When you receive your ballot be sure to return it by the date indicated so your vote will be counted.  Elected directors will be announced at the June 14 Summer Show.

Read the biographies here

Check out more information on the Projects page. 

Loren Book documented the event in the following article and describes how it all happened.

March 31, 2015 marks a special day for Minneapolis-Moline collectors. A real life tractor was delivered to the Floyd County Historical Museum in Charles City, Iowa. We all know that there are numberous artifacts, historical records, build cards, manuals and other records housed in the museum, but there was nothing to indicate that they were there. Last fall several of the MMCI committee met with some of the FCHS Museum board members and the discussion was how could MMCI work with them in the future. A very legitimate question was asked, "When someone walks into the museum, what is there to indicate that all this information is housed in the museum?" The FCHS board members agreed something was needed. We now have the presence!

On the main floor (overlooking the door to the Oliver tractor display downstairs) there is now a Minneapolis-Moline RTU. The tractor is on loan from Lorin and Mary Brass from Lennox, South Dakota. There are also three display cases of MM memorabilia. The first case has the Darlene Swartzrock collection, courtesy of Harold Swartzrock, with numberous sales aids published by the MM Company over the years.

The second case has memorabilia supplied by Loren and Ruth Book from Nevada, Iowa. The third case has memorabilia supplied by Dave Elofson and Lloyd and Linda Rave from the Siouxland Collectors Club of South Dakota. Two of the display cases were built by Alan Thompson and donated by the MMCI. The third case was built and donated by Lloyd and Linda Rave. Thank you!

The tractor story of how it go to the first floor is interesting indeed. The door leading to the main room has a door measuring 66 inches. Knowing that we wanted a tractor, we began measuring and did not find one that would fit through the door. The RTU was a small tractor with an axel length of 81 inches, still way too wide to roll onto the floor. It was the combined ingenuity of Phillip Fett, Lorin Brass, and Lloyd Rave that came up with a one of a kind caster-wheeled dolly to sit under the rear of the tractor. Then the rear wheels were removed and the tractor was snaked down the hallway and around the doorway to allow entry to the main floor -- with an inch to spare. Thank you to Lloyd Rave, Lorin Brass, Dave Elofson, and Dick Burns for helping to move the tractor into the museum.

As the displays were being set up, a visitor to the museum, Dean Risen, showed an interest and while talking to him we discovered that he had worked at the Charles City plant from 1962 to 1992. He was very happy to talk to us about some of this experiences with the Minneapolis-Moline's last tractors built in Charles City. He now knows that MM information is available.

The tractor and displays are on loan for a period of time agreed upon by the Museum staff and the individuals. Our plan is to have this be a revolving exhibit so that many displays can be showcased over the years. The displays need to be educational and have signage to tell their story. There is one display case still available: if you have and would be willing to show your items, please contact Loren Book.

Recently Loren Book, Nevada, IA, gave them photos of the tractor when it was at the Hopkins Minnesota Assembly Plant. Using the "up close" photos, they were able to put together a clone of the missing tractor. The more powerful NT was to replace the ZT, but the Z remained in production until 1955.

The engine is a model of which was used in the military NT X "Jeep," thus the name NT. The sheet metal resembles the model U. This was done to keep cost down. The tractor came up with the MM Patented throttle clutch that was never used on any other production model.

Jeff says, "We did our best to build a replica as close as we could. And we are still hopeful the original NT is out there. We could not have done such a project without the help of the following people: Loren Book, Bill Ellis, Rob Ohda, John DeReu, Ron DePauw, Wilbert Kerchner, and Rick Laleman."

See a video of the NT Clone on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/mmcollectorsclub

This is where you can begin a topic, ask questions, and join in conversations with other MM enthusiasts and post photos. Join the family!!

The Glenn Rhea Family hosted. Do you have photos to share? Email with captions. Can you provide information for any of the photos we have on the web? Send info please!

Have you ever wondered how many cabs were built for the Minneapolis Moline "R" ag tractors? How about how many still exist, where they are located, and who owns them?

Rex Mercer and I have pondered these same thoughts ourselves. Rex has worked on numerous cabs and fabricated various parts for them over the years; and I reproduced 25 sets of doors for these cabs, as well as some other cab parts. Between the two of us, we had what we thought was a good idea of answers to the above questions.

Recently we put our list of names together and sorted out the duplicates and came up with a list of forty plus cabs known to exist. We then decided to beat the bushes and see if we could locate any others. At this point in time was have a list of about 80. Is this preliminary list accurate and complete?

That is our current dilemma. We need your help. We have no idea how many other cabs are not on our list and if some cabs are being counted more than once. We would like to hear from anyone who owns or knows of a cab, and if possible, give us a name of the previous owner. This would help us sort out the duplicates. We would not publish any names without the owner's permission, but would merely list the current state that it resides in, so please state if you want to remain anonymous. Additional information, such as the serial number of the tractor it is on (and we realize that not all cabs are currently on tractors), and front end style would be interesting also, but of course optional.

If you can help us with any information concerning the project, please contact us. Your help will be very much appreciated!

2011 MMCI National Winter Show

March 17-18-19, 2011

Lamplighter Inn & Suites

4020 Parkview Drive, Pittsburg, KS 

Banquet - Saturday 6:00 p.m.  

$20.00 per person, $16.00 12 and Under                                      

For Reservations Contact:                      

Jim & Michelle Puckett                                                     

145 E Highway 47; Girard, KS  66743

620-724-4364 or jbp147@hotmail.com

Deadline for Banquet tickets is March 10, 2011                                                                    

Vender Tables - $10.00 each; Up to 3 Tables, Additional Tables Free

Auction: Check in items-Friday 1:00 to 4:00 p.m.

and Saturday 8:00 to 9:30 a.m.

Auction begins - Saturday at 10:00 a.m.

Lodging:

Lamplighter Inn & Suites

620-231-8700

$69.00 Special Rate

(Block of 90 rooms)

Comfort Inn & Suites

620-231-8800

(Across the street)

Super 8 Motel

620-232-1881

(South 2 blocks)

Holiday Inn Express

620-231-1177

$99.00 Special Rate

(Block of 40 rooms)

(Across the street)

Extra Inn

620-232-2800

$49.00 Special Rate

(Block of 10 rooms)

(Across the street)

Ask for Special Rates.

We would love to see your Minneapolis Moline memorabilia, photos and scrapbooks.

For information about the show, vender tables or auction, please contact:

 Pete & Jolene Little

Little Repair Shop

1450 West 660 Avenue

Walnut, Kansas   66780

620-354-6468 - shop during the day or

620-354-6469 - home in the evening

MM enthusiasts have found that scanning parts drawings is an easy task and something anyone can learn to do. Plan a visit to Charles City to help with this project. Museum director Mary Ann Townsend will show you what to do. And as an added benefit, the Sleep Inn will give a special discount to those volunteers working on the Floyd County Preservation Project. Read about the project beginnings below.

Update from Loren Book: The Minneapolis-Moline Collectors Club (MMCI) is working as an equal partner with the Hart Parr Oliver Collectors (HPOCA) to preserve information of both companies, which remained after they were bought out by White and then Agco. The two clubs have jointly purchased a quality film reader to transfer the parts drawings to computer; this will make the drawings accessible to future generations.

At the Winter Convention in Clarinda, Mike Verhulst, Phillip Fett, and I handed out numerous cards with contact information for Mary Ann Townsend, the museum director. Mary Ann is overseeing the scheduling of volunteers coming to Charles City for a day, or hopefully, two or three days.

The process as shown in the photos is very user friendly and the staff can have you working in a short time. There have been 1000 cards recorded to date; we have approximately 49,000 MM cards to go.Loren Book and Arlin Wente processing some of the first cards.

Mike Verhulst and Mary Ann Townsend looking at first aperture card processed.

We are hoping to complete the process in two years. I do not want to create a contest, but I know that the MMCI membership can do more cards sooner and faster than the HPOCA! On a good day, we estimate a team of two can record 300 cards.

We need lots of volunteers to process all of these cards.

My challenge (and plea) to you would be to call Mary Ann at 641-228-1099 and schedule a time convenient for you to go to the Floyd County Museum at Charles City, Iowa to help preserve this valuable Minneapolis-Moline information.

Preservation of Minneapolis-Moline Information at the Floyd County Historical Society in Charles City, Iowa

by Mike Verhulst

A large number of Minneapolis-Moline historical documents were moved from Minneapolis and Hopkins in the 1970's. Many were left in Charles City when Allied took over WFE in the 1980's. These ended up at the Floyd County Historical society. MMCI has been working with the FCHS since 2004 to identify and preserve this information.

This information includes:

1. Operator's, Repair and Service manuals
2. Serial Number Ledger Books for 1956-1972
3. Service Bulletins
4. Part Drawings on Aperture Cards
5. Large Layout Drawings
6. Literature and Miscellaneous Office Files

The FCHS has been providing copies of manuals for a number of years and it is one of the main sources of income. A list of all of the manuals that are available is on the MMCI website. There is also a list of the Service Bulletins that FCHS can provide copies of on request.

The 24 serial number books contain the records of when each tractor was built, its engine serial number and the various options it was built with by code number. Since there was not a master list of descriptions for the codes, it was necessary to determine what these code numbers were. MMCI worked to collect price book pages for all of the tractors which list the code numbers and there description. This is now fairly complete with a few exceptions. Today you can obtain the history of your tractor by providing your serial number to the FCHS. They will provide a copy from the ledger book that shoes when your tractor was built, it's engine serial number and the option codes. They will also provide a copy of the price pages for that model so you can find the description for the various ordering codes. The cost for this service is $20.

The Minneapolis-Moline history is old and deteriorating. The MMCI board felt it was important to preserve this information and authorized a committee to work with FCHS to make this happen. Committee members are Loren Book, Phillip Fett, and Mike Verhulst. A signed working agreement with FCHS has been developed. FCHS is going to partition part of the basement to store MM records.

After consultation with computer experts software was leased by MMCI to scan the ledgers sheets to a CD disk while a copy is being made on FCHS copier. At this time all 24 tractor books (4000 pages) have been scanned and copied.

See the NOTE at the top of this article for contact information to reach the Historical Society.

Stockholm, Sweden 2009-01-18

This story begins in the mid 30s when a company named Anders Fischer AB was an authorized seller for Westeråsmaskiner AB, one of Sweden's biggest manufactures for agriculture machines with worldwide sales. At that time they realized that it was time for the farmers to go from horse to tractor and they searched for a known agency and the choice fell on MM.

At that time there were not many persons familiar with the English language in Sweden, so the head salesman Mr.Gösta Axelsson's knowledge in English became important; therefore, he was the man who had all the contacts with the MM Company.

There was a man named Mr.Mortimer who arrived to Sweden from MM to negotiate in the matter. The first tractors arrived 1937 and the last one 1939. The total number of imports was 125-175 units of models R and Z.

The tractors that arrived in Sweden were mostly used as pullers for all kinds of agricultural maschines, or as stationary engines for threshing mills.

After the beginning of World War 2 it was no longer possible to import anything from foreign countries by boat because the Germans torpedoed all the ships they could.

All the tractors were delivered from the U.S. in big wooden boxes and my father, K-E Nylander, was responsible for all the handling with the help of Mr Henry Pettersson (Mr.Pettersson is still alive and in a good health and has helped me with all the facts in this matter).

They picked up the boxes by truck from the harbor and assembled and adapted them for use in Sweden. All this work was done in temporary workshops and even in our garage at home.

Due to lack of petrol and kerosene during WW 2, the government set up a hard rationing for oil products. The only way to keep the tractors going was to adapt them for wood gas. There were existing aggregates for cars and trucks and with help from parts, my father and Mr. Axelsson constructed and put them up on the tractors.

Mr Pettersson remembers that they worked very well on wood gas, however there were a big risk of fire on the fields when they had to take out the ash and sweep the unit from soot. Likewise, the gas was dangerous, it contained a big part of carbonic oxide, so it was not possible to run and drive the engines inside the shop or garages.

The tractors that were imported during 37-39 were sold as new for a long time in the early 40s and they never imported any more tractors from the U.S. after the war. The next tractor brand they took up was the Dieselross tractor.

Editors note: Svante Nylander has written this little article after a translation of a memorandum from Mr.Henry Pettersson.

Joe Swanson of Geneco, IL received $1,000 Preservation Grant for restoring a U302. His restored tractor was exhibited at Sublette, in front of the MMCI headquarters. Mike Jahn, MMCI Director and Chairman of the Oral History Preservation Grants Committee presented the check to Joe.

John Willys, (from the Willys-Knight Motor Car Company) was a large stockholder of Moline Plow Company. In 1914 the Moline-Knight automobile was produced.

The Twin City 12-20 designed for the 1919 market year was being built and sold in the fall of 1918. This compact unit frame design used two intakes and two exhaust valves per cylinder. This was accomplished with twin camshafts and yielded very high fuel economy. A larger sibling, the 20-35, introduced in 1920, was also a twin cam, 16 valve four-cylinder.

Some of the early MM-Twin Cities sold by Waterloo Company of Canada, like the KTA and 27-44 were referred to as MM-Waterloo tractors and had those letters cast in the top radiator tank.

The high production MM Model Z had no push rods or lifters in its engine. Horizontal valve placement used foot long vertical rocker arms from cam lobe to valve tip.

It is generally assumed the entire Z, ZA, and ZB series used a 206 cubic inch engine, however, the early Z was actually a 185 cubic inch.

MM engineers pioneered the use of liquefied petroleum and produced the first factory built LP gas tractors in 1941.

The MM G-707 and G-708 still used a hand clutch in 1965. The R and G series used hand clutches to productions end in 1955. Many people mistakenly believe the hand clutch disappeared when the ZB-UB series was introduced in 1953.

From 1937 to 1947 MM tractors were yellow, not Prairie Gold! The famous orange hued Prairie Gold did not show up in company advertising or tractor finishes until 1947 or 1948. Prairie Gold was used from 1948 to 1960. 4 Star, M5, and G-VI had a darker shade of Prairie Gold tinwork and metallic bronze chassis. Early Jet Stars were all metallic bronze. Through the Sixties, late Jet Star, U, M, and G series were Energy Yellow, with Dyna Brown chassis. Some final models in the late Sixties and early Seventies were red and white. Minneapolis Moline used more than six colors from 1937 to production’s end in 1973.

~Tony Thompson

This was Minneapolis Steel & Machinery Company's first lightweight machine and was re-rated to 17-28 in 1926. It was still available through 1935, for a total production run of 17 years. The 12-20 set a designing trend for other Twin Cities and direct relationships between the 12-20 and MM tractors were apparent until 1960. This 5000 lb. machine used a vertical 4 ¼ X 6 4 cylinder 340 cubic inch engine that posted unusually high fuel economy through the use of dual camshafts and 4 valves per cylinder. At 1000 rpms 3 gallons of kerosene would produce 18.5 drawbar hp, and 28 belt pulley hp for a full hour. Two forward speeds of 2.2 and 2.9 mph were used.

When the Company's books were closed on New Year's Eve of 1919, 2900 12-20's had already been sold. Year to year breakdown of serial numbers is nearly nonexistent, but here is what we do know.

• Beginning serial number for 1918 is 10201

• On December 4th, 1925 production had reached #18733

• Chassis #'s 18734 - 19219 were used from December 5th, 1925 to May of 1926
• Total production from 1918 to 1926 was just over 9,000 units using serial #'s 10201 - 19219

~Tony Thompson

Due to buyouts, bankruptcies, and mergers, many of the historical documents and knowledge of M-M have been lost. Many people, who were employees of the companies, dealers, and/or dealer employees, have considerable knowledge of the history of the company based on their experiences.

In order to help fulfill the MMCI mission, the Club would like to capture this knowledge of company history. Yet many of these people are not known to the Club. Our goal is to find those who have this valuable historical information to preserve for future generations.

Do You Have Information?

Fill out the form below and provide us with some of the history we are searching for!

• Historical Information Form (PDF)

If you have any interesting information or stories about pedal tractors you would like to share on this site, let us know.

1. 1962-63: Lawnmowers were brown offered only in model 107.
2. 1964: This year brought the new color of yellow with models 108 and 110.
3. 1965: The 108 & 110 models were kept in yellow, while the white band around the front of the grill was introduced.
4. 1966 brought lots of changes: A 4-speed transmission replaced the 3-speed, a full steering wheel was introduced, hydro transmissions were introduced, and the models available were 108, 110, and the new 112.
5. 1967 brought no major changes.
6. 1968: The 107 reappeared this year in yellow after laying idle since 1962, and took its place beside the 108, 110, & 112. Some of these mowers had a new electric clutch.
7. 1969 all models were again part of the MM line with the addition of a new 114 model. The steering wheel this year was three spokes.