This 1948 Farmall H was brought back to life with a lot of patience, hard work and parts available from Steiner’s.
Thanks,
Ben Wyant
Union County, North Carolina
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This 1948 Farmall H was brought back to life with a lot of patience, hard work and parts available from Steiner’s.
Thanks,
Ben Wyant
Union County, North Carolina
I just wanted to quickly share the tractor of my dads that was restored this past summer. Attached are three pictures, one of him on it while raking a little hay, one after I finished restoring it, and one of both him and my mom. My dad was diagnosed with multiple myeloma about two and a half years ago and unfortunately it was too progressed to treat it effectively. The photo of him on it was one of the last times he was able to get up on it and use it and I think for him that was harder than the actual cancer.
Well given the situation I decided I wanted to restore the M but trying to get him to allow it was quite a struggle. Eventually he gave into it and I started with a few purchases of needed parts and a plan to get it done. I knew time was short and I would have to hurry because I so hoped to help him up into the seat and give him a chance to have a tractor that was “NEW”. Something he never had, as money was never in large supply. As life would prove to me what I thought I could do was not going to happen. I had no more than removed the sheet metal from the tractor when he took a turn for the worse. This was July 28th of 2015. He went from doing rather well to the doctor giving him 4-5 weeks, how was I ever going to get this done? Well given I was raised by a guy who didn’t quit it must have rubbed of on me and I worked ridiculous hours at every given moment of free time to try to complete the project. I have a full time job starting at 6am and out at 4:30 each day and after work I would drive to the farm and work on the M until I could go no more, head home and sleep then repeat it again. On August 22nd 2015 my dad passed away without ever being able to see his tractor complete in fact he saw very little of the progress as the cancer had ended up completely taking over. I finished it two days later. A drive and push like I’ve never had before with energy that came from him somehow, helping me complete it. Four weeks from old to new! Although my heart was broken and it didn’t feel complete without him he didn’t leave without the tractor. A picture of it, sorry not included, because its very much a personal one, went along with him. His tractor will always be there.
DADS M as its labeled runs like a champ. It doesn’t spit, sputter or stumble in any way. Its strong and steady just like he was. Thank you for allowing me to share this, and thank you for having the parts for me to make it look and run good again.
Andy Bereza
West Olive, Michigan
by RG 38 Comments
If you haven’t heard the news, a Farmall H tractor sold for $40,000 at the Mecum Gone Farmin’ Auction on November 7. That’s not a typo – it was really sold for forty thousand dollars.
After an interview with John Kennay, the man who sold this tractor at the auction, I’ve got the inside scoop on why this tractor was worth so much. Here’s the story.
First things first: this really is an incredible selling price for a Farmall H! There are plenty of Farmall H tractors still around – hundreds of thousands were produced, and here in Michigan you can usually by a Farmall H for as little as $1,000. These tractors are loved by many (my dad included – here’s his story), but I’ve never heard of one selling for more than $9,000 – and that one was something really special. Even a great restoration rarely brings more than $5,000.
What makes this tractor so special is highly original condition. Plenty of people enjoy restoring tractors, making them shiny and new again – but there’s also something to be said for the unaltered original. That’s exactly what you have in this tractor – nearly as original as you could imagine.
According to John, the tractor was bought new by an elderly farmer from Monroe, IL. The bachelor farmer and his sister ran an 80-acre family farm, with around half of it planted in corn. The farmer used the tractor to cultivate his 40 acres of corn one year, but never used the tractor for farming again – choosing instead to rent out the land. The tractor sat unused and was later passed down to the farmer’s niece, who kept it for sentimental reasons but rarely pulled it out of the shed.
14 years later, John and his father purchased the tractor. They are dedicated Case IH men, using red power to farm 2,000 acres in western Illinois. John and his father recognized that the H was something special and kept it well-preserved. John estimates that in the time he and his father owned it, they got it out only once or twice a year for short rides around the yard.
John’s best guess is that the tractor has only 200 hours on it. The tractor’s condition certainly supports this. It still has red paint on the fan belt and the gear shaft rod. Even the piece of cloth tape that the factory put on to hold the spark plug wires together is still there.
While John knew he had something special, he never expected the tractor to sell for so much. John and Dan Mecum had originally settled on a reserve of $7,500, but on sale day John and his wife agreed that they would let it go for as little as $6,000. When it came up to the auction block, the selling price hit $10,000 in a heartbeat. The bids climbed to $20,000 so quickly that the auctioneer jumped straight up to $30,000! The bidders soon thinned out, and two buyers marched right up to $40,000. The winning bid went to a man from Connecticut.
So what did John do with his unexpected windfall? John agreed that it felt a little bit like winning the lottery – “I was so happy!” he said. Later that day, John bought a beautifully restored 1206 Wheatland as a gift for his father. “My dad is still farming at age 89,” John explained. “He’s always wanted a 1206 Wheatland,” so when it came to the block John couldn’t resist. Together with his father, John brought the 1206 back to their 2,000 acres in Illinois.
Here’s the moral of the story: if your grandpa’s Farmall H is sitting in the back corner of the barn, untouched and in highly original condition, think twice before taking it in for a paint job!
What a story! Thanks, John for sharing with us.
Photos from Mecum.
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