[AT] After 10 years it still runs

Dean VP deanvp at att.net
Mon May 30 09:58:52 PDT 2016


Henry,

That is a great story. Memories of when the 1st antique tractor started do
not go away. Especially a family tractor. I suspect you have captured the
memories prior to your birth fairly well with one exception you might want
to ask fellow family members about. Typical threshing machines are a bit HP
hungry. I don't recall seeing a Threshing machine small enough that a 1939 B
could handle. But maybe there is. All the threshing machines I was around as
a kid usually took a good sized steam traction engine or something like a
big Rumley Oil Pull or a JD Model D.  So I would just check that little
piece of memory and see if it still fits.  I'm now getting to the age that
one needs to question my memory too.  Maybe there were JD B sized combines,
I just don't remember seeing them as a kid. 

My Dad and my Uncle co-owned a threshing machine and we had a threshing ring
of about 10 farmers.   Lots of fond memories of what went on during that
time. I think my first experience of driving a tractor by myself was to pull
the Bundle wagon while the farmers loaded it.  Wasn't all that big a job to
stay aligned with the row of shocks and the speed was quite low in case I
needed to be rescued. I'm sure I was between 5 and 10 years old at the time.
Probably closer to 5. But the best part of threshing was the annual
Threshing Picnic after all fields and farmers were done. A full day was
devoted to a celebration that the crop was in.  All kinds of family
activities and the women would put on a food feast that never ended.
Threshing Picnics are in the top 5 memories of growing up on the farm in the
1940's. 

Family tractors are great to own. I've never been able to find any of my
Fathers tractors but I do have the 2 bottom plow we plowed with in the 40's
and a 2 row cultivator. Not worth all that much but I hauled them all the
way from Iowa to WA state just to save them as family treasures.
Unfortunately, my children were born and raised in the city and my children
and grandchildren really don't identify with farm life as much as I would
like. But I've lead them to the water. It is up to them to decide to drink. 

I really enjoy reading about how others and their families who have been
able to keep the family history and traditions alive.  Thanks for the
memories. 

Dean VP
Snohomish, WA 98290

It's better to be judged by 12 than carried by 6. 

-----Original Message-----
From: at-bounces at lists.antique-tractor.com
[mailto:at-bounces at lists.antique-tractor.com] On Behalf Of Henry Miller
Sent: Monday, May 30, 2016 9:16 AM
To: at at lists.antique-tractor.com
Subject: [AT] After 10 years it still runs

This story starts about a dozen years before I was born, so I probably have
some details wrong. I think you will enjoy anyway 

In 1962 my Grandpa was at an auction and saw a 1939 John Deere B with a
cultivator that nobody was bidding on. He could use another tractor on the
farm and wanted to try a John Deere cultivator so he bid on it and bought it
for $200. My dad drove it home as an almost teenager. They used it on the
farm for a few years, but the 8n and Ford 860 were the main work tractors. 

I have seen pictures of it running a threshing machine on the belt, judging
by the age of my uncles in the pictures I was probably a baby at the time,
but of course I don't remember it. I remember it sitting by the barn as a
kid, sometimes I would climb in the seat, but as far as I know it was never
used. Grandpa had rented out the land and quit farming by then 

Eventually my Grandpa retired, brought it up to the shed, painted it and got
it running. I got to start and drive it 20 years ago, just for the fun of
it. 

In the fall of 2005 grandpa put new tires on it, winterized it and parked it
in the shed. He died that January and so it sat.

While cleaning up my uncles wondered how much they could get for it, and I
said if they were to sell it I wanted it. At the time I was working a
temporary job 100 miles from home and couldn't really do anything about it. 

5 years ago I got a job with John Deere, got married, bought a house, and
had a couple kids. Somewhere along the way my uncles told me I should come
get it. Last weekend I had a wedding to go to, so with a rented trailer up
we went to get it. 

When I got up to the farm my uncles had pulled it out and put water in the
radiator. Despite pulling it all over with a tractor they couldn't get it to
start: no spark. So we pulled it on the trailer and after the wedding I am
pulled it home. Monday night I got a friendly neighbor to help push it into
the garage. 

Thursday I filed and gaped the points and got spark (this was my first
experience with points instead of electronic ignition so I was nervous).
Saturday it rained, so I did indoor work. Today dawned bright and clear, so
I pushed it out of the garage, greased the zerks, put fuel in and set out to
remember how to crank the flywheel over. 

It took a while to remember the tricks and figure out the right choke
setting, but after a good workout it fired up and ran. Enough to make it 15
feet where I ran out of gas. fresh gas and it started right up. I had a
great time driving around the front yard! I still have a silly grin on my
face as I write this. 

I had to run at half choke, and oil drips out of the compression release
valves, so there is work to do. That can wait a weekend or five to
investigate. 

I figured you guys would enjoy the story. 

-- 
Sent from my Android device with K-9 Mail. Please excuse my brevity.
_______________________________________________
AT mailing list
http://www.antique-tractor.com/mailman/listinfo/at




More information about the AT mailing list