
Dreams do come true. When I was a kid I was always up at my grandparents farm and they had an International 856. I absolutely fell in love with it then. I’ve always wanted an 856 for years and every time I saw a shirt, picture or a 1/16 die cast I had to have it.
I was looking for the past 5 years to buy one and 2 years ago I was talking with a relative of mine and he had this 756. I went over and looked at it, drove it and we had a price all figured out. I just couldn’t swing it with having a new snowmobile on order coming. So I kept looking for an 856 and this May at our tractor club show I was talking with a friend and I realized how hard it was now with my work schedule and schedule with my son to get away on a trip with my snowmobile or even get enough snow to ride it by my house.


So I called my relative and asked if the 756 was still for sale and it was. Went over again and drove it and it hadn’t had anything done to it for 2 years. So the same price was set. I started getting ready to sell my snowmobile and 2 months later the snowmobile sold. Talked to him again 3 days later we setup a time to pick it up, having my son that weekend worked perfectly.
A week after selling the snowmobile my dad, son and I went over to bring it home. My dad asked my son if he wanted to ride home with grandpa or with dad and he didn’t say anything but kept walking to the tractor. He’s just as in love with it as I am and wants to ride on it all the time. It needs a little work and some cleaning but I’m getting to that as I can. A dream come true and having a son with the same passion for the 3 tractors I have is amazing!
Gene Guenther
Ixonia, Wisconsin
If you would like to submit a story with photo(s) about an experience with your tractor, interesting facts about its history, or a restoration project, please go to Tractor Story Submissions. If your story is picked to appear on the blog you will receive a FREE Steiner hat. Some stories will also go on to be published in our quarterly magazine. We look forward to hearing your story!