Agricultural Tractors: Books - History (2/6)

Tractor Superstars : The Greatest Tractors of All Time

Many companies have built hundreds of farm tractors over the years, from the 1910 Case 110 steam tractor to the latest-model John Deere 8320R. The most innovative models changed farming for years afterwards and influenced the designs of other tractors. The most wildly popular tractors have sold in the hundreds of thousands.

"Tractor Superstars" focuses on these remarkable tractors, including technical information such as the engine, horsepower, rpm, top speed, and weight.
A wide collection of detailed photographs makes this one book that no one interested in tractors, tractor collectors, or anyone nostalgic for farm life will want to miss.

Legendary Farm Tractors

If you're a tractor enthusiast with a passion for tractor photography, "Legendary Farm Tractors" is a dream-come-true pictorial produced with you in mind. This book presents tractors from the United States, Canada, Europe, and Japan - models from the 1880s to today - along with detailed captions, together offering a comprehensive photographic history of tractors.

Organized alphabetically by make so that readers can find their favorites easily, the tractors covered here include everything from familiar manufacturers like John Deere, Ford, Farmall, Case, Caterpillar, and International Harvester to obscure tractors that have seldom been seen, such as the special streamlined Porsche coffee plantation tractor that looks more like a sports car than a piece of farm equipment.
The extensive variety and distinguished photographs by noted photographer Andrew Morland make this an exceptional book for tractor buffs and the perfect gift book for any machine enthusiast.

The Tractor Story

The book covers over 100 years of tractor development and features more than 100 different tractors. The first steam engines on wheels which used belts to drive farm machinery developed into traction engines, used on farms by pulling a plough on cables between two engines. In the 20th century, stationary internal combustion engines, such as the Clutterbuck, began to be put on wheels and moved around a farm to drive threshing machines by belt.

Dozens of small companies grew up around the world following their own lines of development. Most lasted only a short time. Firms like Allis-Chalmers, Benz, Lloyd, Jelbart, Glasgow, Fordson, Bates and Hart-Parr are famous names which have faded away or been taken over.

A few companies, such as Case and Massey, started in the middle of the 19th century and continue today on a global scale. John Deere started making ploughs in 1837 and is now the largest manufacturer in the world. Some developments have caused a giant leap forward: the use of rubber pneumatic tyres rather than metal wheels; turbo-charged diesel engines and the hydraulic three-point hitch system designed by Ferguson, which is still used today in some form on most modern machines.

All are photographed here, many in action and in different countries.

Know Your Tractors

Chris has tried to show the tractors carrying out a wide range of tasks. His concise text explains what is going on in the pictures. He includes some basic technical specifications such as power outputs so that the reader can roughly compare different tractors and have an idea of the size and capability of each.

The 41 tractors chosen come from 25 marques. Many of the tractor manufacturers have parent companies, some of which own a number of tractor makers. Chris gives these details as well as the country of assembly and/or manufacture.