It's a Snap

I know what you’re thinking and the answer is yes, this bizarre looking contraption really is the great grand daddy of that Snapper Zero Turn you ride around your yard all summer.

A visit to the home page of snapper.com boasts that snapper was the builder of the industry’s first self propelled rotary lawn mower in 1951 but provides little else in the way of history for their product. One would hope that a Corporation as big as Briggs and Stratton could afford to provide a little more but in this era of bean counter business administration I guess that’s asking too much. From this point on the picture only gets murkyer.

Wikipedia offers the most complete story I’ve found on the Snapper mowers but contradictions crop up here and there. The mower was manufactured in McDonough, Ga. located about forty miles south of Atlanta under the brand name Snappin Turtle in the early 1950’s. William Raymond Smith, a lifelong resident of McDonough bought the McDonough Power Company in the 1940’s and shifted production from products for the lumber industry to manufacturing lawn mowers for the rapidly growing suburban market. The Wikipedia account credits W. R. Smith with patenting the mowing blade used in the mower, but one of the sources, an article that appeared in the New York Times on July 21, 2003 states that he acquired the patent from two Florida residents, Neal and Alex Smith who shared his name but were not relatives.

Surf on over to the Nostalgia Ranch ( www.nostalgiaranch.com ) to check out an ad for Snappin Turtle Week, April 7 to 14, 1956 “The Premiere of America’s finest mower”.  Here another question arises, are these well dressed turtles telling us that production began in 1956 rather than 1951?  Whatever the case it’s an interesting period advertisement. Among the tidbits of information it offers: four models were produced, 19” and 25” with 2 to 6 hp engines, “Just guide, it glides”, “No wheels, follows contours, can’t scalp”, “Self propelled to climb banks”, “Fingertip control and power reverse”, “ Pulls sulky and other implements”. On that last note, while you’re visiting the ranch be sure to watch the video of a Snappin Turtle pulling the operator on one of those sulkies. It’s a surprisingly agile rig.

William R. Smith served as President and CEO of the company from the late 1940’s until 1979. In 2002 Snapper was acquired by Simplicity Manufacturing which brings us to one last resource you might want to check out:  https://www.fastcompany.com/54763/man-who-said-no-walmart  an interesting account of how and why the CEO of Simplicity turned down distribution of Snapper products by WalMart. It’s an entertaining read. As things turned out he could have saved himself the trouble. In 2004 Simplicity was acquired by Briggs and Stratton. If you visit the Snapper web site today you’ll find WalMart listed prominently among the retailers. Moral of story: You can say no to WalMart but that doesn’t mean WalMart will take no for an answer.

Special thanks to Kirk Kahler for bringing his Snappin Turtle to the C.A.P.A. 2016 Expo.

Sears and Roebuck Economy Tractors

John Baum is a man on a mission. Actually it has two parts; 1 acquire the world’s largest collection of Sears and Roebuck Economy tractors and 2 spread the good word about this little known brand far and wide. John began collecting Economy Tractors in 1976 and as of 2016 he owns sixteen of them. Sears contracted with the Peru Wheel Company of Peru Illinois to manufacture an affordable tractor in 1937 and tractors were produced for only two years, 1938 to 1939. Peru Wheel made the frame and most of the cast components and used rebuilt Ford Model A engines and transmissions for the drive train. Most sources place the total production run at about 500 tractors. John estimates that perhaps 100 of these have survived so at 16% of the supply he’s well on the way to realizing the first of his goals.

John retired from farming in 2000 and has devoted his leisure time to his second mission ever since. I caught up with him at the Western North Carolina Fall Harvest Days Antique Engine & Tractor Show near Asheville, NC. in 2016. It’s about a fourteen hour drive from his home in Appleton, Wisconsin but according to John it’s one of the more leisurely trips he takes.  He estimates that he logs about 25,000 miles per year on the road to shows, with destinations like Ft. Meade, Florida and Yuma, Arizona. He even attends a show in Alaska and that’s pulling a trailer loaded with tractors. I call that dedication to your hobby.

Information about these tractors is almost as hard to find as the tractors themselves so it’s hard to say why Sears only offered them for two years. Some sources cite design issues like problems with the over the hood steering mechanism on the 1938 model. Others say the gathering storm of a world war caused manufacturers to shift production away from products like farm tractors. It is interesting to note that during this same period the Sears catalog also offered a Graham - Bradley tractor built by the Graham - Paige Motor Company that may have been more appealing to prospective tractor buyers.  Whatever the reason, production ended with the 1939 model.

Ad copy produced by Sears ( not surprisingly ) was effusive with praise for the Economy brand. “The performance of Sears Economy Tractors during the past season has brought enthusiastic response from farmer owners in every section of the country. They like the Economy’s ease of handling - its surplus power - its economical operation. And they smile over the small amount it cost them: less than $500 for a sturdy, powerful, good looking two plow tractor!”

“Powered by a dependable Ford Model A motor and transmission completely rebuilt to Sears exacting specifications, carries regular 90 day guarantee, backed by Sears.”

“ Shipped from a factory near Sterling, ILL. from where you pay freight.”  You could be the proud owner of all the above for $495 cash. The tractor shipped with steel wheels as standard equipment, pneumatic tires were an option as were fenders.

J.B. hasn’t snapped up all the remaining examples yet. This nicely restored ‘39 was on display at the Foothills Antique Power Association of NC Power Show in 2015. At the time it was owned by Floyd Sigmon. Presumably, it still is.

Without doubt the best way to learn more about this obscure brand of tractors will be to visit Gibsonburg, Ohio on Labor Day Weekend 2017. The Sandusky County Restorers of Antique Power will host the 12th annual gathering of Graham Bradley and Sears sold farm tractors at the White Star Park in Gibsonburg on September 1st through the 4th. For more information about this event visit: www.s-c-r-a-p-inc.org .  You can bet that John will be there.

Resources:

www.farmcollector.com  : Sear’s Mail Order Tractor, the 1930’s Economy Tractor by James N. Boblenz.

https://books.google.com  :  Standard Catalog of Farm Tractors by C.H. Wendel.  

www.ironmemories.com

www.tractordata.com

J.I. Case 30 HP Portable Steam Engine

A new steam engine made an appearance at the Dacusville Farm Show this year. Fired up and powering a sawmill was this 30 hp J.I. Case portable.

The brass data plate attached to this engine doesn’t give you a lot of information, just the horsepower and the engine number.

The owner told me he believes it was built between 1915 and 1920. A register of Case engines posted at www.steel-wheels.net list engine number 23033 and  number 23052 as being built in 1910 but does not include this engine’s number. A list of serial numbers posted at www.jicasecollector.com has 1910 production running from 22870 to 24277 . Based on those two sources I think 1910 is probably about right.

I haven’t found a 1910 Case catalog online but there is a 1916 catalog posted at https://archive.org . Portable engines were available in sizes ranging from 18 up to 80 horsepower. Judging by the catalog illustrations available, the design of the Case engine did not change very much from year to year.

All sizes except for the 18 and 30hp models were available with straw burning attachments and jacketed boilers for an extra $50. With this engine your choice of fuel was limited to wood or coal. If you were operating a sawmill like this one, that wasn’t an issue.

This photo gives a good look at the side mounted engine with the water heater below it. The Case catalog included testimonials from owners like: “ It’s an easy steamer.” and explained that the heater used exhaust steam from the engine to heat makeup water before it entered the boiler to increase efficiency.

Case portable engines were offered at prices ranging from $600 for an eighteen hp to $1300 for an eighty hp model..

Rumely Oil Pull Type M 20-35

Meinrad Rumely was dead, there was no doubt about it. Even the board of directors said so. His grandson, the good Doctor Edward A. Rumely had returned from Germany where he had been studying medicine to head up the company. He had met Rudolf Diesel while he was there and was  impressed by the potential of his engine. On this side of the pond John Secor had also been developing an engine that could burn cheap fuels and in 1908 Dr. Rumely recruited his services. Assisted by the Rumely factory superintendent, William Higgins, he designed the first Oil Pull tractor in 1909. By the end of 1910 more than a hundred had been manufactured.

Early production models like the Type B 25-45 Oil Pull were large, heavy and expensive but they were well received and Rumely sold a lot of them. As it turned out Rumely sold too many of them ( most on credit sales ) and a crop failure in 1914 sent the company into bankruptcy when farmers defaulted on their loans. The company was soon reorganized but without the Rumely family who were left holding a lot of worthless paper. Maybe Ed Rumely should have studied business administration instead of medicine.

In the day of sod busting on the the prairies the big tractors were king, but by the 1920’s the market was shifting toward smaller, lighter and less expensive equipment. Rumely had produced a light tractor as early as 1916 when it introduced the 8-16 All Purpose which was followed in 1919 by a 12-20 Oil Pull. The type M 20-35 Oil Pull ( the subject of this post ) was introduced in 1924 and remained in production until 1927.

Early in 1925 Rumely packed up serial number 79 of the M 20-35 and shipped it off to the University of Nebraska at Lincoln where it was tested between March 29 to April 15 in Tractor Test # 111. You can view and download a complete copy of the test report by visiting http:// digitalcommons.unl.edu/tractormuseumlit/ .

Specifications listed on the report gave the model M a horizontal 2 cylinder valve in head engine with a bore of 6 13/16” and stroke of 8 ¼” . Turning at 640 rpm it produced 35.39 brake hp and 21.13 hp at the drawbar while consuming 3.586 gal. of kerosene per hour. Forward speeds were recorded as 2 mph in first, 2.5 mph in second and 3 mph in third.

Sources: Nebraska Tractor Test # 111 report, Encyclopedia of American Farm Tractors by C. H. Wendel. And special thanks to the members of the Richland Creek Antique Power Association for providing the photo op.

15th Annual Cumming Steam, Antique Tractor and Gas Engine Show

November is a busy month for shows in the Southeast Upstate Region. One last chance before the holidays and the onslaught of Winter shut things down for the year. With that in mind I packed up my gear and headed down I-85 toward Georgia.

The town of Cumming, Ga. has a small  population itself but the entire area is rapidly being engulfed by the Atlanta Metro sprawl. This becomes abundantly clear when you turn off 85 onto Ga.-20 and start the slow crawl past the miles of strip malls through Buford, Ga. I hadn’t anticipated running into bumper to bumper traffic 40 some miles from Atlanta on a Saturday morning.  About fifteen miles down the road you arrive at the fairgrounds on Castleberry Road, the venue for the show.

The Cumming Antique Power Association was founded in 2002 with the mission to: “Promote and preserve any and all antique power equipment”. 2016 marked the 15th year they have held their Steam, Antique Tractor and Gas Engine Expo. If you are a steam engine enthusiast, this is a must see event because they have one of the largest collections you are likely to find in this region.

According to the town’s website ( www.cityofcumming.net  ) the Forsyth County Steam Association has also been holding a steam engine 4th of July parade through the town square since 1957. If you’re looking for a change of pace from the usual firecrackers and bottle rockets next summer, check it out.

There was the usual contingent of tractors.

Plus some things you don’t see everyday.

Barry Mundy brought his gently modified ‘52 Allis-C.

Some things you could buy. This Farmall A will work for restoration.

And a whole bunch of other interesting exhibits  that we’ll take a look at in future posts.

With the sun setting on the 2016 show season it was time to load up the trailers and head for home. Like a bear or a groundhog larded up for the Winter the Mule had a camera full of good stuff to make it through the bleak cold months ahead.

Visit: http://www.capa-ga.com for more information about the Cumming Antique Power Association and next year’s show.