40 dollar paint job

crooked rows · Mar 11, 2023

Some clippings from December 1959 county paper. The tractor repair prices seem unreal compared to today's prices. It looks like you could get a paint job for a little over 40 bushels of corn....couldn't do that today. Also noticed there isn't a price for soybeans in the crop market report because in 1959 there were very few soybeans grown in this part of Michigan. I guess the paint job isn't too far out of line because Earl Scheib would paint your car for $29.95 back then...lol.

tomstractorsandtoys · Mar 11, 2023

That is very interesting. One fat steer would have your Farmall M painted and overhauled. Tom

620 John · Mar 11, 2023

Now days $150 will get you about 1 hr worth of labor in most dealers. Sadly I've been finding that the shop rates anymore greatly contribute to poor quality workmanship. Certain things that don't necessarily "need" to be fixed but "should" be fixed you just have to let it go because you can only spend so much time on it. Unfortunately there's no way around it anymore because running a business ain't cheap either. On top of that there's too many people trying to beat the time clock to just "get it done" for their efficiency bonus instead of "get it done right."

This post was edited by 620 John on 03/11/2023 at 12:24 pm.

rrlund · Mar 11, 2023

Think about corn yields back then though, and how few acres an average farm would have grown compared to today.
You get Hart Parr Oliver Collector magazine don't you? Did you put on some strong glasses and read that ad from March 1954 in that article about that dealer in Iowa?

When you compare those prices to yields and commodity prices, those weren't exactly the good old days.

NDIHC · Mar 11, 2023

It's all relative. When my parents bought their houst (that they still live in) in 1964, their house payment was $50 a month. I think their mortgage was either $2,500 or $3,500.

rrlund · Mar 11, 2023

My first home was a used 12x50 mobile home that I paid $2500 for. I financed it for 5 years. It was still tough to pay for milking 16 cows and driving milk truck right out of high school.

SkipperII · Mar 11, 2023

And thus the reason I keep repairing a good friends tractors and haying equipment. I hate seeing him have to take it to a dealership.

46m · Mar 11, 2023

In 1965 new piston and sleeves Was about 175.00 for a m farmall. A new char lynn power steering was a 150.00. A wide front on a m farmall installed was 250.00.

Geo-TH,In · Mar 11, 2023

In 1969 I bought all the parts I needed to rebuild a 305 honda,
Honda healer had new pistons, rings, gaskets and bored out cylinder to fit the oversized pistons.
You exchanged cylinders.

BAck then it cost me $100 per cylinder to rebuild my engines. New oversized pistons, rings, gasket set, grind valves. Polish crank, reground cam, new lifters, new freeze plugs, water pump, oil pump, new hoses and belts. I did the labor.
$600 for 6 cylinder
$800 for 8 cylinder.
All machine shops are gone.

Goose · Mar 11, 2023

When my wife and I were married in 1965, we paid $9800 for our first house. Our payments were $78 per month.

But, my wife's salary as a doctor's receptionist was $320 per month, as I recall, and I was working for a newspaper for about $100 per week.

Like someone else said, it's all relative.

fastfarmall · Mar 11, 2023

WOW, a little bit before my time,but what was the IHC Dealer paying the mechanic, do suppose at that time ?

Willow Lane · Mar 11, 2023

Looking at the price of calves on your clipping, what are deacon and light deacon calves. I assume poorer quqlity, but I've never heard the term before, must be a local thing.

Crazy Horse · Mar 11, 2023

I know this is all meaningless but when my dad came back from his Navy service in WW2 he bought a brand new house in a Veteran's Land Act development for $5200. I believe it was a 35 year mortgage and our payments were $20 per month. Later on in '62 he bought a brand new VW Beetle .... a small shop not too far from our home did an oil change and a lube for $6. I think that was only two Imperial quarts of oil though.

caterpillar guy · Mar 11, 2023

Deacon calves were three day to about a week old calf. The dairy guys would sell the bulls that way so they didn't have to feed them. A few would raise them or some of them for beef. IT was also cull calves from the poorer cows . Howell livestock sale has been gone for over 30 years now. We shipped to it some. Sold some hay down there too.

crooked rows · Mar 11, 2023

Deacon calves are dairy calves usually up to a week old. This area was a huge dairy area back then so nearly every farm made the trip weekly to the auction with deacon calves.

Olyj1947 · Mar 11, 2023

Two long time techs at the local IH dealer told me 6 days a week $45 to $50. And every other Saturday night for merchants night!

fastfarmall · Mar 11, 2023

Wow, none to much!!

RBMI · Mar 12, 2023

When my dad returned from WW2, he went to work at the local IH dealer, as a mechanic. This was an on the job training/GI Bill program. I remember him telling about IH corporate promoting the overhaul/paint job combo deals. A representative from IH demonstrated how to repaint an H, using 1 quart of red paint. Sounded a bit like the gypsy barn painters.

BarnyardEngineering · Mar 12, 2023

(quoted from post at 06:21:47 03/11/23) Some clippings from December 1959 county paper. The tractor repair prices seem unreal compared to today's prices.

Yet the dealers were still accused of highway robbery, price gouging, outright theft.

Geo-TH,In · Mar 12, 2023

My dad told me he worked at a grain elevator in 1940, fifty cents an hour, $20 a week.

40 dollar paint job

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