Regulars

3 Welcome

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

16 News Extra: Castle keeps on smiling
Organisers were left smiling after the weather conditions helped bring out the crowds for the Belvoir Castle Steam Festival, May 21-22.

65 Tractor Talk
Your views and product reviews.

68 Model World
Henry Smith reviews the models launched at the 18th Annual Agri Coll Association, Farm model show, takes a look at the latest Universal Hobbies releases and looks forward to a sure to be interesting four-day auction by Vectis.

72 Alec’s Cuttings 38: A Combined effort
We continue our review of the 1961 Royal Show held at Trumpington near Cambridge, with an in-depth look at the combines and ploughs on offer.

76 Bondagers for hire!
Life on the farm was hard for Scottish women during the 18th and 19th centuries.

80 “We are but Custodians”
The Arrowsmiths of North Wales look after the tools of their trade, which means that machinery has been passed on down through the generations, to become a part of the Arrowsmith family history.

84 From weekend breaks to clapped out clutches
With so many shows and events lately, Graham Hampstead admits he’s got behind with his tractor work, but his resolve still weakens when the opportunity of a few days away in the Yorkshire dales arises.

120 Farming Focus: Wallets Auction Mart
One name from the old days is still with us today and that is Wallets who were formed in 1888 and operate from their site in Castle Douglas in Dumfries.

121 Rare Breeds
No.89 Shire horses

122 Next Month
Preview of the September issue of Tractor magazine.

Your tractors

6 Big, red & bouncy or... Canadian hybrid
The Massey-Harris 744D was a commercial failure - why? Peter Henshaw tracks down a Somerset-based example to illustrate the point.

20 Call in the experts
Settling for what you can achieve by your own abilities and then calling in specialists to complete the job is all part and parcel of being a successful builder; Brian Agnew employed the same logic to his restorations.

34 All that glitters...
The FE 35 grey and gold will go down in history was nearly a disaster that could have ruined the Ferguson name; luckily the problem was solved with the fitting of the Perkins A3 152 engine that cured the poor starting abilities.

38 Tractor transformer
Bob Griggs lives in Kent close to the English Channel and is renowned locally for his restorations; his Allis-Chalmers ED-40 is a case in point.

40 Farmall by name and by nature
International Harvesters model H is one of the most common classic tractors in North America, and isn’t exactly uncommon here in the UK.

44 Island tractor
Colin Foot’s got a very rare crawler in his shed - part Italian, part Japanese, part Channel Islands.

52 Highland Wild Cats
The Highlands of Scotland is famous for its stunning scenery and wonderful wildlife; close to Aviemore is a colony of another equally wonderful species - that of the Yellow Cat.

56 Green machines
Pete Kelly visits Suffolk to take a look at Adrian Bowen’s growing collection of ‘tin front’ John Deeres.

70 Tractor Travels

Farming heritage

24 Forward Control Part II
A slightly more scientific approach; County decide it was time to modernise and update the Forward Control range of tractors.

28 Classic Harvest
We reflect on a recent harvest gone by that used nothing but classic machinery to harvest the barley and bale the straw.

48 Twenty years of the Ford 40 Series
The Ford 40 Series were real landmark machines both in respect of the new technology that they encompassed as well as in more historical ways.

60 Vintage working days
Rumours that certain members of the Border Vintage Agricultural Association were spending the day sowing their oats behind the village hall at Sprouston turned out to be well founded.

In the workshop

88 Compounding your paint finish
We all probably hanker after that elusive shine on our tractor tinwork, just like you see from the ‘pros’ at the major shows around the country.

Marketplace

93 What’s on
Your guide to days out throughout the season in our comprehensive new guide.

98 Road runs, rallies and ploughing event reports
Our round up of what’s going on out and about on the tractor scene.

106 Sales & Marketplace News
Five pages packed with the latest auctions and tractor prices.

Regulars

3 Welcome

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

16 News Extra: Castle keeps on smiling
Organisers were left smiling after the weather conditions helped bring out the crowds for the Belvoir Castle Steam Festival, May 21-22.

65 Tractor Talk
Your vi....