Tractor & Farming Heritage August 2014

CONTENTS

TRACTOR AND FARMING HERITAGE AUGUST 2014

Regulars 3

Welcome

18

News

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No rust = happy man!

Alistair Minton decided his Fordson Super Major needed a makeover, which is a good idea if you have an aversion to rust.

All the latest news in the world of tractors and heritage.

Graham’s Grumbles

Not so much a grumble, more dismay at the way some people used to treat those visitors to our shows – swallows.

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Tractor Talk

COVER STORY

We take a look at an unusual project which wouldn’t look out of place on the film set of Mad Max.

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Postcode lottery!

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Best pick of the crop

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Your news, views and comments about the vintage and classic scene.

Jo Roberts finds out why local heritage is so important to farmer Tudur Parry.

Gateway to the next level

Graham Hampstead tackles the Super Dexta’s tricky clutch and gearbox but gets some good news about the tractor’s provenance.

COVER STORY

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Preview of the September issue of Tractor & Farming Heritage.

Farmer Brown’s workshop becomes a place for men of a certain age to ‘hang out’ – with hilarious results.

YourTractors 6

Perfect package

12 COVER STORY

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30 COVER STORY

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The ‘rust to riches’ story of this 1953 Field Marshall Series 3A tractor just proves that what sounds and looks right is right!

COVER STORY

Standing out from the crowd

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We see how adding an MF 80 loader to a Massey Ferguson 185 Multi-Power has given the tractor a much greater appeal.

Vickers Vigor Bulldozer

After 13 weeks in traction Dave Taylor was going crazy for something to do; he couldn’t cope with a tractor so settled for the next best thing.

It’s all part of the fun

The ‘unconventional’ design on the 1950 Mark 2 Turner Yeoman engine makes its restoration far more interesting for David White.

TractorAugust2014

Bob Parke, shows us the latest additions to his collection, a Massey-Harris self propelled corn picker and a Super 27 combine.

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Tractor Archive

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Highland folk ways

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Heritage

114 Next month 146 Last Word

The Frankenstein Fordson

82

Postcode lottery!

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Cut and Vine

With the pea harvest starting at the end of June and carrying on through to August, now is a good time to take a look at the fascinating history of harvesting the crop.

Farm crops in Britain

What better way to depict the farming practices of yesteryear than this lovely set of illustrations from a children’s farming textbook of the 1950s.

Tractors ahead of their time

We track the story of Fendt to modern times and see how it has not only stayed true to its tradition but and become one of the leading brands within the AGCO Group.

More heritage memories from the farming literature of yesteryear.

Marvel at the work of Isabel Frances Grant who was passionate about Scottish history and Highland folk culture, and dedicated to recording it.

A classic harvest

Back before the hard winter frosts, we were invited up to Noel Clarke’s farm in Co. Meath to photograph the last of the winter wheat harvest.

Workshop 92

New coat for an old favourite

COVER STORY

Ben Phillips applies the cosmetic touches to what is arguably one if the iconic tractors of the early 1970s – the Leyland 154.

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Hot bulb basics

COVER STORY

Richard Lofting uses his friends’ acquisition of a SFV Super 204 to tell us a lot more about one of his favourite subjects – hot bulb tractors!

Marketplace 101 What’s on

Your guide to heritage days out throughout the season in our comprehensive event guide.

International at war

How the IH Company of Great Britain became one of the largest suppliers of tractors to the Ministry of Munitions during the First World War.

106 Preparing for the Ploughing Challenge

Dinky Heavy Tractors

COVER STORY

Introduced during 1948, the Heavy Tractor was included within the popular Dinky Supertoys series, and is regarded an interesting collectible.

New generation of power

Profile of the John Deere 3010 tractor – part of a range of new multi-cylinder designs introduced by the company in 1960.

The NBVTC get its 2014 season off to a flying start and throws down the gauntlet to other clubs for a ploughing competition later this year.

108 Products

All the latest tractor and farming heritage related product releases.

110 Sales & Auctions

Our roundup includes the Late Bill Etherington Dispersal Sale where a 5ft Case eagle sold for an amazing £13,000. tractormagazine.co.uk

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TRACTORS FEATURED

What sounds and looks right... is right!

David Brown 990 Implematic ............80 Fendt .............................................................56 Ferguson TE-20.........................................46 Field Marshall Series 3A ...........................6 Fordson Super Dexta .....................82, 88 Fordson Super Major .............................36 Frankenstein Fordson............................38 John Deere 3010......................................70 Leyland 154 ................................................92 Massey Ferguson 178 ............................80 Massey Ferguson 185 ............................12 Massey Ferguson 2720..........................80 Massey Ferguson 65...............................80 Massey-Harris self propelled corn picker.............................40 Massey-Harris Super 27 combine.....40 Mogul 12-25...............................................62 Mogul 8-16..................................................62 SFV Super 204............................................96 Titan 10-20..................................................62 Turner Yeoman Mark 2..........................30 Vickers Vigor bulldozer .........................28 Zetor 2511...................................................80

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Ploughing Challenge

PAG E 115

TR CLA ACTOR S SEC SIFIED TION

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New coat for an old favourite

SUBSCRIBE! Only £3 per issue ✦ see page 22 for further details

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International at war

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Gateway to the next level

76

Highland folk ways

Having trouble finding a copy of this magazine?

Why not Just Ask your local newsagent to reserve you a copy each month? tractormagazine.co.uk

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It’s all part of the fun August2014Tractor

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YourTractors

What sounds and looks

right... is right!

We follow the ‘rust to riches’ story of this 1953 Field Marshall Series 3A tractor; an amazing restoration by owner Rob Leighfield from south Gloucestershire.

Rob’s expert touch With the single cylinder at top dead centre, smouldering paper and cartridge in place and a deft ‘whack’ with a small hammer from Rob, the Field Marshall burst into life with a puff of smoke and soon settled down into a distinctive rocking motion accompanied by the characteristic thump of the single cylinder.

WORDS & PICTURES Bernard Holloway

T

he distinctive sound of a Merlin engine distracts me as a Spitfire on ‘finals’ into the nearby airfield skims the rooops and sets me thinking... no matter how iconic a machine is, everything has its day.

Although technically poles apart, the Field Marshall and the aircra were products of the late 1930s with roots stretching back to the earlier part of that decade. e first series of the Field Marshall, although substantially based on the model M, could itself be traced back to the 15/30 and the plane derived from the pen of the great R J Mitchell and to his design for a Schneider Trophy seaplane. Both belong to a time when the slide rule was king and the computer was in its infancy.

Yet despite various improvements over their production life they both had to make way for new technology, which is as it should be. ey are united via a bygone era, but if you ask the question ‘name a Second World War fighter plane?’ it’s likely the majority would say the Spitfire, and as far as hobby tractor owners go, they would probably name the Field Marshall (apologies now to all members of all other club marques!). ere is no doubting their distinctive engine notes and profiles that could not be confused for anything else.

I can certainly vouch for the sound of Rob Leighfield’s Series 3A as he started it up in time honoured way, as it does not have the optional 24 volt electric starting system. Little wonder really when it cost approximately 25% of the 3A’s retail cost of £845, itself expensive when compared with the price of contemporary tractors; the inclusion of electric start would put the cost way beyond the pocket of most cost-conscious farmers!

Good runner

Rob Leighfield beside his 1953 Field Marshall Series 3A, once nicknamed Rusty but which now must be one of the best restorations of its type in the country.

From rust to riches certainly describes this tractor. From the beginning it was always a runner but Rob and his friend Steve ornhill, who with son Dan is an avid collector of David Brown and Case tractors, took the bones of what was basically a good 1953 Field Marshall Series 3A and turned it into what must be one of the best examples of its type in the country. ➤ August2014Tractor

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YourTractors

The Frankenstein

FoRdSon

Rob Gulley has a reputation for turning out some interesting creations.

We take a look at his latest project which wouldn’t look out of place on the film set of Mad Max. WORDS & PICTURES Rob U’Ren

D

evon builder Rob Gulley is a bit of a self-confessed nutcase with a fascination for very large powerful engines. Over the years his extraordinary talent has enabled him to build, modify and convert many interesting machines. e tractor conversions he has completed to name a few – a Fordson Major with a Deutz V8 air-cooled diesel engine, and another with a 6.2 litre V8 GMC diesel engine fitted. ese Fordson Majors have a very strong back axle with huge final drive cogs known to have tolerated up to 1000hp.

Reader’s restoration

Ready for battle

Rob explained that coupling the engine to the rear axle can be done in many different ways and the tractor conversion he is completing at the moment is a Fordson Major fitted with a Foden FD12 Mark 7 engine taken from a NATO warship generator. It has a twin six-cylinder Siamese layout similar to a V12, but this one has had 23 modifications by Rolls-Royce including twin turbochargers, twin superchargers and twin water-cooled intercoolers (hope you’re still with us and not suffering from information overload).

We move on to the chassis and running gear, which because of the weight and length of this tractor involves two Fordson front axles being used in tandem. e rear wheels and tyres (currently standard) will be considerably upsized to balance the tractor nicely. It measures 6 high to the top of the turbochargers and 18 long, which may reduce as the project goes on.

Some of Rob’s earlier creations Rob’s conversions include a trike fitted with a six-cylinder lorry engine and his daily commute Range Rover that has untold modifications including its 6.2 litre GMC V8 diesel engine. His higgledypiggledy multi-level workshop is an Aladdin’s cave of heavy machine tooling and ongoing big-engined projects as well as a Meteor V12 27 litre petrol engine from an early Churchill tank fitted into a sort of multi-axle lorry chassis thingamajig.

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TractorAugust2014

Rob Gulley strikes up his latest creation a ‘Fordson Major’ (note tinwork) fitted with a Foden FD12 Mark 7 engine taken from a NATO warship generator. ere is provision to fit a large dumper autotransmission to act as a sort of clutch between engine and rear axle. As Rob went on to explain, a standard Fordson clutch will not tolerate the 800hp that this engine can push out. e cooling radiator has come from a large International combine and as the front of the engine has no fan drive there is currently a front-mounted 13hp engine with a large eight-bladed fan to cool it. is also may be subject to upgrading as it evolves. e classic Fordson Major tinwork and cosmetics will be graed in and on to this tractor as much as possible to make it look right. is always comes at the end of the build aer all the

testing and engineering work is complete, and Rob explains that getting the looks right is always the fun part. But just to give the readers an idea we threw bits of Fordson tinwork up on to the front, and covered the Honda engine with a rag as it will be out of view on completion.

Wheeled into action

e steel superstructure chassis took many hours to construct, and may need more work later on. Power-assisted steering will be fitted of course (how else would you turn it?). Anarchy soon ensued on the workshop floor as Rob and his two sons decided to start it up. tractormagazine.co.uk

The mighty engine had to be connected to a large air compressor pipe that drives the air starter.

Rob and his two sons prepare to roll the machine out of the shed to run the engine.

The black smoke quickly cleared, followed by the impressive sound of the 12-cylinder engine.

Wherever you are, whatever tractor you’ve got, if you’ve got a story you want to share Tractor and Farming Heritage would love to hear from you; email us at editor@tractormagazine.co.uk tractormagazine.co.uk

is meant it had to be rolled out of the workshop and connected to a large air compressor pipe that drives the air starter.

Tempers flared and voices were raised, especially when the start-up had to be immediately abandoned because of a horse and trap coming up the nearby bridle path that could have been spooked by the noise.

On ignition the engine let out a small patch of black smoke which cleared instantly, followed by the impressive sound of the 12 cylinders and giant turbos. e acceleration was quick – not what you would expect from two tons of diesel engine (must be all those Rolls-Royce modifications). e fun was soon over though and it was pushed back into the depths of the barn. e interesting thing about Rob Gulley’s creations is that they usually get completed, and it will be exciting to see the finished article. We will keep you posted. ✦ August2014Tractor

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FarmingHeritage

Farm Crops

in Britain What better way to depict the farming practices of yesteryear than this lovely set of illustrations from a children’s farming textbook of the 1950s, unearthed by Peter Henshaw.

WORDS Peter Henshaw PICTURES Courtesy Penguin Group

B

ack in the 1950s, how did a child living in inner city Birmingham or the East End of London learn about farming? It was oen from a book, in this case Farm Crops in Britain, written by Sir George Stapledon and illustrated by S R Badmin.

It’s a fascinating find, not just because the pictures are so evocative, but because they show tractors of the time working alongside horses. ere’s some artistic licence going on, showing multiple operations in one field, but it’s true

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TractorAugust2014

that some small farms were still using horses along with a new Fergie or ageing Fordson.

On one page, a tractor and machine li and top sugar beet, but the beets are taken away by horse and cart. In a spring cultivation scene, a horse-drawn fertiliser spreader is at work, in the next field manure is spread by hand while a Ferguson chugs past hauling a trailer laden with fertiliser – in the background, tractors and a crawler are at work ploughing and harrowing. en there’s a harvest scene, showing both a tractordriven binder and a combine harvester.

Another striking aspect is just how labour intensive some of the jobs were then, with

seasonal workers brought in to harvest peas or sprouts, or to do some winter pruning in the orchard. In one telling phrase about harvesting hay, ‘Gone almost are the days of pitch-forks and wagons, of hand-rakes and sun-bonnets,’ writes Sir George. Note the ‘almost,’ as they evidently hadn’t quite disappeared completely. is was a decade when British farming was being transformed – 10 years later, the tractors and machinery would have changed, the horses and crowds of seasonal workers gone. Farming Crops of Britain provides a glimpse of a time when British agriculture was on the cusp of big changes. ➤ tractormagazine.co.uk

Left: ‘SILAGE MAKING: The man on the nearest tractor is collecting freshly mown hay with a buckrake. He runs backwards with the tractor collecting the wilted but still green grass on the steel tines of his rake, which the hydraulic lift of the tractor raises off the ground. A second tractor is dropping its load on the silage pit, which is compressed by the heavy wheels of the tractors running over it. When complete, it will be covered with straw or earth to seal it from the air. In the farmyard a tower silo is being filled with grass raised by an elevator. A third tractor is mowing more grass ready for collection.’

Acknowledgements

Illustrations and text are reproduced with kind permission of Penguin Group. Every effort has been made to trace the copyright holders. Tractor Farming and Heritage magazine would like to hear from any copyright holder not acknowledged.

“A decade when British farming was being transformed...”

Left to right: Harvesting beans for fodder; picking, weighing and packing peas; planting cabbages mechanically. ‘Recent developments in row-crop equipment, including mechanical planters, fitted to small and low-powered tractors, have enormously reduced the need for hand hoeing, so that these valuable cash crops are effective cleaning crops. The farmer who grows cow-cabbage, kale, sugar beet, or other crops of that kind needs, in any event, to be equipped with row-crop tackle.’

Right: ‘GRASS DRYING. Artificial heat is used in this mobile drying plant to preserve the full food value in the grass. Here the dried grass is being baled. Sometimes it is ground into meal or compressed into cubes, so that it can be fed like cake to the cattle. Some large farms, or groups of farms, have large permanent drying plants. In the farther field hay is being swept by a tractor and made into a rick, still the common way of preserving grass in most parts of the country.’ tractormagazine.co.uk

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