Who are we??????? And where do we come from??????

[Nasty135]

Hi all, I grew up in the suburbs of MD. in a neighborhood with 1/2 acre lots had lots of fun riding bikes through the area got a little older purchased a 125 dirt bike that I could ride across the road in the massive open and wooded area, Moved up to Muscle cars and drag racing, Finally got my own place in a neighborhood about 12 miles from where I grew up.

Met a woman with great big heart and four kids ,instant Daddy ,House is now too small , Found 5acres of raw land for sale built a house needed YES a TRACTOR, The kids loved it(BTW we had twins)all 6 , Though there are plenty of chores to go around everyone loves the space ,although 3 have grown and moved on to their own lives...

I would love to buy more property but The soil composition has changed from good ole earth to Unobtainium.... /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

OH! Also the open wooded area I used to ride my dirtbike is now a shopping center and Retirement Home /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

Now a days I would rather work with my tractor than cruise the Hotrod /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif

 

[wd45]

GeneD14, I take it thet your AC is a model D14? Looks good /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif We just sold our D17 two years ago, too many tractors and not enough room (is that possible). Allis Chalmers sure made a tough tractor. We started driving tractors when we were about 6, Farmall A's and Super A's, we didn't think anything about it. When my father bought our first AC, a WD45, and it was delivered on a truck, we thought that must be the biggest tractor in the world /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif We still have and use the WD and no major repairs - wonder if these new ones will do that? Keep them in a shed and service them regularly and who knows? but I won't live to see
/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

By the way, Allis Chalmers had a plant in Gadsden, Alabama, but I don't know what they built there, just remember seeing the factory.

 

[rpeter]

I was born in a little town in Minnesota. My uncle farmed next us. When I grew up the first thing I wanted to do was move to the “big” city and get that redneck tan off my neck.

Now I am 55 and just purchased 22 acres of land in PA. I am looking forward to owning my first tractor and getting my tan back. I guess it is true… you get wiser when you get older.
/forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

 

[billbill1]

GeneD14, my grandpa had a D14, a WD45, and a WC. I think he bought the D14 new in 1957 or 1958 my brothers and myself cut our teeth on the D14. Grandpa had us guiding it through the hay fields picking up bales as soon as we could steer straight. The hand clutch allowed us to drive and brake without having both feet on the pedals. The D14 pulled two 14" plows and the WD pulled 3. Grandpa always drove the WD45, his big tractor. My father always kept a couple of old JD A's and B's around. And my brother has Dad's Farmall's a 20 and a 30, don't know what happened to the Regular tho.

 

[DFW]

This is great getting to know a little more about your fellow TBN'ers. So I'll jump in as well. Born in NJ by accident, my mom went to visit her sisters for Christmas and they wouldn't let he back on the plane, too pregnant! Spent the early years living in No. Miami before the development boom and everywhere there were sugar cane fields and citrus groves for kids to play in. No exposure to farm equipment though. Fast foward to age 15, doing some forestry work for an uncle in the western part of Virginia. We had two tractors, an old Farmall probably from the 30's with the two narrow wheels in the front and a Le Roi, more of a tug than a tractor, you drove it standing up. My first exposure to tractors came when we had to do some stump clearing in the creek. So myself and another fellow, (two dumb 15 year olds) are going to pull these stumps out of the creek and along the banks with the Farmall and a chain. So, we tie the chain to the back of the tractor and around the stump and haul down the stream. Well one of two things happen when the slack in the chain runs out. Either the stump comes flying out, and you have to try and stay ahead of this missile or the tractor makes an abrupt stop and you find yourself flying over the top of the tractor onto the streams rocks (no seat belts). That was my first exposure to tractors. Fast forward 40 years through college, career, kids and wives to semi-retirement on 39 acres in northern California, where I now have my own tractor and dig stumps the right way!

 

[SKOALMAN]

Reading all of these Posts, I have seen a trend. Some wanting to get away from the "Hard Life" with a lot of that tied to a "Hoe" and "Dairy Cow"! /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

But also noticed that regardless of the Background or where you ar from, it is about a "Way of Life" about getting away to simpler things, space between houses, good neighbors, and raising kids in the right environment! Slowing down to enjoy life! /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

I am thinking that it must be a "Mindset" that we are all after and the tractor, regardles of color, ties us all together! /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[MMM]

I worked 1800ac rowcrop (beans, cotton, corn and winter wheat) on Red River valley from junior year highschool to late 20s while going to college. Grueling work, for small pay. Went to work in oil industry to keep from starving and moved down close to New Orleans, got married, kids etc. I was uncomfortable raising kids there where drugs, partying etc was the norm. Got the chance to get out when major flood wiped us out. I said never again and bought out sibling's inheritence on present 30ac and 1873 home (on 350' hill /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif ). My wife the city girl , has often threatened to go back to "civilization", but kids would have no part of it. They love it here. Cuurently I'm planting 15ac fruit orchard to utilize land and hopefully retire early.

 

[db2]

Great forum you have here. I've learned a lot while lurking in the background. Decided to join as I have some questions for other threads.

My Dad bought an old farmstead in Ontario in the late 60s to use as recreational property. It came with a large barn and an old Massey Harris tractor. We made trails, cut firewood, hunted and fished and generally just had fun in the outdoors. Then we bought a Ford NAA and started to accumulate implements. Brush hogged some rough ground to keep it clear. We didn't farm the open land but our neighbor planted grain and hay. During high school I worked for our neighbor during hay season and always enjoyed the farm work. I now live on the property with my wife. Kids are off at university. Just bought a TC40. A dream come true. Now I have the tractor I need to complete all the projects I have wanted to do all these years. Can hardly wait for the snow to melt.

 

[Dartagnan]

Who am I?

40 years old and still asking myself that very question.

Like most of your responses, my best memories are tied to the outdoors, not really farming though, camping and fishing with the grands, playing in the woods as a kid, showing my kids the wonders of nature and such. Spent the last 30 years in Orlando working for the Post Office (still do, just different one) finally got off the dream couch and bought 14 acres to build vacation rentals on in Jones Cove TN, sold the house moved into the parents for a year to save a few bucks (didn't work very well) then lucked into a transfer to Oak Ridge TN. ( The post office is a golden handcuff job, pay and benefits are just to good to leave, but you can only advance so far and tranfers are almost unheard of) Not close enough to the prop to actually live on it tho So ended up buying another 10 acres on the plataeu. Equipment bug started with the thinking of buying property for the rentals, became a reality when we moved up here. (After the wife helped clear the dead fall and brush from the 300ft tractor road that was going to be our drive with pickup and chainsaw it wasn't too much of a hard sell, now I can't get her off the seat if we are working together)

That's my story....abridged version anyway.


Now just to figure out the important unasked question.....
Where am I going....

ttyl
Dart
Life is too uncertain....Eat dessert first

 

[maxtractor]

Can't help but bore you with my story. My mother and father were both from farm backgrounds. They worked for others until they could scrape together enough money to buy a little 145 acre farm of their own. We moved to our own farm shortly after my first birthday. Dad could never afford to farm full time so he always worked full time and farmed on the side, my mother was a school teacher. Dad sold ag chemicals so his busy time was also the busy time on the farm. I had 3 brothers and we basically ran the farm, while dad supervised. We raised mostly corn and soybeans and kept a few beef cattle. We used small old tractors, Farmall Super M and H and a Massy-Harris 44. for most of those years. We also had a small Case and an Oliver for a while. We thought we hit the big time when dad bought a used 1070 Case with a cab, a couple of years before I left for college. my favorite was the Super M. I drove a tractor for the first time alone at age 5. It was an old Case with a hand clutch which was a good thing since I couldn't reach the pedals. I didn't drive it much that young but I was hooked the first time, I loved to drive the tractor. My favorite thing to do on a tractor was hauling grain to the elevator when I was a few years older. I got to drive through town with a tractor and wagon pretty big stuff when you are 11 or 12. I loved it when one of my school friends who lived in town saw me. I knew I would be hard to make a living farming, so I never really considered it a possible career. (I would love to raise my kids on a farm.) I never liked living in town, so as soon as I could I moved out in the country. I have lived the last 20 + years 5 miles out of town in the middle of 3 acres. Not a lot of land but enough to convince my wife that we needed a small tractor. I had a little Kubota B6100 for about 20 years before I moved up to a B7610. I love having a tractor. Some day we will probably move as my wife is working on a doctorate degree and thinks whe wants to teach at a college. I told her I will go anywhere she wants as long as we can get a place with enough ground to keep my little tractor, unless of course we can get enough land to justify a bigger tractor. By the way my grandfather and a couple of uncles were dairy farmers, I used to help my cousins with their chores when we visited them. I agree with all of the people here who said they hated milking cows. That is one rough way to make a living. I am glad someone does it, but I will get my milk at Krogers. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif