Regulars

3 Welcome

12 News
What’s going on in the world of tractors.

22 The Muir-Hill and the pea harvest
With equal-size wheels, four-wheel drive and powerful Ford engine, the Muir-Hill 101 was a huge machine when it was introduced in 1966. Jonathan Whitlam delves into the history of these yellow monsters.

30 News Focus
Pembrokeshire venue revealed for the 2011 National Vintage Tractor Road Run.

44 Back to school!
Around 60 ploughmen attended the Sherwood Forest ploughing school held at the very end of a cold, frosty but sunny January!

60 Tractor Talk
Your views and product reviews.

64 Model World

78 A perfect Yorkshire overhaul!
Now that all the hours of cleaning and checking the engine parts is done, Graham begins the third part of the Fordson Dexta engine reconditioning.

82 More time travelling
Our Scottish correspondent takes a trip to Kirbuster Farm where time seems to have stood still.

86 The tale of Thumper and the Crusher
Jo Roberts pays a visit to Simon Waterhouse; a man who likes to see his tractor collection earn its keep.

129 Rare Breeds
No 73 Balwen Welsh Mountain Sheep

130 Next Month
Preview of the May issue of Tractor magazine.

Your tractors

6 A life with Massey Ferguson
Part 2: Combines, coffee tables and troubled times at Kilmarnock.

18 Out of a muck cart and into a wedding
This MF35 was restored from ex-yard scraper to Gordon Francis’ pride and joy, appearing at many events and for him the greatest show of all, a family wedding, writes Ben Phillips.

26 ‘Marlbrook Vintage’
Mike Patrick’s collection follows a theme: tractors which were used in the area around Marlbrook Farm, Leominster.

32 True grit!
Most people might consider even the loss of a fingertip to be a severe injury, but when Mick Chappell lost half his left leg in a beet-harvesting accident, the only way to get help was to drive the rig all the way home.

36 The County set
Our technical correspondent finds the purr of the Perkins housed in a Fordson E27N County conversion an irresistible combination.

46 Best of the bunch
You don’t come across single-cylinder Porsche Junior tractors every day, particularly the 108 in long-wheelbase form, and David Bowers reckons this is one of the finest restorations he’s had the pleasure of coming across!

52 SUPER SIX
In a world of twins and fours, Oliver launched the high-compression six-cylinder 70. They called it ‘The Most Beautiful Tractor in the World’.

56 Nuf-field appeal
Peter Squires visits a 40-acre smallholding north of Birmingham that has no less than seven Nuffields on the premises!

74 No snow too deep, no slope too steep
Rodney Thompson had no idea what he was attempting to buy when the opportunity to purchase a 1976 Sno-Cat 1344 model came his way.

77 Indian Classics
Tractors spotted in India and Sri Lanka on the hippie trail in 1976.

Farming heritage

40 Cokato Gathering
A group of north-east tractor preservationists stateside gathered together in early September last year to meet ‘like-minded’ enthusiasts, including some subscribers to Tractor magazine.

68 A place in history
We visit Woodbourne Farm near Blenheim in New Zealand, which is about to receive official NZ Historic Places Trust recognition as a 'Historic Farm'.

70 Postcards from the past
From the turn of the 20th century to the outbreak of WWI, the postcard played a surprisingly important part in the fabric of rural life. Jane Brooks delves into a fascinating collection of agricultural postcards.

90 Harvest for the world
This month’s offerings from the scrapbooks of Alec Worbey centre on the rise of International Harvester Tractors.

Marketplace

104 Tractor Price Index
Veteran, vintage and classic tractor values: Advance Rumely - Fiat.

110 Sales & Marketplace News
Around the auctions.

Front cover
John Deere was the variety of tractor dominating during an event at Cokato, some 60 miles from mighty Minneapolis and St Paul, USA, where enthusiasts had gathered for an event last year. Turn to page 40 for the full story.

Regulars

3 Welcome

12 News
What’s going on in the world of tractors.

22 The Muir-Hill and the pea harvest
With equal-size wheels, four-wheel drive and powerful Ford engine, the Muir-Hill 101 was a huge machine when it was introduced in 1966. Jonathan Whitlam delves into the history of t....