Contents.History United States In 1953 a team led by Hermann Klemm started developing a new model for, known as the TO35, to replace the. Klemm wrote to in July that year to tell him about the features of the TO35. Ferguson was unhappy with the project, and ordered Klemm to stop work. However, after another letter from Klemm, running to 23 pages, Ferguson changed his mind and allowed development to continue.
Although Ferguson had merged with Massey-Harris to form Massey Ferguson in 1953, the TO35 was marketed under the Ferguson name. The new Ferguson 35 was launched in the United States on 5 January 1955, a year earlier than planned, following a decision made at a conference in in March 1954.It was initially available in two models; standard or deluxe, with a third (utility) added in 1956. Despite not being designed for industrial use, it became popular amongst industry users. The colour scheme was changed from all-grey to a beige shell and wheels and a grey body in May 1956. In December 1957 the scheme changed again when the TO35 was rebranded in the standard Massey Ferguson red and grey. However, the wording on the tractor continued to be 'Ferguson' until February 1960.Production ended in late 1964.
United Kingdom In the United Kingdom, the MF35 was launched on 1 October 1956 at the in, and was originally marketed as the Ferguson 35 (FE35). Built at Massey Ferguson's factory in, the first FE35 (serial number 1001) had been produced on 27 August that year.The FE35 was a successor to the, which ceased production in the same year. Whilst the TE20 had been an all-grey tractor (earning it the nickname Little Grey Fergie), the FE35 had a grey shell and wheels, but a bronze finish for the body, leading to it becoming known as the 'Gold Belly'. Three types were built; agricultural, industrial and vineyard, although only a small number of the latter were produced.
Jul 07, 2016 Could someone point me to a reference for massey ferguson 35 serial numbers. I am trying to determine model year and Prefix definition for SGM182767 massey ferguson 35 serial numbers - MyTractorForum.com - The Friendliest Tractor Forum and Best Place for Tractor Information. My serial number for massey ferguson 35, is. Canyou tell me the tractors history. I have a Massey Ferguson tractor serial number 9A89879 I would like to know what model it is and what year it is. I cant give you an exact date but it is from the early 70s. That is when they were yellow.
The industrial model was designed for compliance with the, including a driving mirror and a high-frequency horn.In 1957, after 73,655 units had been produced, the tractor was rebadged as the MF35, and the colour scheme was changed to red and grey. In 1959 Massey Ferguson purchased, and began using a new diesel Perkins engine in the MF35. De Luxe models had a dual clutch, allowing the user to disengage the rear wheels while keeping the power take-off and hydraulic pump engaged.On 8 November 1962 the company launched the MF35X, which had an increased power output and the additional 'multi-power' system, which allowed the driver to shift up or down a gear ratio without using the clutch. Although production in England reached over 45,000 units the following year, it ceased in 1964, when it was succeeded by the. Over its eight-year production run, 388,382 units were produced. Many are still used today on small farms.The factory continued to supply kits to foreign manufacturers until 24 December 2002. By the time production ceased, 3,307,996 tractor or kits had been built at the factory.
According to Michael Thorne, 'it is not an exaggeration to say that there is no other tractor design in history that has contributed more to the feeding of the world.' Other countries in India bought a licence to build MF35s in 1960 and continued manufacturing them until 2002. Yugoslavian firm also bought a licence to build Massey Ferguson tractors, marketing the MF35 as the IMT539.
In 2014 variants of the MF35 were still being built in India, Pakistan and Turkey. In 2015 Agco, owners of the Massey Ferguson brand, relaunched the MF35 in the East African market as the 'People's tractor'. References.
Massey-Harris Becomes Massey-Ferguson during the 1950sMassey-Harris Becomes Massey-FergusonIn this time period, the Canadian manufacturer Massey-Harris became Massey-Ferguson, expanded their international operations and laying claim to the title of largest worldwide agricultural manufacturer. In the post-World War II boom, Massey-Harris had moved ahead of Oliver, Cockshutt, Case and Minneapolis-Moline in ag equipment sales. But it was still selling only half of the tractors that John Deere was, and Deere was only number two behind International Harvester.
Massey-Harris would claim industry leadership through a series of mergers during the 50s and 60s.In 1950, Massey's strength was in it. Its weakness was its tractor line. The tractors had a reputation for being built well, but they lagged behind competitors in power and features. Massey-Harris needed an advantage, and they found one by taking on the cantankerous Harry Ferguson as a partner.In the previous decades, Harry Ferguson and Henry Ford had partnered to produce Ferguson had developed his three-point hitch mechanism in 1926 as a way of preventing a tractor from rearing up when the plow it was pulling hit a rock or hard patch of ground. A linkage between the plow and a high point of the tractor would transfer force from the plow to keep the front end of the tractor down.By 1946, the handshake agreement between Ford and Ferguson came to an end, and Ferguson began producing his own tractors in England and later the U.S.
Both the British Ferguson and Canadian Massey-Harris firms were chasing their competitors, and the two firms had talked over the years about various possible joint ventures. Finally, in 1953, Massey offered to buy out Ferguson's company. Ferguson accepted.The merged company became Massey-Harris-Ferguson and, in one fell swoop, became the number two manufacturer in the world behind IH and ahead of Deere. All of the new tractors offered the three-point hitch and that was a major selling point.But the merger also caused problems for a few years.
The merger had put Harry Ferguson on the new board of directors and the company agreed to continue to market separate lines of tractors one under the Ferguson brand and the other under the Massey-Harris brand. There was even an entirely separate dealer network for the two brands.That produced confusion in both the dealers and worse the customers. It also produced conflict over future designs. Harry Ferguson was a proud and headstrong man, and in just under a year, he left the board in a dispute over the design of the Massey-Harris Model '50.' The 'Two-Line Policy' continued until a new CEO, Col. Eric Phillips, brought in management consultants in 1958. They were appalled by the confusion the policy created, and the policy ended in 1958.
The company name was shortened to Massey-Ferguson, and it began to exploit its historic emphasis on global manufacturing and marketing. They standardized their offerings, so that the same tractors were sold in Canada, the U.S. And Europe as well as around the world.By the mid-60s, Massey-Ferguson claimed to be the largest farm equipment of tractors in the world.Because of the merger and 'Two-Line' product offerings, it's difficult to chart the tractors themselves. There were overlapping models offering the same horsepower and features from the same company.
But we can outline the major series of tractors during this period. Post-war Massey-Harris '22,' '30,' '33,' '44' and '55.' To take advantage of the post-war farming boom, Massey brought out a new line that, for the first time, featured engines that they built themselves (as opposed to buying from other manufacturers).
This line was introduced in 1946 and continued until around 1955. This was also the first line of Massey tractors that featured their red color styling. The '22' was rated at as you might expect 22 horsepower on the drawbar. The '30' produced 26 HP, and was built until '52 when it was replaced with the '33' with 35 HP.
The '44' was tested at 39 HP, and was upgraded to the '44 Special' from '53 to '55 with 43 HP. The '55' produced between 52-57 HP depending on the type of fuel. Between 1948 and '58, Massey also produced the '744' and '745' in Great Britain, both with around 46 HP. The Massey-Harris Pony. In 1947, the company brought out the Model '11' Pony tractor that was rated at 10 HP on the drawbar. Designed for small operations and truck farms, the Pony was produced for 10 years.
Ferguson 'TE-20' and 'TO-30.' When he was on his in the early '50s, Harry Ferguson essentially reproduced the Ford-Ferguson model in his English factory and called it the 'Ferguson TE-20.'
The designation stood for 'Tractor, England - 20 Horsepower.' In 1948, he wanted to sell the tractor to America, so he bought a plant in Detroit and renamed the new tractors 'TO-20,' for 'Tractor, Overseas.' In 1951, he upgraded the power (to 30 HP) and came out with the 'TO-30.' .
Two Line Policy Tractors. Between '53 and '58, there was a plethora of models. In the 30 HP class, there was the 'Ferguson TO-35' and the 'Massey-Harris 50' which became the 'Massey-Ferguson 50' when the company dropped 'Harris' from the corporate name. There was also what might be called the triple numeral series. The 'Massey-Harris 333' had 33 HP and was produced from '53 to '57. The 'MH 444' was rated at 44 HP, and the 'MH 555' produced 52 HP.
The First Massey-Ferguson Line. In late 1957, Massey introduced the 'Massey-Ferguson 65' rated at 38 HP. The 'MF 85' had a gasoline engine and 'MF 88' had a diesel engine. Both were both rated at around 55 HP on the drawbar. Oddly, the company also chose to market the 'MF 95' with around 55 HP and based on a Minneapolis-Moline tractor called the GBD. The 'MF 98' topped out the horsepower lineup at 73 HP and was based on the Oliver Super 99 GM tractor.
The Sixties Begin. In 1960, the 'Massey-Ferguson 35' replaced the 'TO-35' at the same 30 HP rating. A year later, the 'MF 65 Mark II' got a power boost to 51 HP.
The 'MF Super 90' shot up to 70 HP, and the 'MF 97' topped the line at 90 HP. Finally, in 1963, the 'MF 25' was introduced to the small tractor market with 20 HP. The DX 100 Series. Faced with competition and consolidation in the industry, Massey-Ferguson designed a whole new line that it introduced in 1965. White Corporation had acquired both Oliver and Minneapolis-Moline and would no longer supply tractors for Massey to repaint and sell as their own. The new lineup was anchored by the 'MF 130' at 20 HP, followed by the 'MF 135' at 30 HP, the 'MF 150' at 33 HP, the 'MF 165' at 45 HP, and the 'MF 175' and 'MF 180' both with around 55 HP. The '180' had a higher clearance and was designated a row crop tractor.
The DX 1000 series. Massey-Ferguson entered the high power sweepstakes with the 1000 series. In 1967, the brought out the 'MF 1100' that boasted between 85 and 90 HP from its six-cylinder Perkins diesel engine. A turbo-charged version, known as the 'MF 1130' produced 109 HP on the drawbar. A year later, a four-cylinder version came out and produced 80 HP.Written by Bill Ganzel, the. First published in 2007. A partial bibliography of sources is.