, painted and clear coated this time to preserve it better, while the rest of it got a good paint job with hardener. It is an excellent runner and very handy to use, however I don’t want to use it to perform some of the dirty jobs that we have used it for in the past.

The picture is in our back yard, before they picked the cotton a few weeks ago. It was very dry here in our part of Georgia this year so the cotton was not very tall. We displayed it in the “Cotton Gin” parade on Nov 2nd, 2019, having just put the hood and fenders on late in the evening of the night before. My wife and Grand Daughter operated it while I rode on our ’30 GP. The home made carrier on the back has a removable seat for the Grand Children to ride in.

Dan Bennett of Monroe, Georgia

1949 John Deere M

12/29/2019 by ST Leave a Comment

Bought this 1949 John Deere M tractor all in parts in January 2018 and completely restored it. This was a fun project. Took 18 months. Steiner was very helpful with what parts I needed. The hardest part was finding waffle rims 10″ x 24″. Finally found 2 good used ones in Oregon.

The 1949 works great! Currently working on a 1948 John Deere M. Hope to have it running shortly. Just waiting on a hydraulic pump from Iowa.

Thanks again for all your help!

P.S. also looking to aquire a 1950 John Deere M in Spring of 2020. Hope it is running.

Barry Smith of Forest Glen, New Brunswick, Canada

1949 Massey Harris Pony

12/19/2019 by ST Leave a Comment

This is a 1949 model MH Pony. My grandparents bought it new. It has never been off the family farm. Shown here with the field mower, which we use to trim around the farm pond. It’s all original, including the tires. I also have the field plows and cultivator. Seventy years and runs fine.

Paul Steckel of Frederick Maryland