After loading the wagon, I looked forward to the ten minute ride out of the woods in first gear with the heavy load, and a hot cup of coffee.

 

....then I buried it.

 

I unloaded half of the wagon, but I was sunk too deep and the right rear tire was spinning on a submerged pine tree root. I finished unloading the wagon and was able to pull the empty wagon out. I backed up to the pile now at the waters edge and loaded the wagon back up. I made it about 30 feet, got hung up on another root, and I wasn't going anywhere. I shifted the wood around to take off some of the tongue weight and unhitched the wagon. I got the Gibson up out of the nice ruts I dug and parked it off to the side. I walked back to the house to get the Economy tractor, leaving the Gibson there in case I needed to use two tractors to get the loaded wagon back home. I removed the plow from the Economy tractor and headed for the swamp. I was pretty amazed that the Economy tractor pulled that wagon out of the mud and ruts with no problem at all. I hauled the heavy load home, went back and got the Gibson, and finally sat down for a cup of coffee with wet feet. I still had fun!

 

At least you had coffee & still had fun. Looking at the pair together they look pretty similar. Why do you think one did better than the other.

I haven't been able to get back into the woods for awhile because of so much rain. We haven't had any in three days with a few more dry days ahead. I may head out like you towards the end of the week. The woods are calling me.

 

Nice to have a couple of old bulls in the pen, eh Jim

 

It's great to get out in the woods, Sawdust. Most of the ground is solid in these woods even when wet, but this area that I have to travel through is a bit sketchy. I made it through yesterday, but with a lighter load. I knew it would be a gamble with this heavy load of oak and I almost made it. The tires are what made the difference in this case. If I had the same tires in 8.3-24 on the Gibson, it would have made it. The old Good Years are just too narrow and worn for the mud, but work fine in the woods on solid ground. This was the first problem I ran into all winter and I've hauled out quite a few loads. I keep the snow plow on the Economy tractor for the driveway all winter so it's always ready for the snow. We may be getting snow on Wednesday, so I better get the plow back on in the morning. These old bulls are great to have in the pen, Hank. I can see how they were popular back in the day and both have been holding up really well. I'm restoring a late model A Gibson that I picked up two years ago, and I'm about ready to assemble the engine and transmission now. It took some time to gather the parts, since many of the parts aren't made anymore. A piece here, a part there, you know how it goes. I'll be getting back out to cut more wood after the storm, but I'll be clearing a trail around that swamp on higher ground.

 

Actually, seeing that old Gibson mired in the mud made me smile, she is doing what she was built to do. Work. Mud, snow and sun. But a temporary set back that made that coffee taste all the better!!

 

The coffee hit the spot when I finally made it back to the house. It is good to put these old tractors back to work and they are easy to maintain. This Gibson sat in a shed for a long time as a parts tractor, but luckily only the seat, seat spring, air cleaner, and the rear outer rims and tires were missing. I hate to see these old tractors wasting away, and getting them back to working condition usually isn't all that difficult. I often wonder about who originally bought this tractor new, but there's no way to track it's history.

 

Most of those machines back in the day would have been the absolute pride and joy of the family that first bought it. Can you imagine the $ they had to lay down in those times, a time when disposable income was a fraction of what we have today. No credit cards, no personal lines of credit. It would have been saved for, for years and paid in cash.

I remember as a child, Dad digging the large garden we had by hand, then finally buying a used DB walk behind. It was a time of pride for him for sure. These were the times when these conveniences we have today did not exist, and $50 was A LOT OF MONEY!.

Oh what these machines could tell us of times past and their owners.

 

Yes, things are much different these days. I can imagine how your father felt making the first pass in the garden with the DB. I don't know what the original price of a Gibson model D was back in '47, but when Western American Industries was selling the model D in '57, the price was 760.00, and that had to be small fortune. If these tractors were built and sold today, they would be pretty expensive. Most people want 4wd compact tractors, but I like using the old machines. I'm able to get done what I need to do with them and I hauled another load of wood out with the Economy tractor today. I cut some dead falls out of the way so that I could avoid that swamp.

 

That's a pretty big load....the Economy tractor sure can pull the load!

 

That is cool seeing these old tractors out there working! It would be great if somehow the history behind old machines like this could be shared with the current owner/operators. Thanks for taking us with you on that ride!

DAC

 

After using this Economy tractor for over a year now, I wouldn't be without one. They do haul quite a bit and can really push snow. I haven't had to fix anything on it yet, but I just have to finish painting a few things on it and install the headlights. I'll probably put the hydraulic lift on it too.

 

Good looking set of boots on the Economy & wheel weights. My hats off to you Jim for keeping these old irons up & working. Following your projects over the years has been a joy & educational

 

You're welcome Jim, I really like repairing these old machines as well as using them around the place. I've learned a lot about these old tractors and I think sharing the info on the forum just makes sense. I've learned a lot from others posts, be it garden tractors or something totally unrelated. You mentioned "over the years" and it's only felt like months. I can' believe how time flies, and I still have projects sitting that I started from when I first joined here. I get a part here and there for each of them and should really get to wrapping some of them up.
Those wheels on the back of the Economy came from a Case 442 or 444 garden tractor. I cut the centers out, flipped them around, and welded them back in place where they would work on the Economy. The 9.5-16 Carlisle tires are excellent for traction in the woods. I have to finish painting that tractor when the weather breaks. This is the Gibson I'm working on now. I'm rebuilding the engine and transmission, then I'll disassemble the chassis and prep it for paint when spring comes. I'll start a thread on this one as I get deeper into it. I want to have it finished for a show this summer.

 

Classic, your Gibson story reminds me of my first mowing in a wet area last spring, with my 4 wheel drive JD 770. I had negotiated that area in previous years in the spring when wet, so I really didn't hesitate to venture through last year. HA, the tractor bogged down and I got hung up on the (fully raised) belly mower. Four wheel drive was useless in this case. As I was deciding how to get out of that predicament, the Amish boy working in the field up the road was heading home for lunch with his 5 horse team. He saw me and stopped to lend a hand. I said your team of 5 workhorses should have no problem pulling me out. He then unhooked "Big Jerry" from the team and said he could do it by himself. Jerry is huge. I looked up to his shoulders. We then hooked up and the boy said something to Jerry who lunged forward and pulled me out with no problem. Jerry saved my day. What a horse! Moral of the story, modern 4 wheel drive tractors are as good as conditions allow. Old fashioned horse power trumped JD that day. I'm sure the Amish boy enjoyed some good lunch conversation as to how Jerry saved the Englishman.

 

That's a great story Rob. One horse to pull out 6.2, heh! Mud can sure make for an interesting situation. I don't think most people today know the power that big horse like that has. I watched some videos of the Amish working these horses a while back and it's impressive. Thanks for sharing the story, it's one to remember.