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Massey Harris Styled 25 Rear Wheels

I just wondered if anyone has come across this type of rear steel wheel on an early "U" frame M-H tractor before? or know of any history about them or who manufactured them, were they aftermarket changes for a specific purpose?.

This tractor was in a collection I visited on my Eastern US trip last year in North Carolina.

Malcolm. 
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RE:Massey Harris Styled 25 Rear Wheels

Malcolm,

I would guess those are designed for very heavy clay sticky soils where soil  would build up between the lugs on the normal steel wheels, and consequently a lot of traction be lost

Seems there was no traction for the ski whizzers this last weekend!!!!

John

RE:Massey Harris Styled 25 Rear Wheels

John & Malcolm:

I talked with Tom about these wheels last night and I believe he is right in saying they are off a model L Case. If you look at the Case L wheel center they are just like the ones you have pictured. Don't know what the use for this type of wheel is yet but John could be right on the clay theory. I believe I have seen this type of wheel on a Rumley before.

As for the Whiz~N~Day there was too much traction with all the dry dirt and very little snow. We did have a better turnout than I expected though considering the date was posted wrong in the last newsletter. I am sure someone will catch some flack over that as we had people drive 250 miles and showed up on the 4th instead of the 11th.

We did manage to get 52 snowmobiles here and about 250 people with alot of good stories to tell but the Prototype MFX4000 did not show up here and I have not heard who got it yet or if it did really sell, Maybe the auction was a big hoax??

RE:Massey Harris Styled 25 Rear Wheels

Well John you have woken Joe up at last, I thought he must be stuck in a snow drift somewhere in MN??
Sounds like you should of had the Whiz-N-Day here in Lincolnshire where we had a good eight inches of snow last weekend.

Interesting thoughts on the rear wheels, so Tom / Joe do Case tractors have the same half shaft taper as a M-H??? I know they were made across the street from each other and yes there are a lot of similarities between the two makes but I am not sure about the hub taper.

I am sure you are right on the button with soil types and conditon John, maybe if they are Case wheels then it was just a "blacksmith's" conversion and nothing to do with Massey. Over the years I have seen quite a few Fordson F tractors in the US with the steel wheel rim cut out between the strakes and Samson made their Sieve Grip tractor with open rear wheels, they were made in California so it could be for clay or sand conditions?

Malcolm.

RE:Massey Harris Styled 25 Rear Wheels

It does occur to me that tho' the wheels may have been thouroughly functional for some purpose or other they look plain ugly on this fine tractor.  Additionally the lack of skids on the front wheels does not add to its looks.  I would readily sacrifice what seems a reasonable paint job for totally original wheels and maybe it's original "old clothes" so that it looks like a tractor with a real working past history. 

I don't feel that flashy paint jobs do much for old tractors which after all were functional beasts designed to get dirty, to have oil leaks, to get the tinwork a bit dented and for the paintwork to give way over time.  Rather like old furniture - it gets a nice patina with use and age, and of course a few dents.  Then people rave after it and the prices go up - same is happening now with old tractors - running originals are bringing premium prices.

Now lets see what controversy this will generate!!!!

John

RE:Massey Harris Styled 25 Rear Wheels

John:

 

At the Massey National Show in 2002 there were six GP's there, all were painted up and looking pretty. One was right from out of behind the barn total rust no paint at all except for the head that was just put on to get it running, also the gas tank was a jug straped on by a bungie cord but the tractor ran good.

 

You should have seen the people flock arround this tractor like cattle arround a feed bunk. I am not kidding the grass around this tractor was wore out by the end of the day and even though I was one of the owners of one of the painted up GPs I was flocked around this tractor with the rest of the people.

 

I am like you, the more origional the better!! Another thing I really like to look for is a Serial Number I like to find tractors that came off the line close to mine or try to find the Oldest or newest number of any model tractor. It would drive me absolutly bonkers if I owned a tractor and cold not find out what the origional serial number was and I have seen this happen like the GP in Robert Crawford's collection, Very nice tractor but no way of finding the origional Number.


RE:Massey Harris Styled 25 Rear Wheels

You guys that like Masseys in their original work clothes would be happy in my barn.   :-)

A lot more of them in that condition than with nice paint.

In the shop right now is the M-H 55 D1WH which I hope to have running by spring!

Good to see you guys active on the new website.

Cheers,

JB

RE:Massey Harris Styled 25 Rear Wheels

In my personal view perhaps the greatest tragedy of all time in this restoration fever was the restoration of the Ferguson tractor that had been driven by Sir Edmund Hillary to the S Pole.  This was returned to MF UK after the expedition and held for many years in its gloriously original dented and tatty state just as it had reached the Pole and Edmund Hillary steppd from it.  It reflected the nature of, and all the trials and tribulations of that uniquely hazardous and arduous journey.  It is now in the AGCO/MF museum in France, to my mind, looking like a sterile new toy with no life history.  In fact that is how I would describe all these lines of restored tractors at shows - they look like rows of toys.  But I take nothing from the efforts of those who have chosen to go down this route - however lets be frank - they are destroying history. 

 The two other Fergusons that reached the Pole on the same expedition are held in similarly restored condition in separate museums in New Zealand.

Joe noted how people at shows will stop and ponder over originals - we see exactly the same thing over here.

My strategy with my tractors has always been to retain them in original condition but get them running and moving and replace only  missing or damaged parts as a farmer of the day would have done.  Remember that bare rusty tin work oils up well and comes uo to shine nicely with some clean oil sprayed on.  You don't even have to polish it!!

John 

RE:Massey Harris Styled 25 Rear Wheels

Your right there John with the Edmund Hilary Ferguson, they have destroyed a wonderful original patina which can never be re created again. I know we have all been guilty of it in the past, back in the 70's when I first started collecting tactors it was the only thing to do to put glossy paint on them and I am one of those guilty of painting over very original working order tractors of the day, but eventually seeing the light there are very few glossy restorations in my shed now and as you say we are seeing it reflected in the prices at auction, especially the very original TE20 Ferguson in the last Cheffins auction bringing over £5,000.00.

Malcolm.
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RE:Massey Harris Styled 25 Rear Wheels

Hands Down Nothing beats an Original!! Here is another great looking Ferguson I could look at all day long.
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