[AT] Old tractor wool-gathering...

[Indiana Robinson]

I was thinking about old tractors this morning and more particularly about
old tractors of my own general vintage. We mostly desire the tractors we
grew up with either on the family farm or on the farms of neighbors or
extended family. These days I find myself mostly interested in stuff from
around 1930 up to around 1960. I was born in 1942. I don't throw rocks at
stuff made after around 1960, I just don't have the desire to collect any
of that "newfangled stuff"...  :-)
Starting with "A"...  :-)  I have a 1948 Allis Chalmers C (Serial #522686)
that needs a few hours of work but was totally restored except paint many
years ago and then I painted it and used to show it occasionally, I think
at Portland at least once. Back when we decided it needed / deserved
rebuilding we were really busy so we acquired the parts and had a good
local mechanic that we used sometimes to do the rebuild. It got the full
treatment, oversize piston and thin wall sleeve set (claimed to raise HP
from 23 up to 29 HP), Full valve set with all giblets, crank ground to .010
under with all bearings and seals etc., clutch etc. It was bought new by an
old family friend to replace an old homemade tractor made out of a cut down
truck from the 30's. He also used it as transportation to the store (which
I now own as a rental house) in the village that bordered his small farm.
He, like my grandfather, never owned a car. The "C" has a strong personal
attachment for me. Three generations of close friendship on each side. The
"C"s main job was mowing with its mid mount sickle mower and powering
elevators and augers. It is a decent tractor but if I was picking a small
Allis of that vintage ignoring personal factors I would choose a CA.
Tractor data list it with a couple of more HP stock, it has Live PTO and
the spin out wheels were a big plus in this row crop country. I'm also
thinking that all of the "CA's" were Snap-Coupler hitch?
I have a Allis WC chassis minus the engine and sheet metal. I have owned
several WC's in the past and they were a functioning 2 plow worker but kind
of crude, especially those hand brakes. The WD had a lot of improvements
but like many makers Allis failed to see how badly farmers wanted more than
a few extra HP out of a new model. I have owned a couple of WD's over the
years. The WD-45 did hit the HP target. It had enough power to do some
serious work on larger farms. I never owned one but did some plowing with
one and it literally loafed with a 3 x 14" plow running deep in heavy clay.
I never much liked the off-set drivers station on any of the Allis tractors
made like that. I like to sit in the middle. The other big failing on the
WD and the WD-45 is what I call the right foot "pit"... It can be pretty
dangerous if you need to stop quickly. It is nearly impossible to get a
size 13 waffle-stomper work shoe up out of the "pit" and on the brake
pedals. I was reminded of that when son Scott and I were pull starting a
friends WD to load it on the trailer a few weeks ago..
I liked the "D" series Allis tractors but they lean into the "newfangled"
class.  :-)
Allis Chalmers was well represented here and I used to see a lot of them
working in the 1950's and 1960's. We had a good Allis dealer for a long
time and they had a very good head mechanic / shop foremen
.
If I get a chance I'll pick on another brand tomorrow.  :-)


.




-- 
-- 

Francis Robinson
aka "farmer"
Central Indiana USA
robinson46176 at gmail.com
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.antique-tractor.com/pipermail/at-antique-tractor.com/attachments/20191114/868a366e/attachment.html>