Do the serial numbers all start with zero?

[Trent M]

I noticed in another thread on this forum that some of the serial numbers have a "0" for the first digit, i.e. 012345 or 054321. Is this consistent through production of the number series LoBoys? For some reason, I need to know this stuff. Hey, I've been known to go look at local tractors for sale and I'd like to know what to look for.

[Jim Becker]

I know you were hoping for a simple yes or no. It isn't that simple.

IH went to a system of serial numbers that are 14 characters long. This is a little like the modern car serial number that are 17 characters long with only the last 6 for the sequential number. I'm not sure if IH started by the time the first 154s were built or not, probably so. IH used a product identification system (even long before the serial number change) that used a "kind" and "code". These two numbers combine to identify a specific product. Within a kind/code, optional equipment could be added. The 14 character serial numbers start with the 3 digit kind, followed by 4 digits for the code. Position 8 was a letter to identify the country of origin. For the models we are concerned with, it was a "U". The remaining 6 digits were the actual sequential number of the individual machine. Since the serial numbers of the numbered LoBoys were all 4 or 5 digits, they were padded with 1 or 2 leading zeroes. I have a 154 serial number here that starts with 2000112U. So it was kind 200 and code 112.

Here are some more examples that may help clarify. The Cub Cadet garden tractors were all kind 205. For that kind, code 36 was a model 73. Thus, the serial number of my Model 73 Cub Cadet starts with 2050036U. Going back to a list from 1953, the kind for a Farmall Cub was 500. Within that kind, they only listed code 1, which was a Cub with standard equipment. The disk harrows for the Cub were kind 105. Code 1 was the 23-A, code 2 was a 4' 28-A, code 3 was a 5' 28-A, code 4 was a 4' 38, and code 5 was a 5' 38. A few years later (a '62 reference), the kind/code numbers were completely changed. The Cub and Cub LoBoy were both listed as kind 200 with a variety of codes. Note the kind for the 154 I listed above was the same as the '62 Cubs.

So the 154 serial numbers started with a zero or two, unless you want to say they all started with 200.