Here is a picture of our 1952 Ford 8N Tractor, sitting in front of the barn, with it's snowplow attached. It's November, and we are getting ready for snow. As you can see, we have chains on the back tires, and the tires are filled with chloride, so there is plenty of weight on the rear tires, providing traction. The whole tractor weighs just over 2400 pounds.
The Ford 8N is a classic. It was produced in great quantities around WW2, and many are still in operation today. It has a 27 HP, 4 cyl gas motor, 4 forward speeds, 1 reverse. One of the great things about the 8N is it's three point hydraulic hitch. Moving the control lever up and down allows you to lift or position the implement on the back. Or, in this case, via a steel cable, to lift the snowplow blade. Our 8N is serial # 8N376337. It was made in 1952, and we bought it in 2001.
Here's a picture of that tractor back, showing the lift arms. On the right side, if you look closely, you can see the snowplow cable attached to the lift arm. The gold colored shaft coming out of the back of the tractor is it's power take off. This is used to drive implements like the brush hog mower, or post hole digger. It turns around 500 RPM.
The snowplow blade mounts to a frame that bolts up under the tractor. The plow blade attaches to the frame at two pivot points. The Yellow Triangle is pointing to one of the pivot points. The snowplow blade is lifted up by a pivoting shaft via a chain. The shaft is actuated by a cable that goes along the frame to the rear of the tractor. The Blue Triangle is pointing to the cable. As the hydraulic three point hitch on the rear of the tractor goes up, it pulls on the cable, lifting the snowplow blade.
Here is a closeup of the rear of the tractor, showing the lift cable and the pulley. You can also see part of the tire chains. There are two kinds of chains available: Road chains are used when operating the tractor on pavement, and field chains are used primarily on dirt. Since we have a gravel drive, I chose field chains. They have a more aggressive bite.
The most common chore we do with the 8N is pulling our John Deere manure spreader. Here you see the spreader this spring after a fresh coat of John Deere Green and Yellow.
This small spreader has really made our barn chores a LOT easier. We used to wheelbarrow our all our manure to a pile out back.
In 2002, we decided we needed a front loader. After investigating the front loaders for the 8n, we decided to get a new "Ford" at the local New Holland dealer. So we bought a TC-33D compact diesel 33HP 4WD tractor. Very nice to operate, and has all the safety features that the 8n lacks. With power steering, the front bucket is easy to use, and has been very nice to have around the farm
We built a 40x60 pole barn in 2002 to house all the stuff.
Loading up after helping out my friend Rob Bennett with his new lawn
Springwater Farm historically has been a dairy farm, dating back to around 1900. Today, we raise Boer goats, a breed from New Zeeland. We sell them for meat, and pets.
Here you see this spring's crop of yearlings, born in mid May, 2004. They will be ready to sell this fall.
The Boers are very friendly animals, and are playful. They enjoy bunting with their heads, though, so watch out behind you!
