Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Goodbye 806

This thread caught my eye this morning.

"There is also a rake hooked to it and a mx170 with a Nw Holland br7060 baler down the hill from it. Roads are all closed and cant even get to them to move them. I'm guessing with the 2 inches weve gotten in the last hour that they are under again."

I can see why he would think goodbye 806 International Harvester.  That is the tractor I pulled 40 years ago with a P pump, big injectors and a Schwitzer 3LM turbocharger.  That tractor would compete and out pull about any tractor at the time. 

I remember we were pulling it in the 13,500 lb class around 1975 in the town I would become ag teacher.  We had weights piled all over that poor little 806, it looked like a toad.  I think I pulled in High First and when I hit the spin out tracks, the front end lifted up higher than your head and the tractor walked right past all of those holes.  325 hp was considerable in those days.

I remember the disgruntled looks from the Case and John Deere drivers there who managed big farms with their equipment in that area.  No, I remember outright cursing.  My friend and I had won every farm class that day.  We had it dialed in perfect!  We picked up a case of Schloening Little Kings on the way home.  Do you know how drunk you can get on ale?

The poster is from SW Wisconsin and they had a big rain come upon them too quickly in a flooding area.  I guess they shouldn't have parked the machinery there before the storm.

I remember when  a flood caught dad in a similar situation and he barely got his Super 77 Oliver out of a flooding field.  This picture reminds me of the 60's when I was a teen.  Weather forecasting was not so great then and I wonder if it is any better now.

We had a thunderstorm overnight again but I don't think it rained much.  My Spatial Rainfall Consulting report should be coming any minute.

I want to cut wheat and plant soybeans.  That will have to wait another day or two.
Ed

4 comments:

  1. I will sell you another one...with the turbo. Clutch is not perfect. You have to come get it.

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  2. My dad always was a fan of bringing every peice of equipment home every night. I still do that most of the time as I fill the sprayer and planter at home and road it to the field. It's so nice being close together.

    Tractor pulling doesn't have a very good ROI. Have saw neighbors stop planting beans in late June to go pull.........

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  3. I would love to have it but the haul might be worst than the cost of the tractor.

    I actually made money tractor pulling in the 70's, never got less than third place. Gas was cheap and got back $50-$225 which was a lot of money 40 years ago.

    Ed

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  4. Well if you don't want to buy mine wonder what I could buy that guy's sheet metal for? Hmmm...

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