Farm Tractor

A little over a month ago, I told you about the demise of our walk-behind tractor. Not being able to find parts was a problem, and that got us discussing simplifying our workload as we get older. Dan didn't call it "The Beast" for nothing.  

Long story short, this -

It's a Ford 861, which was not only in our price range, but actually started right up and ran when Dan went to look at it.

One thing that helped with the "which one do we get" decision was a book by the Brown brothers, Your First Tractor: Purchase, Operation and Service. It gives pointers on what to look for, what to avoid, and discusses different makes and models from a repair point of view. For example, some years saw specific problems in either design or manufacturing which were later corrected, or not.

Another useful resource is a website called TractorData.com. It has sections for both farm tractors and lawn tractors, giving specifics for almost every make and model out there. For example, ours is here.

Dan haggled down the price a bit and even got delivery thrown in for free. Even though it is in better shape than everything else he's looked at, it still needs some work.

Dan had to replace some parts for the life and stabilizer bars. The lift
lifts the implement off the ground for transport, and the stabilizer bars
keep the implement in line while in use rather than bouncing around.

Fords are common tractors here (old ones anyway), so parts will hopefully be fairly easy to find. If not, there are several sites that offer parts due to hobbyists enthusiasm for restoring old tractors and keeping them running.

Secretly, I think Dan would still rather have a draft horse, although that option is neither feasible nor realistic for us. If he can convert this gasoline tractor to a wood gasifier, it has the potential to be quite a mechanical work horse for us. Not only in terms of field work and pulling things (like maybe we can now make some portable animal housing on skids), but also the power take off (PTO).

All manner of equipment can be powered from this: saw mills, mixers, post hole diggers, log splitter, you name it. It's just a matter of being able to find it.

Finding the attachments and implements will be the challenge. We live in an area where the most common use for farm tractors is either mowing or brush hogging. Still, it's not completely uncommon for someone to be selling off daddy's or granddaddy's old tractor and equipment. As long as they aren't selling them as antiques, vintage, or collectors items, prices can be pretty fair. Time will tell on that one.

So there you have it. Dan even thinks I can learn to operate it. Me, one of the original non-mechanical, hand tool only, ex-flower children? We'll have to see about that.

Farm Tractor © July 2015 by Leigh

at http://www.5acresandadream.com/

The Beast Is Dead

Here is an equipment tale of woe that many of you will be able to relate to. Dan's beloved walk-behind 2-wheel tractor, fondly referred to as "The Beast," is not moving.

We've only had it for a year.

The engine still runs but there is a problem with the transmission. Fixable? That remains to be seen. In the meantime, it set off a rather lengthy discussion about our goals, needs, and working smarter on our homestead.

Before we bought The Beast we set out to find a farm tractor. We scoured Craigslist and Dan traveled many miles in search of something that matched our pocketbook. Such a tractor did not seem to exist, or at least not one that was in working order. All too many ads said "runs great" only to have it mysteriously not start when Dan went to look. Or the battery had just died. Or the owner forgot to put fuel in it. Or there was something they didn't mention in the ad that they were sure was "easy" to fix. When the walk-behind turned up, Dan went to look. It started right up so he bought it.

One of the problems with buying equipment that is no longer manufactured is that it's difficult to find replacement parts. For example, ours needed a coulter. The purpose of the coulter is to cut the ground ahead of the plowshare. The plow then turns over the ground with a nice, neat edge. Without it, the plow is difficult to control.

Simplicity Model W Walk-Behind Tractor

Coulters are available for larger tractors, but we need a 10-inch size, smaller than standard. First Dan contacted our local John Deere and Kubota dealers. Unfortunately they specialize in lawn tractors and didn't have a clue about plows and coulters. One said he'd look into to it but we never heard from him again. The next step was for Dan to try to make one.

Homemade coulter, made of a 10" saw blade & two grinding wheels. 

The grinding wheels add strength & keep the saw blade from bending.

Another problem he had was that the tractor isn't heavy enough to plow our tough ground. It needed more weight in the front. Again, these weren't available to he added his own.

These are the challenges of older, no longer manufactured equipment. Dan is definitely going to try to fix it but we still question what the best option is. I've researched no-till for field crops but learned that a tractor is still used, just with different implements, things like seed drills and seeding discs, which were not made for our walk-behind tractor.

Even if The Beast can be fixed it will eventually break down again, and once again we'll struggle with parts we can't get. Every time this happens it creates a tension between work to be done and the time required to fix the equipment. On top of that it is heavy and takes strength to control.

A small farm tractor still seems like the best option for us, especially as we get older and need better work-smarter-not-harder options, especially ones that will enable us to conserve strength and energy. On top of that, a four-wheel tractor is a better candidate for converting to wood gas than the two-wheel one.

 The question now is can we find one that runs and we can afford? Can we find the attachments? Ours has never been a big agricultural area so most farm tractors around here are only used with belly mowers or bush hogs.

I suppose we'll just have to wait and see. Do stay tuned.

The Beast Is Dead © May 2015 by Leigh
at http://www.5acresandadream.com/

A 2-Wheel Tractor & A Thank You

First, our newest homestead acquisition

1967 Simplicity Model W Walking Tractor, once sold by Montgomery Ward.
Shown with plow attachment, ours has a Briggs & Stratton 8 hp engine.

We have been looking for one of these for years! Not specifically this make or model (1967 Simplicity Model W Walking Tractor), but we have been wanting a 2-wheel (AKA walk-behind or walking) tractor. Finally, all things worked together: price, funds, location, availability, and in good working order! The bonus was that it came with quite a few implements and original owners manuals.

For photos from old ads, click here.
For original catalog product description, click here.

2-wheel tractors were once commonly used and commonly available; they still are in other parts of the world. They are the perfect working tractor for small acreage like ours, and especially for some of the small spaces we want to use for growing (see "The Lawn Has Got To Go").

We found ours on Craigslist. For $1000 it included a rotary snow thrower, snow plow, scraper blade, cultivator, garden tiller, rotary lawn mower, wheel weights, and two turn plows. Of course we have no use for the snow thrower, but Dan found that the snow plow was excellent for pushing piles of wood chip mulch around. The mower is pretty rusted out, but we wouldn't use that anyway. Of the two turn plows, one was an old one which didn't even go with this tractor (different hitch). The one that did go with it was missing a part, the coulter.

The coulter was missing so Dan made his own from a saw blade.

The coulter is the round disc you see in the above photo. It makes a vertical cut in the soil ahead of the plowshare. Not all plows have coulters, it's benefit being a cleaner cut by the plowshare. The coulter also loosens the soil, allowing the plow to undercut the furrow made by the coulter. Dan made this one from a table saw blade. It works but the challenge is mounting it to the bracket so the blade will turn (something he's still tweaking).

So how does it do?

This is where my winter wheat was growing.

The next step is to break the large clumps into smaller loose ones. For this we need a disc harrow, which didn't come with the tractor. Sometimes these come up on Craigslist, but with a little internet searching, we found a suitable one we were able to order from Sears (can you believe it?).

Brinly-Hardy Disk Harrow. Can even be used with an ATV!

This one has a sleeve hitch, which Dan can adapt. For extra weight, cinder blocks fit in the bracket on top. We got free shipping to an area Sears store and we should have it within the week!

Interested in more information? For a really good article on gardening with a walk-behind tractor, see Garden Tractor Gardening at End Times Report (thanks Matt).

Now the thank you. A tractor of any sort has seemed impossible to us because even used ones are expensive. Like so many others, we struggle paycheck to paycheck, forever trying to be good stewards of the little money we have. Dan's lost his job a couple of times and while it was reassuring to see our level of preparedness, those times didn't leave us any better off financially. I could have put a "tip jar" on my side bar, or a donation link, but I opted to earn it. Most of the money to buy our new-to-us walk-behind tractor came from royalties from my book. If you purchased a copy, you helped us buy this tractor! For that, I give you my most heartfelt thanks. I determined that all the money I earn will be invested in our homestead. Thank you so much for being a part of that.

A 2-Wheel Tractor & A Thank You © May 2014 

by Leigh at http://www.5acresandadream.com/