Farmall M
The Farmall M, produced by International Harvester under the Farmall brand from 1939 to 1953, is a row crop tractor. Styled by Raymond Loewy,[1], the M was the largest of International Harvester's row crop tractors during its original production. It was the larger of the two prominent row crop tractors produced by IH from the late 1930s to the early 1950s, along with the Farmall H and its variants.[2]
Production
The M was one of the most-widely produced of International Harvester's "letter series", with 270,140 produced over the 13-year run. The M is equipped with a four-cylinder engine with a 248-cubic-inch (4,060-cubic-centimetre) displacement and a six-volt electrical system. The transmission contains six total gears: five forward and one reverse.[2] The standard M's purchase price in 1952 was US$2,400 (equivalent to $23,107 in 2019).[3]
Beginning in 1941, the M's production coincided with the Farmall MD, a diesel version of the M that would start on gasoline until warmed up sufficiently to switch to diesel. A total of 18,253 MD tractors were produced. In addition, IH produced the Farmall Super M from 1952 to 1954. The Super M featured a larger engine displacement than the standard M, at 264 cu in (4,330 cc). Variations of the Super M, the Super MD (a diesel version of the Super M) and the Super MTA (with a torque amplifier), were produced. In all, IH produced 44,551 Super M tractors, 5,199 Super MD tractors and 26,924 Super MTA tractors.[2] High-clearance variants for farming vegetables and other high crops were also produced, including the Farmall MV and the MDV (diesel).[3]
In the United States, the M was produced in Rock Island, Illinois. Farmall M tractors produced in Britain and Australia were designated the BM and the AM, respectively. The British model was produced from 1948 to 1953 in Doncaster, and the Australian model from 1949 to 1954 in Geelong.[3]
Farmall M variants
- MD (diesel)
- MDV (diesel, high crop)
- MV (high crop)
- Super M
- Super M-TA (torque amplifier)
- Super MD (diesel)
- Super MDV (diesel, high crop)
- Super MD-TA (diesel, torque amplifier)
- Super MDV-TA (diesel, high crop, torque amplifier)
- Super MV (high crop)
- Super MV-TA (high crop, torque amplifier)
- BM (British, with above designations as necessary)
- AM (Australian, with above designations as necessary)
References
- "The Four-Letter Code to Selling Just About Anything". Pocket. Retrieved 9 Mar 2020.
- "Farmall Letter Series". SUNY Fredonia. Archived from the original on 26 November 2015. Retrieved 15 November 2015.
- "Farmall M". TractorData.com. Retrieved 15 November 2015.
External links
- Farmall M Gasoline at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln's Nebraska Tractor Tests archive
- Farmall Super M at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln's Nebraska Tractor Tests archive
- 1930s Farmall M sales film on YouTube