OUTTAKES LQ #64 (click here to see photos)

It’s hard to believe that it is fall and we have just finished the 64th issue of Legacy Quarterly. This year went from raining every day to drought. We had more rain in June that we usually get for the entire summer and fall. As usual, the mail gets slower all the time and as of this day, October 16th, we still haven’t received our copy of the October Issue. You can’t keep cutting Postal staff and expect the service to be the same. Issue #64 was mailed the first week of October, so deliver in the US should be about half way complete.

Feature Articles:

MF 85, 88 and Super 90
The October issue featured the Massey Ferguson 85, 88 and Super 90 models. It included a lot of good information and many unpublished company graphics and photos. I hope that you will enjoy it.

Jeff and Marcia Hill Collection
Also in this issue is an article about Pennsylvania residents Jeff and Marcia Hill. They run a large tree farm and also have a large and varied collection of Massey-Harris and Massey Ferguson tractors. Jeff not only has vintage Massey tractors but also uses a new Massey Ferguson S-Series tractor in his tree and farming operation.

Working Tractors
And of course, the fall issue always contains the very popular “Working Tractors” section. With photos and information on twenty readers who sent photos and short stories about the tractors that they cherish and in most cases still use.

RFD Letters
There were also eleven pages of letters and photos in the popular RFD section. In the sixteen years that Sue and I have been publishing this magazine, I think that this is the best group of letters we have ever received. Most notably, I received an answer from New Zealand reader Anthony Hampton. I had found a photo of a large group of combines, all lined up along a residential street. I asked if anyone knew where the photo was taken. Not only did Anthony know that the photo was taken in Christchurch but his grandfather had purchased one of the combines. And, he still had the bill of sale.

Christmas 1912
I included a Massey-Harris Company Christmas card from 1912. The card had been mailed to Massey customers from the manager of the Edmonton, Ontario Branch. A reminder of the pre-World War I period.

The Bob and Lorri Wright Collection
Tricia Blasius wrote a very personal story about the collection of Ohio residents Bob and Lorri Wright. Bob still owned the first Massey-Harris tractor that his father purchased. Tricia, who is a high school Spanish teacher, is a good writer who takes you on an enjoyable visit with the Wright family.

Calendars for 2026
Don’t forget to order your 2026 Legacy Quarterly Calendar. They make a great Christmas gift for all of your Massey friends and collectors. We have managed to keep the price at $12.00, which has been the same for twelve years. How many things can you think of that still cost the same as they did twelve years ago? Calendar sale help to support the magazine, which has only had one price increase in sixteen years. Helping us hold the line on price is the corporate sponsorship of Massey Ferguson AGCO and Great World Promotions. Thank you!

Have a great fall and a Merry Christmas from Gary, Sue and Rob–the Legacy Quarterly staff.

OUTTAKES LQ #63 (click here to see photos)

As I write this on July 14th, delivery of the July issue appears to be about 80% complete in the US. As far as Canadian and EU subscribers, delivery is very hard to predict. The July 4th holiday always adds an extra week to magazine distribution. Thanks, for your patience.

Feature Articles

Massey-Harris 2-3 Plow Tractor
This issue’s feature was the early Massey-Harris Challenger tractors. It came to my attention that the early Challengers were referred to as the Massey-Harris 2-3 plow tractor. It was on the serial # tag and nowhere on the tractor did the name “Challenger” appear. As we began to examine some of the very early (1935-36) company literature, we noticed that were some distinct differences that didn’t show up in the later production models. Hopefully, you will discover some things that you didn’t know about this well-known Massey models. (Challenger photos #1.- #4.)

Massey Memorabilia
The response to my request for Massey Memorabilia was excellent. In addition to submissions from the US, I received items for Canada, UK, France, Holland and Sweden. One group of items from the Netherlands was so impressive, I included it in a separate article. I tried to feature items that were really unique, the things that readers would say, “I’ve never seen that before!” I think that you will be impressed! Included here: a 1923 Russian postage stamp feature a Wallis Cub, (M-1) a Welders Cap, (M-2) Massey Ferguson Champaign (M-3), Massey-Harris matches. (M-4) and a Massey Ferguson Field Calculator. (M-5)

Massey Ferguson 70
An article by Lon Jackson should be of great interest to readers. Lon has designed and built a Massey Ferguson 70. No such tractor you say? Put two MF 35’s together and you have an MF 70! The engineering that Lon but into this tandem tractor project will amaze you. His detailed photos help readers to understand how the finished project works. (MF 70 #1 and MF 70 #2)

Wood Burning Massey 33
You’ve heard the term “Smok’n Tractors” but the July issue chronicles the building of a real Smok’n Massey. One that actually runs on wood smoke. Canadian Ben Miltenburg, whose family came from Holland, explains how his father used a wood fired tractor during World War II when the was no gas available to farmers. He used his father’s plans to reproduce this system on a Massey-Harris 33. The system works well enough that he can get the old Massey to idle down to an amazing 100 rpm’s!! (Smoke #1 and #2)

Working Tractors
Don’t forget that in the October, Fall Issue, we will be featuring our annual Working Tractors Feature. We had so many submissions last year and I had to continue it into the January issue. Be sure to include a short paragraph with your photo telling who is in the photo, model, year and serial # of the tractor or equipment. Combines or course as welcome to be included. If you use a camera phone, make sure you hold you phone in the horizontal position. Also, if you email you photos, make sure that you send them ACTUAL SIZE! (working tractors #1.)

Lastly, you can pre-order your 2026 Legacy Quarterly Calendar. They are usually released at the end of October. Last year we ran out, so don’t be disappointed. Pre-order yours now. There is an order form in the July issue and also an order form on this website.

OUTTAKES LQ #62 (click here to see photos)

LQ #62 was mailed the end of March and was mostly delivered in the US by the second week of May. Service has improved somewhat but delivery to Canada is still pretty slow. As I mentioned in the Dear Readers section of this issue, we need to address late renewals. When the magazine leaves the printer, it is sent to a mail house in Arizona for US distribution and another mail house in Michigan for mailing to Canada and overseas. The cost to mail for US subscribers is about $.90. When you miss the renewal deadline and we have to mail you a late copy from our office, the cost is about $4.00, which is going to increase next month. If you receive a late copy, we would ask that you reimburse us the postage. Maybe $4.00 doesn’t sound like a lot, but we mailed out 125 late copies in January. That’s $4.00 x 125. That a loss we cannot continue to afford. Help us out!

We have sold the last calendar. Thanks to all you subscribers who purchased

The feature article in the April issue was the Oliver built Massey Ferguson 98. It was an in-depth look at this rare¬¬–they only built about 500–model tractor. The cover was a beautiful Massey Ferguson 98 owned by Myron Smith and shoot by photographer Super-T. One of our better covers! (A-1 and A-2)

I have included a copy of the Table of Contents so you can see exactly what you missed in this issue. Steve and Sandy Miller along with Joe and Jo Jo Poncelet hosted the final Whiz’N, which was covered for us by Tricia Blasius. Tricia and her husband Brad are big Ski Whiz fans and made the trip to Minnesota for this winter’s gathering billed as “We’re Back.” After you read Tricia’s story, you will wish were had been there! (B-1 and B-2)

One of the more unusual pieces of Massey Ferguson Industrial equipment is the MF 320 and 2200 Treever. It was a highly specialized logging machine that gathered up logs, picked them up and loaded them on a self-contained bed in the back of the machine. The article was written by one of the engineers who actually worked on the Treever design and testing. (C-1)

As a little child, Laci Marstellar told anyone who would listen that she wanted a Massey-Harris Pony. Well, grandpa Ed finally bought and restored one for his granddaughter. She always told everyone that she looked forward to going to high school so that she could drive her Pony to “Drive You Tractor to School Day.” This is the story of how it all happened. (D-1 and D-2)

You also want to miss the eight pages of interesting letters and photos sent in by readers.

Lastly, we will be featuring Massey and Ferguson related memorabilia in the July issue. If you have something interesting in your collection, send me photos and information about what you have by US mail or email.

Thanks for supporting Legacy Quarterly Magazine!

OUTTAKES LQ #61

LQ #61 was mailed the second week of January and as of 12/19/25, many subscribers still haven’t received their copy. There seems to be no rhyme or reason to the delivery patterns. I know that most of the people in New York have received theirs but the copy we have sent to our home address is still not here. This coupled with the months-long Canadian mail strike, really threw a wrench in the works. I believe that Canadian readers have mostly received the calendars that they ordered back in October. Everything is an uphill battle!

I’m including a copy of the Editor’s Notebook because it focuses on a topic that I find very important. January marks our 61st issue and I have spent considerable time going back over some of my favorite images of the last sixteen years. Starting with this issue and included in upcoming volumes, I will include a section called Then and Now. I will include and describe photos, advertising, reader submitted images and family history that I feel has been an important part of the Massey Legacy. Sadly, many of the folks who originally submitted these images have passed away. However, I feel that this is a good way to revisit memorable moments in Legacy Quarterly history and remember their submissions.

One of the articles featured in this issue is a story written by Dave Link that chronicles the trip to Australia by Dave and his friends Lew Stoms, Jim Esbenshade and Dave Hitchner. They were on the look-out for unusual Massey tractors and equipment to bring back for Jim’s Massey World Museum in Oklahoma. The article is included here. (#3.)

This issue also contains a project that I have been working on for over a year. I had asked if any readers had photos of themselves as children on their parents Massey tractor and could also supply a present day photo of them today on the same tractor. Many had photos of their dad’s or grandpa’s old tractor and some even had managed to track that old tractor down and add it to their collection. At the last minute, I got an email from Quebec resident, Doug Lang, who had just what I needed. He had a photo of his dad’s Mustang with Doug on board when he was just 19-months-old. Doug still owns that tractor and supplied a photo with him at the controls taken last fall. If anyone else has any of these old family photos, please let me know! (#4.)

Another story about growing up with Massey Ferguson tractor was written by Brenda Larson, who remembers her father’s great collection of MF tractors and her favorite Model, the MF 180. A very moving tribute to her late father, Bob, which includes great family photos of Brenda growing up. (#5.)

The feature article is this issue was a history of the first articulated Massey Ferguson tractors, written by the late David Walker. These were the Model 1200 tractors designed by Detroit Engineering but built in Manchester, England. David worked on prototype testing and refining the design of these tractors, which were the forerunners of the US built Models 1800, 1805 and the highly successful 4000 Series. (#6, #7, #8.)

Lastly, I have started to use QR Codes to help save readers time and avoid having to use a computer to locate certain items of interest. It is very simple to use but I fear some readers don’t know how they work. Simply take a close-up photo of the little square, black squiggly box and your phone will take you directly to the complete list of literature that is from sale. You can read it from your phone or print a hard copy for easier reading or later reference. (#9.)