Tag Archives: international harvester

photo of the rebuilt and painted tractor

1936 Farmall F-12 Restoration in Three Days

Teardrop Trail Log: June 18, 2016

One surprising highlight of this year’s Red Power Roundup was the “flash” restoration of an old Farmall tractor in just three days. Originally the brainchild of Howard Raymond of Wellfleet, Nebraska, the idea had its roots in another restoration completed by volunteers in Madison, Wisconsin in 2009. Deciding on a Farmall F-12 that was stored in a warehouse, the process of gathering volunteers and sponsors took a couple of years, and the unrestored tractor was displayed at the 2015 Red Power in Sedalia, Missouri to encourage participation.

Everything was ready to go on Thursday, June 16th, with 40 volunteers and an unrestored tractor. In the space of three days, it was disassembled, sandblasted, the motor overhauled, new brakes and clutch, the magneto and carburetor overhauled, re-assembled and painted. By Saturday, it was showing off around the ‘Roundup. The restored tractor then was presented to Case/IH for inclusion in their Farmall Collection.

Information regarding the planning process and a picture of the original unrestored tractor is available on the 2016 Red Power Roundup site. What a remarkable effort!

Photo of Volunteers "flash" rebuilding the Farmall F-12

Volunteers “flash” rebuild the Farmall F-12

photo of Julie and Billy Steers and Tractor Mac

Tractor Mac

Teardrop Trail Log: June 17, 2016

There is a reason we named our teardrop the Ambassador. On our first trip, folks stopped by to meet the Ambassador in droves. It was a great way to connect with the neighbors and others in the campground. Some walked, others arrived by Cub Cadet, while others came by other more unique methods of transportation like red tractors. Many were curious about the interior and the fine points of traveling in a small trailer. We learned at our first Red Power Round Up in 2014, that we would be giving tours on a regular basis.

photo of Tractor Mac and a fan

Tractor Mac and a fan

One evening, Billy Steers and his wife Julie stopped by to meet the Ambassador. After the tour,  they mentioned that they had an Airstream Bambi, a favorite among Airstreamers and a truly unique trailer. They invited us to stop by their booth the next day for the Tractor Mac presentation. Billy, a.k.a. Tractor Mac is an author, illustrator and commercial airline pilot for American Airlines. He introduced his first children’s book in 1999, Tractor Mac Arrives at the Farm featuring a red tractor with big headlamp eyes, a broad smile and a huge personality. Tractor Mac has continued introducing not only more books, but new characters. Last year, at Christmas, we got a Tractor Mac book and toy for Jim’s nephew who is a huge tractor fan.

As we walked through the campground at the Racine County Fairgrounds, I spotted the Bambi. I knew that Tractor Mac would be giving several presentations at Red Power Round Up. We checked out the schedule and found the Tractor Mac presentation was in the Picnic Shelter. It was great to catch up with Billy and Julie again. It was amazing to see how the young fans worshiped the character, who appears “in person,” a bright red IH tractor with those friendly eyes.

photo of an Airstream Bambi trailer

The Steers’ Bambi at the Red Power Roundup in June of 2015

 

photo of a pickup truck

Scouts! Trucks!

Teardrop Trail Log: June 17. 2016

The Red Power Roundup is not all tractors. International made other products, and trucks were a major line. My grandparents had a farm in Nebraska, and I would spend time there each summer. They had two 1946 International pickup trucks — one that ran (a black one) and one that didn’t (it was red). By the time I was about 12, I had learned to drive the tractor (a Model H) and began driving the black pickup. It had a “three on the tree”, manual steering and brakes that almost worked — quite a handful for a beginning driver! I still miss driving it, so I’m especially fond of the restored trucks that show up each year at Red Power.

Later, I roomed with a fellow who had an International Scout. It was a simple thing — easy to work on, and (as I remember it) it always started — even in the dead of winter. We had many adventures in that Scout. Here is a sampling of pickups and scouts from this year:

John Glancy’s Scout (pictured above) along with Jim Allen is one of the authors of the International Scout Encyclopedia (Octane Press). I got to meet the authors at the Octane Press meet and greet the previous night, so having an assortment Scouts to examine was especially fun.

photo of tractors Lining Up for an Album Photo

Roaming Around Red Power

Teardrop Trail Log: June 17, 2016

Tractors are fun, but the best part of Red Power is reconnecting with old friends and making new ones. This year was our third at the ‘Roundup, and I set off to see who I could find. Although not as spread out as previous years, the Racine County Fair was still a lot of ground to cover, and it would be a challenge to see it all. On the way, there were surprises and things that, well, you just don’t see everyday.

In the early tractor shed, there was the expected shiny early 20th-century equipment — beautifully restored and ready to transform the life of some old-time farmer who was more accustomed to working with horses. The next bay held a surprise though: a rusted hulk of a 1936 Farmall Model F-12 with a swarm of men intent on various tasks. Reading the nearby sign, I learned that they meant to completely rebuild this “found in the woods” beauty in the three days of the ‘Roundup — including a fresh coat of McCormick-Deering painted livery. If they were successful, that would be impressive!

And right next to the rebuild crowd, was my friend Charlie Uthke, who is usually surrounded by a knot of fans for his engine stands and alternator conversions. We camped with Charlie and his wife at our first Red Power Roundup in Huron, South Dakota in 2014 and I remember the good campfire conversations.  We only see them once a year, but it’s always fun to catch up.

Photo of The Uthke's

The Uthke’s

Waukesha Model Farm

Teardrop Trail Log: June 17, 2016

Each year, a local group hosts the Red Power Roundup, in this case Chapter 4 of the National International Harvester Collectors, Club, Inc. in Wisconsin. Other local clubs exhibit in the Chapter House, and I went there next. There is often a raffle, and I always register hoping a classic tractor will follow me home. Having completed that important bit of business and looked the various chapter tables over for interesting swag, I was about to leave when I spotted a model farm setup at the opposite end of the building.

It was a large and elaborate setup, with at least a dozen toy tractors and I stopped to look. As I made my way around the exhibit, the model owner introduced himself and we began to chat. It seems the model farm had a good story, and the owner, Allen H. Martin enjoyed telling it. Always on the lookout, I asked him if he would tell the story on camera, and he readily agreed. The video you see here was the result. He tells the story better than I can so …

Victor Horizontal Hit-Or-Miss Engine

Continuing my stroll through the machinery exhibits, I encountered a Victor Horizontal Gasoline Engine. You see “hit-or-miss” engines at every Red Power Roundup, but this was the largest model I had ever seen. Judging by the size of the fly wheel, this beautifully-restored single-cylinder engine must have been rated at about 20 horsepower. With the integrated wagon, it was considered portable and was even equipped with the optional cooling tank and muffler.

Photo of The Victor Horizontal Engine

The Victor Horizontal Engine

According to Dun’s Review, International Edition (Vol. XX, September, 1912), the Victor was “A reliable, economical and convenient source of power for various purposes around the farm, shop or mill” and was “built in eight sizes, ranging from 4 to 25 horsepower”. The “make-and-break” ignition on the four-cycle engine used a “hit-or-miss style governor” to control the speed. It could run on natural or artificial gas (a mixture of hydrogen, methane and carbon monoxide), alcohol, kerosene or gasoline. “A catalogue giving full details and illustrations of these engines” could be requested from International Harvester by mail. It was high-tech in 1912.

As I watched the machine operate, it was fun to see how people reacted to it. We take compact, portable and inexpensive power for granted today (think: lithium-ion battery powered tools, bicycles or automobiles for example) but such an engine would have been special in its day and represented major labor savings when pumping water, milling grain, cutting wood, or running anything that required rotary power on farms that wouldn’t have electricity for some decades. A marvel of the age indeed.

international-gasoline-engines-logo

photo of the car and trailer with semi-trailer trucks

On to Union Grove and Red Power Roundup

Teardrop Trail Log: June 16, 2016

We were back on the Teardrop Trail, headed toward Red Power Round Up in Union Grove, Wisconsin. Just a quick stop at Wisconsin Welcome Center to pick up post cards, we parked the Ambassador with the big rigs. He was finally running with the big dogs. After locating the Racine County Fairgrounds, we pulled around to our camp site. This would be our third Red Power Round Up where collectors, vendors and members of the public gathered to celebrate the history of International Harvester and explore agriculture-related memorabilia. There was an impressive selection of tractors, engines, trucks and equipment. The exhibitions included household appliances, farming equipment and toy collections.

photo of Red Power Roundup camp

Red Power Roundup camp

I had reserved our campsite at last year’s event and we were conveniently located just outside the exhibition building where my publisher, Octane Press had a booth and where I would be signing copies of Canning, Pickling and Freezing with Irma Harding. We backed the Ambassador into the space, and set up Camp Red Power complete with the canopy over the galley. This would be home for the next few days.

Jim has always enjoyed coming to Red Power for the tractors, like the IH tractor his grandfather had on the farm. His cameras come out and he is in tractor heaven. Every year he buys a raffle ticket for an IH tractor. So far no tractors have followed us home.

photo of Jim photographing red tractors

There’s a few tractors over there

Hit or Miss Engines

Jim, September 15:

You never know what you’ll find on the Teardrop Trail, and the Red Power Roundup in Sedalia, Missouri was no exception. While looking at the expected tractors and other IH memorabilia, I discovered a assortment of “hit or miss” engines. They were first available around 1890 from various manufacturers including International Harvester (after 1902) for use in pumping water, generating electricity and cutting firewood. The video shows models spanning several decades and demonstrates the “hit or miss” behavior and resulting name.

They fire every few cycles and rely on a large flywheel to maintain a relatively constant speed. Producing a small amount of horsepower relative to their weight and size, they were displaced by newer internal combustion engines by the mid-20th century, although they are still desirable for some low-speed (250 rpm or so) applications like oil-field pump jacks. International Harvester produced a variety of hit or miss engines, and the video shows three well preserved and and functioning models.

This display of engines was a surprise to me — I hadn’t seen this many working hit or miss engines in one place before. The engine owners were on hand to answer questions and I learned a lot about this part of our Harvester Heritage. Fun!