Outtakes, LQ #34

LQ #34 was in the mail the first week of April and most subscribers had received their copy by April 14th

FEATURE ARTICLES

This issue featured Part 2 of the Massey Ferguson 4000 Series tractor. Part 1 was very well received and hopefully readers will find the second part equally interesting and informative. Once again, special thanks to retired Massey engineer, Joe Beckerman for all of his help and guidance in making this in-depth article possible. As part of this article, I included an extensive sidebar detailing the sales of this high-horsepower tractors in Saudi Arabia. The outstanding photos were provided by 94-year-old Arnott Neals of Toronto, Ontario. The photos from Arnott’s personal album certainly documented a unique part of company history.

This issue also featured the Ferguson tractors of Pennsylvania collector Ronald Gayman. The star of Ronald’s collection is his dad’s Ferguson T0-35 and of course, Ronald still has the original sales receipt from July of 1956. Ronald’s son Brian shot the centerfold photo of the family’s beige T0-35. Ron not only owns the three-color versions of the Ferguson T0-35–gray and green, beige and gray and red and gray–but he has the same color combos in a set of pedal tractors and also three toy Ferguson tractors.

In a slight change of pace, I visited a small but very unique Ohio brewery that not only brews specialty beer but raises an unusual breed of “wooly” pigs. It is really a special farm brewery and uses an older Massey Ferguson 175 tractor to keep the whole operation running. Nice family, excellent beer and great old Massey tractor.

Long time Massey dealer Ervin Weaver recently passed away. The April issue includes a moving tribute written by his friends and family. The article includes some interesting historical photos.

Long time collector and Massey enthusiast, Harry Bowen sent an Extended Letter about his father who was a Massey-Harris dealer. The letter includes several historic family photos.

WORKING TRACTORS FEATURE IN OCTOBER

In the fall issue, we will be featuring another “Working Tractors” pictorial. If you have your old tractor or equipment out earning its keep the summer, be sure and take some photos. The new smart phones take excellent photos and you can email your pictures to us, right from your phone. Remember to keep the sun behind you and over your right shoulder. Please include a paragraph about the tractor, implement, who owns it and who took the photo. If you send photos by USPS, be sure to label EVERYTHING carefully with your full name and phone number.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

As usual, keep your letters coming. Email is preferred, however, if you choose to mail (USPS) your letters and photos, please type if possible and label each photo with full name and phone number on the back of each print.

GREAT OHIO HARVEST DVD

If you like old Massey combines, you will want your own personal copy of the new film that we produced last fall. It shows a group of old Massey combines harvesting one-hundred acres of wheat last summer at Sauder Village, Ohio. The film includes a series of photos, showing vintage Massey-Harris combines working on the Great Plaines in the 1930’s and 1940’s. See the ad on the homepage of this website.

MASSEY FERGUSON 4000 SERIES TRACTOR

We will start this issue’s OUTTAKES with the feature on the 4000 Series tractor. The first images are newspaper articles that will shed some light on the downward spiral of the company as it headed toward bankruptcy.

LQ #33 IS IN THE MAIL

LQ #33 was mailed the first week of January. Because the mail is unusually slow this time of the year, delivery will vary greatly throughout different parts of the country and especially in Canada.

FEATURES

This issue begins the two-part series on the Massey Ferguson 4000 Series tractors. Former Massey engineer, Joe Beckerman–who headed up this project–has provided all of his notes, drawings, photos and background information. This provides a rare chance to follow the development of a tractor model for the initial market survey, design, prototype building, testing, model designations, marketing and modifications. These were and are great tractors that are still in wide use and command an excellent resale price.

Also featured in this issue is another installment of the Art of Massey, and the featured artist is American, Bruce Bomberger. It is written by frequent contributor and Bomberger fan, Gordon Barnett. Gordon covers a multitude of venues that the artist used to advertise everything from Ferguson, Massey-Harris, Massey Ferguson, Chevrolet, the California Zephyr, the Green Bay Packers and the US Air Force. The images and the story is an important part of Massey history.

Since the founding of the magazine, we have been talking about doing a feature on cream separators and LQ #33 finally brings this to fruition. Starting with a history of this unique machine, once found on every farm in North America, the article concludes with a short story by Canadian writer, David Turner. David artfully tells the story of his grandfather who spent his lifetime working for Massey-Harris and rode the rails of Canada servicing the company’s cream separators. The article is supported by many great historical images and original art by Johnny Filipchuk. It makes a good read!

An interview with reader Darrel Ostrom reveals his discovery of an old log cabin in Saskatchewan that contain an old box of early Massey-Harris calendar images and old advertising from World War II. Darrel–whose family emigrated from Sweden–even sent me several old Norwegian language newspapers that were also discovered in the antique box.

This issue also contains a nice assortment of Extended Letters. You will be Québec resident Albert Bergeron who has an incredibly large collection of Massey Ferguson tractors. In his interesting letter–accompanied by several great photos–Albert tries to answer the question, “Why do you have all of those Massey tractors?” A question that many wives ask their husbands!

German reader Norman Tietz traces the history of the Massey Ferguson Super 90 as exported to Europe. Most readers will be surprised at the popularity of this model tractor in Germany, Sweden and throughout Scandinavia.

Last but not least, I think that you will find this installment of the Editor’s Notebook both a little unusual and very interesting. I had the good fortune of meet Col. Harland Sanders. We talked Massey tractors, and of course, fried chicken. After you read this, I think that you will agree, the Dos Equis beer spokesman is NOT the most interesting man in the world. The most interesting man in the world is Harlan Sanders, born in 1890 in Henryville, Indiana.

2018 Legacy Quarterly Calendars

We still have a few of the 2018 calendars left. If you didn’t get what you wanted for Christmas, it still not too late to order a calendar. They are a thirteen-month calendar and feature Ferguson, Massey-Harris and Massey Ferguson and Wallis tractors. Plus garden tractors, combines, corn binders, threshing machines and corn pickers. It is still the only all Massey calendar, period.

Order your Legacy Quarterly Massey Ferguson 2018 Calendar

Company Videos

I'm still working with our website guy, Joe Warehime, to get some newly procured videos up and running at legacyquarterly.com There is one on the Massey Ferguson 2000 Series tractors that takes you through the design and manufacturing process. It is very detailed and runs about 24 minutes. It is the only copy I have ever seen.

Another film on the 2000 Series is already posted and it called the Tough 2000 Series . If you like MF history and are a fan of this model tractor, you’ll find this both informative and enjoyable!

Another is an old Ski Whiz film from the late 1960’s. You can guess the production date without even looking at the title.

If you are interested in early Massey Ferguson advertising, be sure to listen to the series of radio commercials that are posted on the homepage of the magazine website. It is great comedy and traces the early history of the company. Announcements about postings will be made on the magazine facebook page.

Outtakes

Click on the cover of LQ #33 or here and you can take a look at some of the images that I couldn’t fit into this issue.

Letters to the Editor

Just a reminder, you are more than welcome to submit letters to the editor by email. I actually prefer that readers use this format if possible. It saves me a lot of typing time. Just email your letters and photos to legacyeditor@columbus.rr.com

Sue, Rob and I hope that everyone has a happy and prosperous New Year!

Frank Perkins and the Perkins Diesel Engine Company - article sample

Check out Outtakes from Issue #31

LQ #31, the July 2017 issue was mailed the first week of July and was delivered to most subscribers by July 12th. This was a special issue that featured several stories about harvesting. An extended article about the Lloyd Fraase family’s last big harvesting show and their extensive Massey collection, got this issue rolling. Another harvesting story chronicled former Massey Ferguson employee, Frank Vieria’s work on the MF 860 combine. Contributor Gordon Barnett has put together an article about former Massey truck driver Ernie Smith, who hauled Massey-Harris and Massey Ferguson prototype combines around North America for field-testing.

Noted author John Farnworth produced an article about Massey Ferguson track tractors–or crawlers–that were widely used in Europe but not in Canada or the United States. If you are interested in crawler tractors, you will find this very informative reading.

Lastly, the long awaited history of the Verity Plow Company is finally published in this issue. It contains a wealth of historical information and contains many primary sources including the great-great grandson of the company founder. Ontario resident Bill Verity contributed much information to this article from his personal family history.

Four Extended Letters round out this issue, which I hope that you will enjoy.

Don’t forget that the new calendars for 2018 will be available in October. There will be a small change in this year’s calendar. There will be thirteen ¼ page size ads available for this year’s calendar. The ad will be placed at the bottom of each page. The calendar is very expensive to produce and these additional small ads should help to offset the additional printing costs. The ads will be available on a “first-come” basis. Call or email for additional details on purchasing an ad.

Massey Ferguson Radio Commercial Series

Massey Ferguson the Tough 2000s video

Read Massey-Wood A Tale of Two Companies

Watch '44 Orchard' video

Watch Ferguson Sidemounted Baler video

Watch 'All Our Friends Have Tractors' video

Watch Massey-Harris Pacemaker on the Belt video

Joe Tucker's proposal for the Harvest Brigade

Watch 'The Little Bull Tractor' video