1935 FARMALL F-12
I own a
tractor. There, I’ve said it. When I was a young girl I never dreamt about
owning a tractor. Actually, I doubt if I even knew what a tractor was at the
time. I grew up in the city. Not a big city, but a city nonetheless. I wanted a
blue 1967 Ford Mustang when I grew up. Not a broken down, rusted out pile of iron
painted the wrong color. But this month we bought a 1933 F-12 Farmall just for
me. How did I go from wanting a muscle car to a farm implement? I met and fell
in love with a farm boy.
Jill's new toy. The 40" wheel height of the F-12
really stands out in this picture. The tall tires are in great
shape. Mike says Jill has to do the rehab on this one--he's got the
Regular and the 130 scheduled for surgery in the coming months as well as a TA
transplant for the 460.
I met my
husband’s family through his brother, Bill. Bill can attest that I was a city
girl with zero knowledge of farm life. Throughout high school I’m sure I
demonstrated a lack of common sense that most farm folks seem to have at birth.
However, Mike decided to give me a chance anyway and I met the king of common
sense, Mike’s dad, Robert Miller Evans. He surely wondered what Mike saw in me.
But I can dish it out with the best of them and held my own with Bob Evans.
Flash forward a
few years, and now Mike and Bob are getting interested in tractors and their
restoration. We started going to tractor shows. Notice the use of the word
"we." Most women do not willingly hang out at a tractor show. Most
men probably do not want them too. This way they can play in the dirt, grease,
oil, etc. without being reminded to put on sunscreen, drink lots of water and
be home at a reasonable hour.
But there I
was, tagging along to the Flint Festival, tractor pulls, a tractor show in
The F-12 assumes its assigned slot in Mike's shop on the day
of its arrival. This photo is not distorted! The drop-down rear
axle arrangement used on the F-20 and F-30 was not adopted on the F-12.
For crop clearance, 40" rear wheels were used. When equipped
with steel, 44" wheels were the norm.
Bob liked to
poke fun of my city background and we didn’t have much in common other than
Mike. We were different generations, genders, political affiliations, and
gasp…we didn’t even like the same sports teams. But I think he enjoyed our
little debates, even if we might occasionally take it too far. He was patient
with my questions, but liked to tease me too. Once I asked him how they get so
many different colors in Indian corn. He told me after the corn starts to
tassel he had to inject each strand with food coloring. I said "Wow, that
must take a really long time." Bob shot me a sideways glance and I knew he
got me again. (I wasn’t kidding about my lack of common sense!)
Tagging along
to these different tractor events opened a new world to me. I met many
interesting, hard working, obsessed people. Only an obsessed person would
continually argue about whose tractor is better. Better for what? Plowing a
spring field, pulling a float in a parade, mowing a field, clearing underbrush,
carting a hay wagon, opening up a snow-filled driveway, dragging a dead truck
off the infield at a fair, toting a group of kids…it’s all good. Of course the answer
to which tractor is better is obvious. A Farmall is always better. See, I’m
obsessed now too!
Losing Bob has
been an adjustment for everyone and we still miss him. But we have laughed too,
remembering his funny sayings and imagining how he might react to how full our
barn is today. Mike and his brothers carry on the tractor torch and I’m right
there with them. Asking about the stickers (pardon me, "decals"),
ordering parts that I can’t pronounce and capturing everything with photographs
for the next generation. It’s nice that they let me tag along - but they don’t
have much choice either! After all, what other man has a wife asking him to
please buy another tractor he’ll have to restore? (By the way, I still have my
Ford Mustang key chain, so I haven’t given up hope yet.)
A view from the
driver's seat. The F-12 followed the F-30 and F-20. The F-14 came
much later and was essentially an F-12 but with a higher-revving engine and
sloped steering rod. Where the Regular, F20 and F-30 remind you of a
collection of parts bolted together to form a tractor, the F-12's components
seem to blend in with each other. You can see the "missing
link" connection in the design of the first F tractors and the follow-on
letter series in the F-12's layout. Mike thinks this thing is ugly.
Facts about
the F-12
Our newest
addition was rescued from Pataskala, Ohio where it was being slowly choked by
weeds. Although red now, it will eventually be painted its proper gray color
after restoration. Farmall produced 123,442 of these tractors from 1932-1938.
Their purpose was for use on farms of 100 acres or less and as supplementary
tractors on larger farms. The F-12 was affordable at $607 and boasted slotted
frame rails for implement mounting and solid axles for infinite rear wheel
adjustment, important features that carried on into the lettered series. Along
with the F-20 and F-30 series, the F-12 was introduced after the Regular
stopped production in 1932. With its small, compact size, the F-12 was well
suited for industrial applications and also popular for orchard and wheat land
farming with the I-12, O-12 and W-12 models. In 1938, the F-12 was replaced by
the F-14, essentially the same model but with a governor speed increased from
1400 to 1600, giving it more horsepower. Interestingly enough, the last five
hundred F-14 models sold in 1938 were really F-12’s with field conversion kits
for the governor installed.
A poison ivy vine kept the F-12 anchored to the ground on
the prior owner's property. Jill has titled this pic as "Fruit of
the Vine". Mike will need to partake in the fruit of the vine to get
this tractor in running shape! The motor is stuck, and the radiator's top
tank is full of indescribable corruption. First glance at the rear end
immediately reminds you of an H. Mike says, "Yep. This
straight axle layout proved the idea for use on the letter series."
The two full-circle axle housing flanges are interesting.
|
F-12 Vital Stats |
||||
|
Engine |
Bore x Stroke |
Rated RPM |
Compression Ratio |
Weight |
|
IHC 4-113 Gas |
3 x 4 |
1400 |
6.8 : 1 |
2800# (shipping wt.) |
|
Belt HP |
DrawBar HP |
Tires |
Fuel Capacity |
Coolant Capacity |
|
14.68 |
9.74 |
|
13 Gallons |
|
|
Belt Pulley |
Hydraulics |
Wheel Base |
OA Height |
Belt Speed |
|
12-3/8 x 6-1/4" |
None |
76" |
62-1/2" |
2591 FPM |
|
OA Width |
Turning Radius |
Years Produced |
Qty Produced |
Carburetor |
|
74-1/2" |
7 FT |
|
|
|
Above: The long process of the F-12
restoration begins--cleaning, scraping, teardown, inspection...well, you all
know the drill by now. It's strange to see the F-12 in this part of the
shop. Bill's 400 occupied this space for nine months during its major
restoration. The 400 had been in this spot for so long that a special
surgical procedure was needed to remove it--a tractorectomy. At the time this picture was
taken, Jake was six years old and likely able to absorb what Daddy Mike
involves himself with on a regular basis. Below:
Mike discovered these ailing pieces during teardown--a bent rod along with a
broken piston and sleeve. The F-12's motor was stuck. A 1-1/2"
layer of dirt lay on top of this piston, and Mike has theorized that the
previous owner tried to free the motor by getting it to fire or by pulling
it. The incompressible crud did its number on these parts in the
process. It's a shame as all the parts wear measured within specs.
Hey! Wasn't Jill supposed to do the restoration?
