Priceless - Plowing with a Popping Johnny

txdon · Dec 27, 2004

I saw a post about a poppin john by HewHaw in the Vintage Tractor section and thought "hey Dad has one of those". But then I realized I knew nothing about it.

Dad bought the tractor from my bride's grandpa the year we got married. So for the past 30 years he has used the JD as his garden tractor and for mowing. I did mow with it about ten years ago but when the shear pin broke that was it for the day (about 30 minutes of seat time).

So for Christmas I told my Dad show me how to plow with the John Deere, and we did! See attachment.

Does anyone know what year this John Deere model BN is?
The SN# is B240505.
Thanks!

Robert_in_NY · Dec 27, 2004

I think it is a 1949 model as JD did not usually start new serial numbers for different configurations. Also, what your dad is using to tear up the ground are cultivators. They are designed to cultivate the ground on both sides of a crop like corn and such. The main reason people used cultivators (if you know this then forgive me as I know some people do not know the different farm implements) is to control the weeds around the crops by disturbing the soil and making it hard for the weeds to root themselves and flourish.

MF1455v · Dec 27, 2004

Looks like your having a lot of fun there Don. I asked a friend who is an old tractor buff and he agrees that it's a 49.

Fifty-five year old tractor and a Texas blue sky. Priceless, oh yea. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

txdon · Dec 27, 2004

Thanks Robert and James. The way my Dad has the cultivator set up is when he lowers the left side and one sweep opens the ground and then when he turns around two right side sweeps close the ground.

I noticed he left the hydraulic cultivators in the up position when he turned off the motor and I questioned him about that and he said that the hydraulics will not leak down like the newer tractors. Wonder Why?

johndeere2210 · Dec 27, 2004

We used to leave our cultivator up so we could pull start the tractor the next morning. Easier to pull with out the anchors in the ground /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

theonlybull · Dec 28, 2004

nice old B, we've got a '52 MT-W, and a '56 420 crawler.
his hydrulics must be in better shape then ours, they settle with the tractor running lol

gotta love the sound of those tractors. not to mention the power.

RonR · Jan 1, 2005

I stumbled onto a JD 420 crawler 20 years ago in North Dakota. It was purchased new and was only used to push snow off the parking lot of a store.

I tried to buy it from the guy, but he didn't want to part with it.

I would have loved to have that unit!

Ron

thcri · Jan 1, 2005

I remember as a kid my uncle had a B and a A. He also had a couple of old D's. A few of them was my grandpa's and they still had the steel wheels on them. A neighbor bought them and I believe the old D's run today yet.

murph