Farmall H with Disc Harrows

1940 Farmall H with GL-9-A Tractor Disc Harrow (10 ft) half way along a run in 20 Acre paddock. The wonders of digital cameras. This photograph was taken on the 29th September 2012.
SadFarmall

Love to see stuff like that. You had me fooled. Thanks for posting. BTW what kind of trees are those in that gorgeous background? Never seen trees like that in Texas.

Patrick
'49M

Thanks! The trees are in fact not native here. They are [i:a4fa3e510c]pinus pinea[/i:a4fa3e510c] or Stone Pine / Umbrella Nut. They are native to Italy. These were planted by my Dad and family friend Giuseppe Savelli (who came to Australia during the Second World War as a p.o.w and then worked on our farm for many years). The pine nuts are very good to eat, but in Australia the black cockatoos often get them first!
SadFarmall

Tell us how steel wheels actually work. We"ve heard not to drive them on pavement, etc., but I"ve never seen them actually used. I"d think pulling a 10" disc would be a good test.

I have found:
1). When you drive over a rock (there are some flat rocks just under the surface here) the driver really does feel it.
2). On the gravel track in the front paddock, it is rough, but better if the tractor is driven in 3rd or even 4th gear than in 1st. Not sure why this should be the case.
3). In the field the steering is slightly lighter and easier than with front rubber wheels. This was a very welcome surprise.
4). When you depress the clutch, the tractor stops on the spot most of the time.
5). Working with these harrows, the cast iron front wheels with skid rings are far superior to rubber on newly ploughed ground. They produce far less 'kick' through the steering than rubber tyres. This makes the work far less tiring for the operator and results in less wear on steering components.
6). The rear steel wheels have excellent grip for this work. They occasionally push ploughed sods backward, but no more so than rubber tyres. The operator is not bounced any more than on rubber wheels for this work. My experience using these harrows with a Farmall M on rubber was that rubber tyres do not provide better traction than steel.

Overall, I am very happy with the way the steel wheels perform for harrows. I have a set of rubber wheels for this tractor, which will probably be used in Summer for work on other farms as I have to drive the tractor on bitumen to get to the jobs.

I do not believe that steel wheels are superior for all work. For mowing and raking hay you must remove the skid rings and lugs to avoid severe crop damage and road travel is very limited on steel. Nevertheless, the results of this work are very satisfactory. I would not consider putting rubber on for this work with a Farmall.
SadFarmall

Our first tractor was a 1943 JD 'B', on steel. Back in the day, there were signs on the hard roads (paved roads) saying. "Tractors With Lugs Prohibited".

Stan

Yes, I found out that steel wheels work great for garden work But not for haying - The lugs will push the cut grass into the sod, making it hard to rake.

The brown tint really makes it "work" photographically. Nice tractor and background. Jim

Being an old guy (78), I remember a lot of new H's and a few new M's coming from the factory looking just like that tractor during the World War II days of 1943 and 1944.

if you hit a rock just right with the front wheels
it jerk the steering wheel out of your hand if you
don't have a good grip on it other than that i like
it better in the garden than rubber