[AJD] s/n discussion - JD books

[Duane Larson]

The book under discussion, "John Deere Tractors  1918 to .. " was available in three editions.  The first (1918 - 1976) had a brown cover, 54 pages, and was published by Deere in 1976 and carries number E-1637-76-8.  The next edition (1918-1987) had a green cover, 69 numbered pages, and was copyrighted by Deere in 1987 and printed by ASAE.  The last edition (1918-1994) had a grey cover, 85 numbered pages, and was copyrighted in 1994 by Deere, and printed by ASAE.  The last one carries number E-1637-93-12.  Each of the originals had an embossed early D on the front cover.  I don't know why my 1987 edition does not have the E number on the back cover.  Copies have been made and sold of these books, but they do not have the embossed picture on the cover -some have a print of the D.  

The 1976 and 1987 versions have the same s/n lists, but the 1994 list has some changes, and that s/n list seems to be the same as that published by the Two Cylinder Club on their membership card (at least for my spot checking of the A and B s/n's).  Based on the article in Jan-Feb 1997 Two Cylinder Magazine, in which they explain that information continues to surface pertinent to relating model years to calendar years, I believe the 1994 list is the most current.

Brian Rukes, in his book on the Model A, also provides his take on the s/n information for the A in an appendix, and his list agrees with the Two Cylinder card, but includes information on s/n's which were scrapped.

There is some legitimate interest in associating a year with a s/n - you may be looking for a tractor built the year your wife was born, for example.  Or be trying to assemble a complete set of a particular model.  I find the Production Log (a reprint of Lyle Cherry's build information) a very useful and informative source of information when trying to associate a month date with a s/n.