Fordson Tractor

[The Johnster]

An impulse buy at the small Cardiff show last weekend, the intention being to provide a suitable load for a lowfit.  Oxford, and I'm a little disappointed by it.  As a wagon load, it needs to be in shiny new state, delivered from a dealer or the factory to a local farmer, so I cannot do my usual dodge of covering a multitude of sins.  It has bright shiny steel axles which are very obvious and highly unrealistic and toylike (to be fair it's a reasonably scale die cast toy rather than a scale model).  

 

Of course I can rectify this; the axles would, I imagine, on a brand new tractor, be black or perhaps the main body colour blue (it's blue with orange wheels, very much the tractor I remember from my own childhood), but it just doesn't feel up to Ox's standard.

 

The lowfit (Baccy) has been provided with wheel blocks to hold the thing, cut from real wood in the form of coffee stirrers from motorway cafes; these are. actually from my local Sainsbury's cafe.  I commend them as a very useful modelling resource, which I have used as wagon load planks, fencing, paint stirrers, an attempt at a tension lock uncoupler, and signboards amongst other things.

[mikeharvey22]

Don't forget that there was no front axle, each wheel having its own stub axle, and often a transverse leaf spring connecting them. A web image search should flag up plenty. The back axle was probably body colour.

 

https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&ccid=NdUSHeOo&id=8EC9F04AE1A9057E0DA2035B0E08D8BA325EDC47&thid=OIP.NdUSHeOoljZHOWTq0tE57QEsDR&q=fordson+tractor&simid=608027368074382923&selectedIndex=52&ajaxhist=0

 

https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&ccid=HbI7eahj&id=151687185172195D7BCC7D2B0D62EFF3F215A70E&thid=OIP.HbI7eahjayMLmBeqPqShMAHaFj&q=fordson+tractor&simid=608049826514405660&selectedIndex=67&ajaxhist=0

[Fat Controller]

Don't forget that there was no front axle, each wheel having its own stub axle, and often a transverse leaf spring connecting them. A web image search should flag up plenty. The back axle was probably body colour.

 

https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&ccid=NdUSHeOo&id=8EC9F04AE1A9057E0DA2035B0E08D8BA325EDC47&thid=OIP.NdUSHeOoljZHOWTq0tE57QEsDR&q=fordson+tractor&simid=608027368074382923&selectedIndex=52&ajaxhist=0

 

https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&ccid=HbI7eahj&id=151687185172195D7BCC7D2B0D62EFF3F215A70E&thid=OIP.HbI7eahjayMLmBeqPqShMAHaFj&q=fordson+tractor&simid=608049826514405660&selectedIndex=67&ajaxhist=0

We use one of these on the vineyard in France: there isn't a visible back axle, as the wheels are mounted either side of a large casting which houses the differential and the power take-off. This was painted the same blue as the rest.

There was a traffic in second-hand tractors from Cambridge to Fishguard and Holyhead, thence Ireland. Paul Shannon has photos and details in his 'Wagonload Freight' book; a variety of wagons were used, including BR Borails.

[George Woodcock]

Hello

 

                  Looks like a front axle to me. Don't remember any tranverse spring on Fordson Majors either. Regarding the shiny Oxford axles just paint them orange on the wheel ends and blue underneath the axle casting. You also need to add the air intake on the bonnet and a three point linkage.

 

                                                                                                                 Cheers

 

                                                                                                                             George

[Arthur]

This is a Fordson Power Major as modelled by Oxford, it’s front wheel arrangement and lack of springing on any axle is typical of tractors of the era, even modern tractors rarely have any suspension.

 

 

There is single steel section, pivoted at the centre allowing it to rock/articulate, with a stub axle mounted at either end. The stub axles are linked behind by pivoted steering arms and a tie rod which keep them in line and provide the turning motion. There is a long steering rod running back to the steering wheel mechanism, on the left side on Fordsons.

 

 

The Oxford model can be improved by removing the centre portion of the polished steel axle between the rather heavily cast stub axles and gluing the axle ends in place (though the wheels will not rotate).

 

Filing down the stub axle castings further improves it.

 

.

[PhilJ W]

Most tractors of the period were unsprung, the front axle was pivoted in the centre to keep all four wheels on the ground in rough country. Universal Hobbies produce a Fordson Major tractor attached to a key ring! In fact it is so close to the Oxford model in detail and scale I at first took it to be the same casting. The most important difference is that it doesn't have the shiny front axle, the front wheels are held in by two plastic pins. The other difference is that it only has a rudimentry exhaust stack and the attachment for the keyring which is a tab with a hole where the drawgear would be. It might be possible to modify the tab to represent the drawgear. There are 3 other tractors in the range, a grey Fergie and a later M-F that are overscale for 00 and an un-named tractor that looks like a mid 50's Massey-Harris with grey instead of yellow wheels that also looks very close to 1:76 scale.

EDIT Arthur just beat me to it re. tractor springing, or lack of it. The Universal Hobbies models mentioned above can be found on E-bay. They produce models of more modern tractors in smaller scales as well as other farming machinery some of which can be used with 00 models without being too obvious.

Edited February 9, 2018 by PhilJ W

[Arthur]

I don’t know about Fordsons but on my 1964 Nuffield, the only concession to ‘comfort’ is that the drivers seat, a pressed metal pan hinged at the front, sits on a rounded rubber ‘cone’. A padded cushion can be clipped into the seat pan. Otherwise every bump and jar is readily felt.

 

I have since fitted a support frame and modern suspension seat in deference to my butt’s comfort.

 

Edit; Looking at the Fordson photos the first shows an origninal steel seat and cushion, similar to a Nuffield, and the second a type of modern suspension seat.

 

.

Edited February 9, 2018 by Arthur

[The Johnster]

Many thanks everyone, and I hope you don't mind me namechecking Arthur for the photos, which are very informative.  As the wheels do not need to revolve on this tractor, I will cut out the axle centres and glue them as he suggests.  I could forgive the anomaly if it didn't draw so much attention to itself with all that chrome steel rod.

[Fat Controller]

Before Paul Bocuse bought the farm and vines, Antonin, my old boss, used to farm it for the person who owned the Jaguar concessionaire in Lyon. This person would keep his coach-builders occupied by having them build trailers for use around the vines; the problem was getting them the 50km from Lyon. Antonin drove the round trip on the Fordson Major, taking the better part of the day to do so- he'd have been quicker if he hadn't stopped several times for meals and casse-croute. I hesitate to think what he must have felt like after the journey.

The trailers, by the way, included one on the back axle of an old Jag, with wire wheels- instead of a normal diff, it looks to have a crown and pinion drive, suggesting it was quite ancient.

[tamperman36]

I remember in the 80s seeing several old Fordson tractors along the North Yorkshire coast being used to pull fishing cobles in and out of the sea on a daily basis.

[fodenway]

I remember in the 80s seeing several old Fordson tractors along the North Yorkshire coast being used to pull fishing cobles in and out of the sea on a daily basis.

There are still lots of them, of several makes, some dating back to the 1940s still in use at several places on the North East coast, including Filey and Whitley Bay. Some are fitted with a rudimentary "nappy", presumably to avoid dripping oil on the beach.

[javlinfaw7]

Fordson still in use in Balmaha boatyard ,Loch Lomond

[LBRJ]

I used to pilot one of these just about  into this century in anger, before the old chap traded up to something different, though not so sure it was better

 

One thing i can remember well is that the front wheels are cast iron, and are very heavy - At least they stopped you from wheelingy the thing too often!