I have no interest in ever owning one of these. But knowing they are out there and how they work is absolutely fascinating. Seeing the ingenuity of engineers from days gone by is a real treat, no matter what the object. Thanks, Toby!
G'day Squatch. I recall someone I worked for in the 1990's telling me that when he was a young man he had been a salesman for Fordson tractors and had once walked a Cletrac through the waters of a small River in the capital city of our home State of South Australia as a sales ploy. Speaking of intake manifolds also reminded me that a business in my district used to maintain an ancient Holt on display in the tiny lobby of an old weatherboard building. The machine was so old that it featured a steering wheel mounted on a column protruding vertically from the deck instead of the levers which have been an industry standard for so long now. When I first discovered the Holt as a young man I recall the owner explaining how a cast iron tank incorporated to the air intake system was for filtration purposes and intended to be kept filled with kerosene during winter operation and water during summer. The ancient machine disappeared when the business eventually closed but years later I rediscovered it on display in the lobby for a major Caterpillar dealership in the aforementioned capital city.
I love when you bring us these walk arounds on those cool old tractor. The amount of work that went into configuring a track system to fit a production tractor without computers and other modern means is impressive. You’d think by the time they figured it out the tractors would have been replaced by a newer model
There’s a Fordson High School in Dearborn, MI that was built by Henry Ford. I literally grew up in the shadow of the Fairlane Mansion. Got chased out of the backyard many times by security playing in the treehouse when I was a kid!
I like these. Despite the mechanical dweebe I am, I've never lived where our food was raised and made to grow,. Your background and history lessons of the gear that fed and feed us are important.
I think you maybe wrong Toby when you mention the tractors 'rearing up' because of the draw bar position and I would say it is positioned correctly, BELOW the centre of the tractor rear axle tube. Having used one of these '20s Fordsons a lot in my youth, I never had any problem with them rearing up.... BUT....a local farmer to us fabricated a new draw bar ABOVE the centre line, his tractor was a nightmare to drive due to the 'overpull' on the centre line of the tractor. Excellent video nevertheless and a very interesting conversion.
There was a Ford TT truck in the background of the video. The crawler conversion shows how back in the day every company tried to come up with there own solutions for a different traction kit.
Great episode of the show, the Fordson tractor is quite common over here. We also had track conversations here. Your channel is over the top, always longing for new videos 😎👀
I have actually seen a fordson tractor flipped over backwards that burnt to the ground. Older gentleman by my house was trying to pull a bush out and hit it a little too hard. Luckily he was ok but not so much for the tractor, the bush and the siding on his house!
Thanks for sharing this with us and it’s so good I really appreciate and enjoy when you do your homework first and then make the video and nice that you could show us one on tracks and one on wheels that’s cool I wonder how many are out there 😀🇨🇦
Wasn't it Ferguson that developed the 3 point pull system to keep the tractor from flipping itself over backwards and squishing the operator? Something twitched in my brain when you brought that up. I seem to recall Ferguson did engineer some safety features into his designs. (i.e. engaging the electric starter with the shifter, thereby eliminating the risk of starting the tractor in gear)
It wasn’t always that simple. Ford ended domestic tractor production in the US in favor of imports from the European plant which I believe was in Northern Ireland. I’m fuzzy on dates but I think that this was around 1930. After reaching the “handshake deal” with Harry Ferguson in I think 1938 Ford came roaring back into the market with the 9N with three point hitch and a much safer and vastly more modern tractor. It had its safety flaws, however in that it could be started in gear. The mechanical interlock to prevent starting in gear came along in 1942 with the redesign/update to the model 2N. 9=1939 and 2=1942. N=production line N at the Rouge complex You can flip a 9N (like mine) or any tractor by defeating the design and doing something stupid like pulling with a chain wrapped around the axle housing. People do dumb things with tractors.
Didn't the Fordsons have a solid rear axle with a worm drive where if a wheel got stuck it would possibly flip the whole tractor over? Obviously a tracked conversion with brake steering would require a differential. Was a differential part of the track conversion or had Ford gotten away from the solid axle by then?
Really nice old Fordson F 👍 i noticed it was still using trembler coil ignition not sure when they changed to Magneto ignition system 🤔 excellent walk round 👌
saw a fordson screw tractor conversion on u tube would love to see a walk around of one if you ever get the opportunity as I don't think we would have ever got them in newzealand trackson very cool more please
Hi, Squatch253. Thank you for the video and the explanation. I have seen these jiggers in the flesh before but only from a distance and I believe there was another company whose name I can't recall at the moment. If my memory serves me rightly, the version with the equal sized sprockets and idlers that you mentioned came out somewhere in the late 1940s-early-'50s and was Fordson's own track system, complete with steering clutches and brakes. They apparently had very good traction but were a little weak in the steering clutches - if you disengaged a steering clutch under heavy load, there was a chance that it would not re-engage but would slip under the load leaving the other track still driving and turning the tractor in a circle. Just my 0.02. You have a wonderful day. Best wishes. Deas Plant.
Really nice conversion of a Fordson F, great to see them over seas. What are your plans with the track-kit you have at home? You wanna convert a Fordson tractor in the future? Greetings from the Netherlands!
@@squatch253 That sounds like a proper plan. It’s way better than bring it to the scrapyard. Even as a “yard art” application it could still be worth something ore perhaps be educational. Thanks for the response!
Wonder how many usable hours you could get out of the undercarriage until it was worn out. Atleast you would have to change the steering brakes quite often i imagine :)
A local small fruit grower was still using 2 fordsons up till the early 2000s , the only reason he stopped using them was his own death from old age , in his eighties
Nice video my friend ❤❤❤💚💚💚❤❤❤🥰🥰🥰 A very creative idea ❤❤❤💚💚💚❤❤❤🥰🥰🥰 I look forward to seeing your designs. Congratulations on your journey forward ♥♥♥♥💚💚💚 💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥
🤦♂️ just turn it left or right ! And you go the direction turned! 😳 after a rememberable night around a bon fire took me a few minutes to figure that out too! 🤷♂️ 😝😂🤣 ✌️
