[AT] Something to do

[Dean VP]

Steve,

A styled G is a very desired JD collector tractor and is coveted by pullers.
But.....the missing serial # tag is a big drag on the price.  With tag that
tractor might sell for $4,000 plus or minus pretty easily given a good
mechanical restoration.  When a G gets into the $5,500 range other
alternatives become attractive such as its successors, the 70 and 720.
Tractor pullers love the G because it was built hell for stout and can be
"hopped up" to 100 HP or more and pull all day without damage. But several
$$$ will changed hands in the process.  Unfortunately for true collectors
many G's have been modified beyond recognition and their collector value has
diminished significantly.  Here is one of the weird anomaly's about the JD
G. It was sold right up to the end of its product life in 1953 as an "All
Fuel" tractor.  JD never converted it to a Gas tractor like it did the A &
B. In fact the late A had more HP than the late JD G. JD's literature for
that period sol it as the Heavy Duty tractor for tough conditions and yes in
really tough pulling conditions the extra torque of the long strike G would
come out ahead. Have never understood why that didn't translate into more
rated HP.  Probably due to the way HP tests were run in that era. But when
the 70 replaced the G, the 70 offered both Gas and "All Fuel" options and
then JD started selling Gas conversions for the discontinued G tractor.
Aftermarket companies had been selling gas conversions for the G for many
years and were obviously very successful.  There has been several
discussions as to why JD didn't sell a GAS G originally. The most prevalent
one is that JD had limited engineering resources and since the G was the
lowest selling volume tractor it was the last tractor out.  When the JD 40,
50, and 60 came out in 1952 there were a huge amount of changes/improvements
included but not major changes in the engines. Then the 70 came out in 1953
with the same changes as the others and it had the gas engine option and
even later the diesel engine option.  The 70 Diesel was JD's first Row Crop
Diesel version.  The JD "R" JD's first Two Cylinder Diesel announced in 1949
was a "Standard " configuration turned out to be more successful and
reliable than even JD imagined so they moved that technology into the Row
Crop arena.  JD had Two Cylinder Diesel development going for 10 years
before they brought out the "R" in 1949.  There was serious concern within
the JD corporation whether Two Cylinder Diesel tractors were going to be
reliable.  Turned out they were overdesigned and under rated the HP on the
"R" and its successors the 80, 820 and 830  nearly doubled the HP of the "R"
and were very successful tractors.   I would have loved to have had a chance
to talk to some of those engineers who designed all of the engines without
the all the engineering tools we have today such as stress emulator's and
CAD based mechanical design. I suspect many an engineer of today could not
do those designs without all the available tools today.  The Engineers  of
the 30' 40's and 50's were a different bread of cat.   I've always wondered
how many were Kaleidoscope engineers.  Tweak it until it works reliably.
I've unkindly used this term to describe the Lindeman Brothers in Yakima, WA
who were self-trained designers/manufacturers of a lot of farm equipment
including many different hitches for tractors that were an alternative to
the Ferguson System  and also very successfully converted the JD BR and BO
into crawler tractors for the NW Orchard industry. JD eventually bought them
out in 1947.  Some of their designs left a little bit to be desired but they
got the job done.   They went where JD feared to go. 


Dean VP
Snohomish, WA 98290
"Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and gospel of
envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery."
..Winston Churchill...

-----Original Message-----
From: AT <at-bounces at lists.antique-tractor.com> On Behalf Of STEVE ALLEN
Sent: Monday, September 21, 2020 1:16 PM
To: at at lists.antique-tractor.com
Subject: Re: [AT] Something to do

Just two local data points that might be of use to you, Spencer.

I don't really look too hard for tractor sales hereabouts, but one is quite
close to me, and the other one I bought.

The first is a late JD G w/starter and lights and the battery under the
seat.  Here is the description:
SELLING DUE TO HEALTH  
John Deere G runs and drives very well, tractor is running in pictures, big
nut carb, Roll a matic front end,  Firestone 13.6-38 rears, 6.50-16 good
years on front, good brakes, lights work, has distributor  and fenders. The
tractor charges and has good oil pressure. Old restoration, had new lights,
battery box, steering wheel, seat, gauges, and tires were all new at
restoration a few years back. 
Tractor is MISSING SERIAL # TAG!!!  PRICE IS FIRM!
The pics suggest the "few years back" is probably closer to 10, and it was
not "Expo Quality" at that point.  The price is $5,500, which strikes me as
pretty high for what it is.  It has been on the local sale site for about a
month now.

The other is the '51 JD A I bought back in March.  Not exactly close by but
still in MO.  Price was $1250, and I suspect you remember the various
discussions we've had here about my problems with it.  After a couple months
of work and several more hundreds of dollars, it is a pretty reliable
tractor, but it still needs some leaks chased down.  (I have discovered that
the loss of coolant is the rubber section of the upper water pipe--an easy
enough fix, I suppose.)  It hardly approximates the tractors you are asking
about in NC, but it does show a low-end selling price for a machine that was
advertised as having been "semi-restored and lovingly cared for."  Ahem.

FWIW, YMMV, Caveat Emptor.


The "original" Steve Allen
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