Tractor & Farming Heritage
March 2005
Celebrating the history and development of the tractor
Welcome
Whats all this about keeping exhibitors locked into showgrounds?
Rock Island line
Jerry Thurston takes a close look at Ben Garnetts 1927 Rock Island 18-35, and finds it a satisfying mixture of the utilitarian and the ingenious.
Shaping BMCs Mini tractor
John Hobbs learns how patience can be a virtue as he visits mid-Devon enthusiast Mike Thorne, who has just acquired one of only two BMC Mini tractor prototypes ever built - and by a surprising source.
Ardnamurchan - land of awesome beauty
Polly Pullar rekindles some of her happiest childhood memories as she goes home to Britains most westerly mainland peninsula to visit an old friend whos farmed in this harsh but beautiful corner of Scotland for many years.
Diary Dates
That Bulldog spirit!
David Bowers calls in on renowned restorer Geoff Brandon to learn about the trials and tribulations of bringing two very different Lanz tractors up to show condition.
News
Funny Farm
Theres been a Major development for our apprentice smallholder this month, and becoming the groom on a horse-driving trials outfit turns out to be a surprisingly white-knuckle experience!
A work of true genius
In Farming by the Fireside, Pete Kelly finds the Manual produced to explain the workings of the Fordson Model F in 1917 to be a masterpiece of clarity whose example many publishers could do worse than follow today.
Itll plough anything short of concrete
Leslie Hutchinson brings some illuminating stories of the Ferguson prototype commonly known as the Black Tractor and the production Type A Ferguson Browns that followed.
Letters
Not forgetting, of course, the latest cartoon escapade of Wurzel & Gripper!
Farming through the war
Harold Postings recalls his upbringing on a Staffordshire farm during WWII, and the huge challenge of having to take over, at the age of only 21, when his father died.
Brilliant strokes!
Pete Kelly stops by at a Lincolnshire smallholding to marvel at the soccer skills of a trio of overweight sheep - and a crawler tractor thrown together from a pile of junk!
Double gold!
A pair of mouth-watering Massey-Ferguson FE35 Grey-Golds provides the perfect photographic opportunity for Alan Barnes - who tells how Lady Luck came into play to make the whole thing possible.
The life and art of Leon Olin
Pete Kelly meets renowned landscape artist Leon Olin and his artist wife Sylvia Gainsford, who took the bold decision to abandon their comfortable jobs for a life of discovery and adventure on the open road.
An Emmie-B Down Under
Overwintering in New Zealand, Roger Hamlin spends a day with a rare Emerson-Brantingham AA 10-20 tractor.
Wacky alpacas!
Alpacas are becoming a more common sight on farms and smallholdings in several parts of Britain - but, asks Jo Roberts, are they merely exotic pets or a new route to farm diversification?
Reviews
Hinged in the middle
Pete Kelly goes to see retired North Yorkshire farmer Neville Chapman, a man with a liking for big classic tractors, to take a close look at his articulated Massey-Ferguson 1200.
Cider-a-plenty
Brian Howes visits award-winning cider-maker and vintage tractor enthusiast Nigel Stewart.
Vintage tractor spectacular
Roger Hamlin tells of a super display of pioneering tractors at the Christchurch Agricultural & Pastoral Show in New Zealand.
Freds Restoration Problem-Solver
Old 20 comes of age
Pete Kelly meets Nick Battelle of the Old 20 Parts Company to view the tractor spares firms new premises.
Fergie marathon
Howard Yates continues the story of his marathon journey from Milton Keynes to Devon on his Ferguson T20.
In all their crowing colours
Poultry-keeping is now firmly back in fashion after being in decline for several decades.
Rare Breeds Factfile
Derbyshire Redcap poultry are the subject of Marianne Thomass regular feature this month.
ADvintage
Welcome
Whats all this about keeping exhibitors locked into showgrounds?
Rock Island line
Jerry Thurston takes a close look at Ben Garnetts 1927 Rock Island 18-35, and finds it a satisfying mixture of the utilitarian and the ingenious.
Shaping BMCs Mini tractor
John Hobbs learns how patience can b....