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Information
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| URL:
http://riceornot.ricecop.com/?auto=82517 |
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| Comments: 5 (Read/Post) Favorites: 1 (View) |
Submitted
on: 08-04-2010
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Category:
Other Vehicle |
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Description:
The Ford 8N, produced from 1948 to 1952. It was (along with it's predecessor models) for farmers what the Model T was to the rest of the populace, a cheap, durable and simple to operate mass-produced machine that replaced horses and mules for good on many US farms. To this day, no other model of tractor has sold anywhere near to the estimated 500,000 units that this one has. |
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| #1 |
8-04-2010 @ 03:19:54 AM |
| Posted By : ricerocketboy |
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Before he died, my grandpa had a 1951 8N. I have a model on one just like this. :)
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| #2 |
8-04-2010 @ 03:25:53 AM |
| Posted By : Low-Tech Redneck |
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Ford had actually entered the domestic tractor market way back in 1917. At the time, there was already a Ford Tractor company in existence (no relation) so the earliest models were marketed as "Fordson" (a shortening of "Ford and Sons") The tractors sold well in Europe, and especially England, but ultimately the Great Depression would wipe out the Fordson, with production ending in 1928. Though, for a short time, a few thousand a year were imported from overseas factories for sale in the US. By 1939, Ford was looking to get back into tractors full-time and partnered with the Ferguson company to roll out a new design for 39', taking advantage of the Ferguson 3-point hitch, a patented improvement over the earlier single-point drawbar hitches that had often caused tractors to roll over or backflip if their plows hit obstructions. This 39' Model, dubbed the 9N, featured a 4 cyl flathead motor, 3 speed transmission, and a widely-spaced front wheelset, as opposed to the "tricycle"
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| #3 |
8-04-2010 @ 03:30:42 AM |
| Posted By : Low-Tech Redneck |
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#2, wheels found on John Deeres and the like. Most of the mechanical parts were borrowed from Ford and Mercury car and truck inventory, and the resulting tractor was somewhat crude, but cheap to produce and operate. Ford himself had demanded that his engineers design the 9N so that a farmer could afford one for about the same price as it would cost to buy two mules and 10 acres of land to feed them. He also had his car designers give the tractor at least some character with it's art-deco inspired hood/headlight sheet metal. WWII soon intervened and forced the introduction of the 2N model in 1942, even cruder, it had a magneto ignition and some of the earlier models even had all-steel wheels, as rubber was in short supply. But at the end of the war years, a third tweak in the design produced the now iconic 8N, starting production in late 1947 and first going on sale in 1948.
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| #4 |
8-04-2010 @ 03:37:31 AM |
| Posted By : Low-Tech Redneck |
Reply | Edit | Del |
#3, The 8N featured an improved version of the flathead 4cyl engine and now offered a 4 speed transmission and made improvements to the hitch and PTO systems (mostly in a failed attempt to evade Ferguson's patent, Ford eventually was sued over it) that featured an overrun coupler (to prevent a towed implement from shoving the tractor ahead on sudden stops) and 2 setting draft control that would give the driver the option of either holding a plow at a constant height, or allowing it to follow the terrain. Also added was a unique "proofmeter" that measured engine hours to ensure proper maintenance was carried out at predetermined intervals. Running boards replaced the 9N's foot pegs, and also retained from the 9N/2N was the push-button start that had, surprisingly, always been standard. One other retention was the unusual (for a tractor) underside exhaust routing, much like a car, it did have a habit of occasionally catching high grass on fire
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| #5 |
8-04-2010 @ 03:54:03 AM |
| Posted By : Low-Tech Redneck |
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8Ns would continue to be built with only minor changes up to 1952. In 1953, they were succeeded by the NAA model tractors, which would have more powerful overhead valve engines and further improvements to the hydraulics and PTO, one weakness of the 8N was the lack of "live" hydraulics, meaning the pump would only work if the engine was running in gear, leading to situations where a bogged-down 8N could not lift it's own plow to get itself unstuck. The NAAs would also be slightly larger and heavier, as the relative light weight of the 8N caused it to occasionally lose traction, and necessitated the addition of calcium chloride ballast to the rear tires, a substance which encouraged the rear wheels to prematurely rust out.
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