1947 Farmall H

[Rp.wh 1,103]

I am alittle late to this party but for a h not to terribly desirable besides collectors or parade fun or like what you want it for the brush hog, if I where to buy it I would say 1000 for the tractor maybe alittle more bring it looks really well taken care of I paid 1300 for my super m about 15 years ago 

[wh500special 2,188]

We had a 1943 H.  It was a fun tractor. 
 

Yours looks pretty nice.  It has lights, fenders, at least one set of wheel weights, and hydraulics.  I can’t tell if it has the battery box lid on it or not, but that used to be kind of a hard to find Piece.

 

 It’s missing the mouth piece in the grille for the steerable cultivator, but i think reproductions are available.  If I remember correctly, the little pieces of square

tubing mounted on the rear axle casting are the rear mounting points for the cultivator, so that tractor probably had a set of those on it  some time.  
 

How are the back tires?  They are really expensive to replace so that should be a primary consideration.  They look nice in the photo. 

 

I don’t know what they have been selling for, but I’d think less than $2000 for a running and workable tractor would be a good deal.  Especially one that looks nice like that one.  But being as common as fleas on a dog, it probably will have pretty static value over time. 
 

It seems like H Farmalls were typically priced about 75% as much as a Ford 8N of comparable condition. The H will outpull one easily, but the N has a three point that makes it a truly useful tractor.  
 

Couple of points:

 

Fifth gear on these is a road gear.  I want to say it will run about 18 mph. And that is a white knuckle ride.  If you think you might be prone to running it fast be sure to put some time into making sure the steering is tightened up as much as possible.  There is a U-joint on the steering shaft under the removable hood that you might want to replace.  I think the steering gears in the front gearbox can be shimmed too to reduce play, although we never did that on ours.   It’s also smart to freshen up the brakes and get them

adjusted as close as possible on both sides so it doesn’t pull when you need to

slow down quickly. 
 

the hydraulic system on these is  one-way only system (power up, gravity down) and i think it maxes at about 600 psi.  So not really useful for many pieces of auxiliary equipment.  I think it shares the gear oil from the transmission but I don’t remember this well. 

neither the PTO nor the hydraulics are “live” on these. Meaning, when you push the clutch in you also decouple them from

the engine.  This isn’t a big deal if you plan ahead in your mowing or implement lifting, but it does mean that any PTO implement - like that mower - needs to be driven through an overrunning clutch so that the spinning implement doesn’t continue to propel the tractor forward into the fence or your wife’s suburban when you push in the clutch and think you’re gonna stop. 

 

if you decide to drain the gear oil, make sure you look up the capacity before starting.  Again I don’t remember exactly, but i think it holds something like 13 gallons.  You need a big drain pan. 
 

Aftermarket three point hitches are available.  
 

I think that mowers like that were typically sold and used to shred the crop stubble in the field after harvest or mow grasses.   I don’t think they are really meant to take down brush and woody things.  At least that’s been what I’ve seen.  
 

That’s a good looking tractor and it is a nice size for a real tractor.  Not too big where you can’t tow it somewhere with a normal truck and trailer.  But big enough to run with the big boys. 
 

Steve

[wh500special 2,188]

I should add that if the rear tires are filled with liquid ballast that they’ll weigh approximately as much as everything else you already own all added together.  Keep that in mind if you decide to do maintenance on them and when you load it on a trailer. 
 

Steve

[T-Mo-(Moderator) 4,507]

5th  gear is road gear, and it's 15 mph, unless you mess with the governor.  A friend of mine has his dad's H and he set the governor to do about 20.  As Steve mentioned, rear tires are expensive, so be sure the ones on it are in good shape.  And pray that they're not loaded with liquid, a bit corrosion problem on the rims.

[Achto 27,632]

8 hours ago, wh500special said:

Fifth gear on these is a road gear.  I want to say it will run about 18 mph. And that is a white knuckle ride.  If you think you might be prone to running it fast be sure to put some time into making sure the steering is tightened up as much as possible.  There is a U-joint on the steering shaft under the removable hood that you might want to replace.  I think the steering gears in the front gearbox can be shimmed too to reduce play, although we never did that on ours

 

Yes!!! The dreaded death wobble. My Cockshutt 30 has this issue and no way to fix it. At 15MPH my narrow front end will go into a crazy wobble,only way to stop it is to slow down. Driven many a Farmall's with the same problem. Some Farmall's have a set crew & lock nut to adjust the gear mesh on the steering box to solve this issue. (kind of like a GM steering box has) Others need to be tightened up with shims. To help with this issue on my Cockshutt 30, I run 7psi in one tire & 20psi in the other. This causes it to pull one way a little but I don't get the death wobble as bad.

Edited September 24, 2022 by Achto

[Pullstart 62,926]

Thanks everyone for your input!  I’ll take it all into consideration!  
 

8 hours ago, wh500special said:

think that mowers like that were typically sold and used to shred the crop stubble in the field after harvest or mow grasses.

the biggest use would be to maintain a trail system in my grass field.  It’s been dormant from farming for 3 or 4 years now and is starting to grow some trees here and there.  More than anything, I’d like those shooting lanes to stay grass and let the trees grow up more.  Between that, and tugging a load, it sounds like this one could be helpful around the farm.

[wh500special 2,188]

That’s a clever trick, to offset the pressure in the front tires.  I’ll remember that in case I ever have another narrow front. 
 

I believe the wobble is the reason the front tires lean in like they do.  It makes them less prone to search for a line.

 

The Raymond Loewy Farmalls are beautiful machines.  But i think the Cockshutts look good too.  The model 30 was basically the first mass produced tractor to have a live PTO.   Those Canadians 🇨🇦 are innovators what with their live PTO’s and square drive screws!

 

steve

[Achto 27,632]

8 minutes ago, wh500special said:

believe the wobble is the reason the front tires lean in like they do.  It makes them less prone to search for a line.

 

That & having them angled like they are helps to keep them from plugging up with dirt or mud in between.

[squonk 41,171]

Worthington golf course tractor. Over 40 mph! Death Wobble!!!!  

[The Freightliner Guy 1,327]

I get death wobble on my 1979 atc110 on any paved surface my arms have gotten stronger from that

[Pullstart 62,926]

I talked to the owner today.  He is my wife’s coworker’s FIL.  He inherited it from his FIL and it’s been sitting 6-7 years.  New 6v battery and some new gas (mixed I n with the old) and it fired up. It’ll run for a bit, then die out.  They think it’s a carb or fuel issue.  Still smells like varnish in the tank.  They plan to siphon the tank out and start with actual fresh gas.  The carb bowl is clean and the float is working.  The tires are all tubed and the fronts had gone flat sitting all those years but the rears held air.  They have some dry rot cracks, but no splits.  It’s about an hour away.  Looking to sell by winter, hopefully.  Asking $1500 with the brush hog or $1500 without the brush hog.  

 

I have seen this C for sale just up the road for most the summer.  I decided to stop today and look at it.  Another middle aged dude who inherited it and has no use for it.  It has 3 sets of wheel weights, chains and a snow plow.  I don’t much need the plow, I’d like a brush hog.  Asking $2200.  New battery, good tires, new air filter and plugs, fresh oil, etc.  I’ve read that C’s are generally worth more, because they are easier to transport and store for shows and general chores.  

Not really what I’d like in another tractor, but worth chatting with the fella about.  Pictures…. He said the 3 point looking linkages are for a row cultivator set.  He has more brackets for the front but no cultivator.

[wh500special 2,188]

I’m of the opinion that the H is quite a bit more tractor than the C.   Neither is as useful or versatile as a small utility tractor with a 3 pt hitch though. 
 

I think the Super C might have been available with a Fast Hitch and I assume it would retrofit to the C.  It’s possible those rear linkages are part of that system but they don’t look familiar to me.  
 

If you’re unfamiliar with the Fast Hitch, it was IH’s response to the Ferguson 3pt but it was only 2 pt (except on the Cub which got a 1 pt system). By all accounts, the Fast Hitch was a fantastic system and in several ways better than the 3pt, but it was a proprietary system that didn’t catch on. 
 

The C is quite a bit more compact than the H.  It’s the successor to the B, but with larger diameter rear tires on adjustable axles.  Fairly low horsepower machine and might be tough to find a pull type mower in its power range.

 

Cute SOB’s though.  If you check the serial number and find it to be a 1950 be sure to check for white paint under the red…could be an elusive demonstrator model. 
 

Steve

Edited October 1, 2022 by wh500special

[Pullstart 62,926]

16 minutes ago, wh500special said:

I’m of the opinion that the H is quite a bit more tractor than the C.   Neither is as useful or versatile as a small utility tractor with a 3 pt hitch though. 
 

I think the Super C might have been available with a Fast Hitch and I assume it would retrofit to the C.  It’s possible those rear linkages are part of that system but they don’t look familiar to me.  
 

If you’re unfamiliar with the Fast Hitch, it was IH’s response to the Ferguson 3pt but it was only 2 pt (except on the Cub which got a 1 pt system). By all accounts, the Fast Hitch was a fantastic system and in several ways better than the 3pt, but it was a proprietary system that didn’t catch on. 
 

The C is quite a bit more compact than the H.  It’s the successor to the B, but with larger diameter rear tires on adjustable axles.  Fairly low horsepower machine and might be tough to find a pull type mower in its power range.

 

Cut SOB’s though.  If you check the serial number and find it to be a 1950 be sure to check for white paint under the red…could be an elusive demonstrator model. 
 

Steve

The C is advertise as a 1950… the H a ‘47.

 

I’m a fan of the Demonstrator paint job!  This one’s in my favorites!

 

 

 

 

[T-Mo-(Moderator) 4,507]

That C has some custom mods to it, for instance the rear hitch, the front blade, etc.  C's were made from 1948 to 1951 or 1952, and was replaced by the Super C.  It's a bit lighter and less horsepower than the H, which to me, is more desirable than a C.  If I had to pick between the two, I'll take the H over a C any day,  The H is just more useable than the C.  The only thing that C has going for it are the wheel weights, but weights for an H is not that hard to find.

 

With the mods on that C, I think I would shy away from it.  Who knows what other "mods' were done that isn't as oblivious.

 

BTW, I had both a C and a H, and gave the C to my nephew when I bought my H.

[ClassicTractorProfessor 5,314]

Both are great tractors. The H is priced very fairly in my opinion. I've never owned an H but have ran a few, always thought I'd want one for mowing and light chores around the place, smaller and more nimble than my M, but still powerful enough to suit my needs. But then I bought my 1949 C this past spring and I must say it has became my favorite tractor. Yes it's smaller and less powerful than the H, but don't discount it's small size, it has proven to be more than capable for what I use it for. It pulls my Servis 5' mower with ease, and is much lighter and easier to haul than an H would be. Took it to our yearly Threshing Bee this past weekend, bunch of us were playing in the field the day before the show, hooked her to a 2 bottom plow and she pulled it with no problems. The only complaint I have with my C is rear tires, 11.2-36 tires are much harder to find and considerably more expensive than their 38" counterparts found on the H and M models.