THIS IS THE ENGINE THAT WOULD HAVE MADE FRANK PERKINS PROUD, A HIGH-SPEED AND POWERFUL V-8 DIESEL ENGINE USED FOR THE FIRST TIME IN THE MASSEY FERGUSON 1150 TRACTOR. THIS ENGINE IS WHAT MAKES THIS MODEL TRACTOR SO COLLECTABLE TODAY.

Francis Arthur Perkins, born in 1889 in Peterborough and is most widely known as the engineer who designed and built the world-famous Perkins diesel engine. He received his engineering degree at Cambridge University and after graduation, served with the Royal Engineers in World War I. Although the diesel engine had been around since the 1890’s when it was first invented by Rudolf Diesel, Perkins was interested in perfecting an engine that ran at higher speeds. Most of the early diesel engines ran at low rpm’s and were only suitable for industrial or marine use. Perkins envisioned an engine that could be used in a whole range of different applications, such as power trucks, buses and especially farm tractors.

Frank’s father and grandfather were both skilled engineers, so after completing his apprenticeship, he jointed the family firm of Barford and Perkins Ltd. After World War I, he worked for several other companies before striking out on his own. In June of 1932, he founded F. Perkins Ltd of Peterborough, to manufacture his newly designed high-speed diesel engine. Starting out with only four employees in a rented back street workshop, Perkins turned his new enterprise into a multi-national group of companies with thousands of workers. His plan was to produce compact diesel power units capable of replacing gasoline engines, yet sturdy enough to stand the stresses of higher compression. The trick was to combine high quality workmanship with low price coupled with first-class sales and service organizations.

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