South of the Border:"Some uncommon farm tractors around Whitlash"

 

May 22, 2019

Chance Thompson poses by his model 6800 Valtra at his cattle operation in the Sweet Grass Hills near Whitlash. He bought the 2002 tractor about 10 years ago with 300 operating hours on it. As to reliability, he described the tractor as "pretty much bullet-proof." The Finnish-made tractors were last sold new in the U.S. about 10 years ago.

Column No. 14

Columnist's note: A tractor sitting by a shed near the Whitlash Post Office drew my attention when we first moved to town. It was a Belarus, which sure sounded Russian to me. Some stickers and name plates on the tractor stated the tractor was built at a factory in Minsk, the capital city for Belarus. Belarus is an eastern European country once part of the old Soviet Union. Turns out the tractor is owned by Urban Kultgen and his son Dan. Between the two of them they own three of the Russian-built tractors.

I started asking locals about other tractors in the immediate area that are no longer available or of foreign origin. In the process of learning about scarce tractor brands in the area, I found out most tractor manufacturers have a checkered history of mergers, rebirths, takeovers, failures, reorganizations and that new brands, especially foreign made, are still making their debut on American farms and ranches. Here's part of what I learned about some 'uncommon' tractors around Whitlash.

Belarus: tractors produced as part of Minsk Tractor Works (MTZ)

Like several European tractor companies, the Minsk Tractor Works (MTZ) began shortly after World War II as manufacturing moved from the war effort to consumer goods. Russia's large communal farms relied mostly on 1930's-era tractors and farm equipment, much of which was worn out. Many models of Belarus tractors were built, some at plants outside Minsk, but they all carried the Belarus name. Since it's start Belarus has produced three million tractors, supposedly more than any other manufacturer.

Belarus tractors were popular in the U.S. roughly 1990 to 2000. The tractor's biggest draw was price. As one Blaine County farmer noted, "A Belarus was significantly cheaper to buy than a comparable major American brand." Most were used for utility work around ranches and farms as opposed to major field work. The tractors were said to be easy to repair but not particularly sophisticated in how they were built and suffered from lack of quality materials in their early years.

An employee for a former Belarus dealer said, "Belarus had some financial issues. When they got that fixed and came back their pricing wasn't as competitive as before." A representative for the Milwaukee-based company that used to "prepare Belarus tractors for the American Market" said, "You can no longer buy a new Belarus tractor in the U.S. because their engines don't meet emission standards." The last year new tractors were sold in the U.S. was 2001 or 2002.

There's still a small market in used Belarus tractors. Urban Kultgen said he came across one of the Model 925's (built 1991-1996) he owns on the lot of a tractor dealer in Alberta about 15 years ago. The tractor was taken on trade in from a farmer in Chester, Montana. Son Dan bought his 9345 (built 1996-1999) online from a farmer in Iowa. Some former dealers still carry Belarus parts and some parts are available online. Availability of repair service varies by region.

Valtra: originated in Finland, took over Volvo BM's tractor operations, now part of AGCO

Originally a state owned manufacturer, Valtra's manufacturing first started in a rifle factory after World War II. The first tractors were built in 1951 and are now sold in 75 countries. It's the most popular tractor in the Nordic region, engineered to be used both in farming and the timber industry. New Valtra tractors were sold in the U.S. until about 10 years ago per a spokesperson on the AGCO help-line. The company rep said, "Certain AGCO dealers will get parts and service the tractors." Tilleman Equipment's Ag Division in Havre will service Valtras and get parts.

A couple of miles south of Whitlash, up against the side of East Butte, Chance and Jessie Thompson have a cattle operation. Chance showed a 2002 Model 6800 Valtra he bought used about 10 years ago from Tilleman Equipment. He said the tractor had about 300 hours on it and he's used it "pretty hard, including pulling a baler with it."

Chance was attracted to the tractor because "it was engineered really heavy and the price made sense. For me it's been pretty much 'bullet-proof' except the fuel tank up inside the frame (for forestry work) broke. I was able to repair it myself." He's aware of one other smaller model in use in the Sweet Grass Hills. He added, "There's not a good resale market for a used Valtra. I'll just keep using this one until it quits." The AGCO rep was not aware of any immediate plans to market the Valtra brand again in the U.S.

Steiger: an early American producer of four-wheel drive tractors

Minnesota farmers Douglas and Maurice Steiger needed a reliable four-wheel drive tractor so they built one. Then built another one for a neighbor in 1958 and eventually moved from their farm shop to a production plant in Fargo, North Dakota. Over the years they also built large tractors for other major brands including Ford and Allis-Chalmers. In 1986 Case IH acquired Steiger.

This Steiger Bearcat Series I tractor was built in 1970. Two brothers, who needed a reliable four-wheel farm tractor, first built a Steiger on their Minnesota farm in the 1950's. The tractors were easily identifiable by their neon chartreuse color. In 1986 Case IH bought Steiger and changed the color to red. Urban Kultgen, posing by the tractor, and his brother-in-law used the tractor until about 1980.

1986 was the year the easily recognizable "neon chartreuse" paint on the Steiger tractors was retired. The Steiger brothers chose the color to distinguish they tractors from other manufacturers'. Larry Sasaki, with Torgerson's in Havre, said, "The large, four-wheel track drive Case IH tractors on our lot are still made at the original Steiger plant in Fargo." He recalls when the Steiger name appeared with Case IH on some big tractors but was not sure when the Steiger name was finally dropped.

Parked next to a stack of round bales on a promontory about a half mile east of Whitlash there is a Steiger Series I Bearcat, built in 1970 and owned by Urban Kultgen. He explained, "My brother-in-law and I bought the tractor used. We farmed together for five years until about 1980 and I ended up with the tractor. It's been sitting here for about 15 years. My plan was to get it running again and sell it at some point." Looking at used tractor websites on the internet there appears to be a sizeable number of used Steigers still available.

The rest of the tractors around Whitlash are not so uncommon, but don't be surprised if in a few years you see more Mahindras, Yanmars, Zetors, Claas, Fendts and JCBs. To paraphrase Bob Dylan, "The tractors they are a-changin'."

 
 

Powered by ROAR Online Publication Software from Lions Light Corporation
© Copyright 2024