Tractor heritage, news and features

Hope springs eternal

Have you noticed how many modern machines and appliances become quickly outdated after purchase? Try to procure a spare part to repair it and we are told it’s unavailable, on back order or it’s not worth repairing. Just throw it away and buy a new one.

Recently Ash Murdoch from the Omaka Valley, New Zealand, found the clutch on his 1948 Case VA tractor was slipping. The tractor was purchased new for $450 by his father in 1948 and has been on the same farm since. Ash still uses it regularly for vintage ploughing competitions.

He took the clutch plate to Blenheim to have it relined and the company told him it was possible to do the work but suggested he try the agents first. Somewhat tongue in cheek, Ash rang the Case agents in Ashburton and enquired whether they had a clutch for his 61-year-old tractor. The lady in the stores politely replied that they didn’t have one in stock but could get it for him.

To his surprise, a new clutch assembly complete with levers and springs arrived from the factory in the USA 10 days later. The price was marginally more expensive than it was going to cost to reline the original.

Ash and Margaret Murdoch farm 250 acres in the Omaka Valley near Blenheim in the South Island of New Zealand. He is the third generation of his family to farm the land, which is stocked with sheep and cattle and a vineyard, which is leased to a neighbour.

Collector

An avid collector of vintage farm machinery, he now has almost a complete set of vintage Case tractors. He says he is on the lookout for two models to finish the collection, a model D and an R; although he is sure there are not many of the latter around, he is confident one will be lurking in a farmyard somewhere.

Ash says that Chandler was the agent for Case in Blenheim and their premises were situated on the corner at the eastern end of the High Street. When tractors first came in, there were quite a number of Cases sold in Marlborough; however, the International tractor was most prevalent, especially in Canterbury.

The technique used by the salesmen was to drive through the country looking for farmers still working with horses. The farmer would be told he needed a tractor and there could be one there for him in the morning. If he protested that he couldn’t afford a tractor, he would be told to pay for it when he could.

A local farmer called Sparks was working in a paddock near the railway line when a salesman passed in the train. He climbed off at the next station and walked back down the line. By the following week, Mr Sparks had a brand new International in his yard.

Currently Ash is working on his 1919 Cross Case, which he rescued from under some trees in Canterbury. The former owner had pulled its seized remains from a bog where it had languished for many years. He has modified the rocker shaft lubrication system with an oil feed mechanism so it receives a more certain supply, rather than the old oil-soaked felt pad that required resoaking every few days. He is having a little trouble sealing one of the cylinder liners, which is leaking some water into the sump, but is optimistic that a solution is at hand.

He has restored all of his tractors apart from the S model, which he bought from the previous owner in its present pristine state. He says it cost him less than if he had done the job himself. Always on the lookout for things Case, he bought a binder some time ago. He explains that they were quite rare in New Zealand with only six being sold in Canterbury and one in Marlborough. When he returned home with the binder, he discovered a bonus of three brand new canvasses wrapped up in a heap of old ones.

Farming history

Around his yard are many relics of farming history, including a Fordson E27N, which he found under some pine trees when he purchased some neighbouring land. While towing it home, he put it in gear and let out the clutch. To his surprise, it roared into life. He used it for a few jobs until it burst a rear tyre – but he says the engine spits out quite a bit of oil over the driver’s face and will need to be rebuilt. Another project on the list.

In one of the sheds is a Massey Harris Super 26 combine that Ash has restored; it is powered with a Chrysler engine. There are also one or two Allis Chalmers tractors lurking in the sheds, which he maintains shows he is not entirely single-minded.

Among Ash Murdoch’s collection is a 1904 Fowler B5 steam traction engine weighing 14 tonnes, which he spent three years restoring, including the retubing of the boiler. The engine recently led the parade of vintage machinery to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the founding of Blenheim. The engine was then on display at the local agricultural show.

Ash’s long-suffering wife Margaret has been drafted in to assist with many of the more awkward jobs associated with Ash’s projects. She is frequently involved in his various machinery rescue missions around the country.

Why does he do it? “Because when I am gone, if they are in good condition, maybe someone will buy them and continue to look after them instead of consigning them to the scrap heap.”