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More on Fordson bad mouth

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HW

10-31-2007 05:14:26




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To all the bad mouth about Fordsons. They did for the farmer what the model T car did for the general public. They were the first real challenge to the horse. At one time there were more Fordson tractors on farms then all other makes combined. They made the other companies come out with a small tractor for the small farmer. They were simple and easy to work on. Their only mistake was they stayed with the original design too long (like the model T). And yes they can be started by pulling. Done that.

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Bill(Wis)

10-31-2007 21:28:41




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 Re: More on Fordson bad mouth in reply to HW, 10-31-2007 05:14:26  
Their strong suit was affordability. Their weak suits were manyfold. They did a good job for my dad and grandad pulling a 2 bottom 12" Oliver trailer plow that Oliver designed for the Fordson. Also pulled a 7' Oliver disc. It took over many of the chores that a team of horses had previously been used for. Also belt powered the silo filler with it. We never had an accident with it. My uncle purchased one of the last ones without fenders. The fenders were designed to prevent the infamous backflip and became mandatory equipment later on. He boasted about saving something like $50 or so by getting one of the last fenderless models. Fordsons were famous for being hard to start when hot. After some use, they also had a tendancy to jump into gear on their own. My uncle had left his running in the yard while he went to do something and while he was gone it jumped into gear and headed straight for the silo. It hit the silo head on and climbed right straight up the side of the silo and then proceeded to do a backflip. In spite of being made mostly of steel it managed to catch on fire after landing upside down. That was the end of my uncle's Fordson.

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Lee in Iowa

10-31-2007 21:02:54




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 Re: More on Fordson bad mouth in reply to HW, 10-31-2007 05:14:26  
My dad said that when a neighbor that had a fordson wanted to start it he would jack up his car take off a back wheel and bolt on a pulley and belt it up to the fordson the get it started. Sounds like you wouldn't want to shut it off until all the work was done. A friend said someone once gave his father a fordson and his father gave it back the next day. Lee



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JK-NY

10-31-2007 18:31:32




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 Re: More on Fordson bad mouth in reply to HW, 10-31-2007 05:14:26  
I agree with your view on this.Fordsons were introduced in 1917. The technology used was up to date in 1917 but in the 1920's and 30's many improvements were made in automotive/tractor technology. This made the Fordson seem obsolete by the time many people were switching to tractors.They definitely did alot to help get farmers an affordable tractor back then.



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ohio

10-31-2007 13:08:42




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 No turning brakes. in reply to HW, 10-31-2007 05:14:26  
My great grand father bought one new in the 30's. had it for a coupla years, and bought a deere A. My dads uncle, who is 90 some years old, said the forson was useless, it had no turning brakes, and if you needed to go anywhere but straight, you were outta luck. I didn't really believe him, but I looked at one last week, and he was right. He said the deere was pretty good, but he liked the wc Allis better.

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Tom43

10-31-2007 11:03:21




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 Re: More on Fordson bad mouth in reply to HW, 10-31-2007 05:14:26  
They were one of the poorest excuses for a machine ever built. Many called them a FORDSOB instead of a FORDSON. The Farmall F-20 was a real tractor that started and worked.



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Tradititonal Farmer

10-31-2007 08:41:21




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 Re: More on Fordson bad mouth in reply to HW, 10-31-2007 05:14:26  
I guess a Fordson was better than a mule but then again maybe not as my father and grandfather kept using mules while the Fordson was available and waited until the Allis Chalmers B came out to buy a tractor.I've heard mules and Fordson were about the same to get started(LOL)



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ohio

10-31-2007 13:10:27




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 Re: More on Fordson bad mouth in reply to Tradititonal Farmer, 10-31-2007 08:41:21  
Never had trouble getting a mule started, but when they want to go, look out, cause you ain't stopping them!



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El Toro

10-31-2007 05:58:24




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 Re: More on Fordson bad mouth in reply to HW, 10-31-2007 05:14:26  
My late dad had a Fordson and he wasn't mechanically inclined and he could never get it started. This was before I was a born and in 1926 they bought a new 10-20 McCormick Deering
tractor. This solved all the starting problems.
Even before I was a teen I could start that old tractor. Hal



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sd pete

10-31-2007 06:35:28




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 Re: More on Fordson bad mouth in reply to El Toro, 10-31-2007 05:58:24  
My grandpa had a Fordson back in the 20"s. He had a story where he sent the hired man out with a team and a plow and he stayed on the homestead and cranked the fordson. His was traded in on a farmall Regular. He said that regular was a dream come true.



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El Toro

10-31-2007 07:21:30




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 Re: More on Fordson bad mouth in reply to sd pete, 10-31-2007 06:35:28  
They were known for flipping backwards too. I think they noted for kicking back too. Hal



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Ducknose Bob

10-31-2007 05:37:40




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 Re: More on Fordson bad mouth in reply to HW, 10-31-2007 05:14:26  
I agree, they served the purpose until something better came along.
An affordable, physically small tractor, at a time when the competion was, by and large, trying to market a gasoline/kerosene tractor that approached the size and weight of a steam traction engine.
Infinitely more reliable, durable, and capable than some of the junk that fly-by-night companies were assembling and selling.
Manufactured and sold by Henry Ford, who was NOT known for innovation and bold steps forward, witness his reliance on mechanical brakes for years after hydralic brakes were used on the competition.

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Verniee

10-31-2007 06:29:22




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 Re: More on Fordson bad mouth in reply to Ducknose Bob, 10-31-2007 05:37:40  
All these replies yet nobody has offered to help the gentleman out with his original question.

Perhaps he would have better luck down on the Fordson Discussion board.



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J.C.H.

10-31-2007 08:32:37




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 Re: More on Fordson bad mouth in reply to Verniee, 10-31-2007 06:29:22  
I went back and reread original Posts and can find no Badmouth. His question of value was answered several times and the rest were observations or trivia. Lighten up and enjoy.



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J.M.B.

10-31-2007 10:01:04




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 Re: More on Fordson bad mouth in reply to J.C.H., 10-31-2007 08:32:37  
I didn't personally badmouth the Fordson, I just related a statement from someone who had first-hand knowledge of them. However, I would take the opinion of a man who farmed with one, over the opinion of someone who collects them.



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KEH

10-31-2007 16:33:41




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 Re: More on Fordson bad mouth in reply to J.M.B., 10-31-2007 10:01:04  

When I was a small boy Daddy had a Fordson tractor. It would pull a 2 disk oliver plow and a small smoothing harrow. Yes it was hard to start. Started on gas, switched to kerosene. Had a belt pulley which we used to saw wood for heating. Not only did it have no turning brakes, it didn't have a brake pedal at all. Pushing the clutch in engaged some kind of internal braking system. The 1942 Case S was a huge improvement. I still have the S, never had any desire to get a Fordson. I have no idea about the price of one.
As a matter of interest, I once saw a Fordson with rubber tires.

KEH

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