Let's talk a little bit

H

Hairy Moose Knuckles

Well-known member
I've always liked the look of the cubs. I remember a neighbor of ours used to mow his yard with one when I was in elementary school. (over 1/2 a century ago.)

To you guys that collect or (own) them. What gave you the bug? Ive noticed the antique tractor market price has in general come down a whole bunch from just a decade ago.

What's your favorite decade of Cub? What do you like best about that particular year/decade.

I tend to like the all red cub. I don't care for the white grill some have. I also don't like the look of the yellow and white ones.

If you don't mind, tell me a little about your Cub and why you chose it. (Other than price.)
 
I'm a pre-war child of the 1940's (Mar 41) so I tend to focus on the 1940's when I buy something to collect. Most of my American Flyer collection is of 1948 vintage. My main antique radio is a 1941 Zenith 10-S-669 console. My main antique shortwave receiver is a 1940 Hallicrafters S-20R. For many years I drove a WWII era military jeep and so it was only natural when I decided to get back into antique tractors I looked to the 1940's. When I was a kid I spent a whole lot of time on my g-grandparent's farm and while Pap farmed with horses for most of those years when one died and he finally went mechanized it was a Farmall he settled on and so it's been Farmall ever since, which leads to my 1948 Cub. It just fits and I named it Cyrus after Pap, my g-grandmother's second husband, the farmer in the family. To paraphrase Ronnie Milsap, I'm lost in the forties tonight. :D
 
For me, my favorite decade would have to be the 40s. I collect M1 rifles (WWII manufacture) plus that was just simply the decade when America was at it's greatest. I wish I had been alive for it. Anyways, the look of the all red, round nose, early cubs are my favorite. Once we start talking late 50s, into the 60s, those are just too new for my taster. The older the better in this case!
 
Yes, I forgot to mention the round nose. The square ones just don't "look" right to me.

I do like the silver and red wheels. Someone posted a picture the other day of some wheels that looked real nice. I'm not dead set that everything has to be period correct.


One other thing. When were the hand lifts phased out and hydraulics added?
 
My 1948 w/handlift was inherited by me.
When my parents bought their house in 1960, the Cub and all of it's attachments came with it. The original owner was a retired doctor who had purchased 80 acres, built a house, and used the Cub to run the small farm.
My father continued using it for farming on a more minimal scale as they didn't buy the full 80.
I started operating it (supervised) when l was 9 or 10. It's what l'm used to.
It's all original with few exceptions. I like the magneto because l can start it and run it without a battery. I am used to the handlift because l've used it for 50 yrs.
I've worked on and with other Cubs from the 50s. I'm looking to buy one that is a non runner mid 60s and barn stored for yrs that a neighbor has. So l'm not confined to late 40s, l just love what l'm comfortable with.
 
I own a 1957. I like the horizontal grille, and the paint scheme. I like the electric start, battery ignition, adjustable-width front end, and hydraulics.

I grew up in the country here in North central NY. There were many family-owned dairy farms. My Cub takes me back to a simpler time, it reminds me of an era when you got a lot for a dollar, tractors were built bullet proof to put in a good sunrise to sunset working day. Also, you could take the time to do a job right, and it didn't have to be done in 5 minutes.

Although it is in excellent condition, I also use it as a working tractor, within it's limitations. I really enjoy maintaining it, and having it start in less than 1 second with a quick tug on the starter rod. It's satisfying having it 'earn it's keep'. It doesn't ask for much, and doesn't let me down.
 
I've inherited all 3 of our tractors. My parents owned an amusement park,dad bought the 49 to cut the 10 acres in 1960. I learned to drive with it. In '64 we inherited the Ford from my grandmothers cousin so it took over the mowing duty and the Cub came home to replace a Panzer lawn tractor. When the business was sold in the early 70's the Ford came home too. In the mid 80's dad come across the Lo Boy at a local auction and thought the combination of the Woods mower and being low to the ground would be ideal for use here at home. The 49 became the dedicated snow remover for many years but since I'm retired and spend my winters in Florida,it too is retired.
 
My 1st cub is a '47 (serial 8525)which was 1 0f the first 2 cubs received at my Dad's IHC dealership in mid Mich. A neighbor purchased the tractor & it was subject to sticking valves in the cold Dec weather. It was in the shop for approx. a month until IH service personnel effected some remedial action. The neighbor sold it to my dad, following the repair without using the unit. I used it to plow snow for East Lansing residents while in college and added the power lift unit for that activity. My Dad stated that functional difficulties with the power lift restricted it's availability until 1-2 years following the initial cub production (per the company story to dealers). During it's life it has plowed many acres, mowed hay (a 6' bar was added to the mower, been used a loader tractor, used for a lawn mower. It's had three engines since new & is being refurbished with the original engine that has been bored .020 over with a .030 milled head. I have a 2nd cub ('50) that I obtained for the Henderson loader and another (3rd) '47 that was obtained for the woods L59 mower and parts. Some observations: My IH 140 is a vastly preferred tractor. The cub benefits most for cold weather starting by opening the manifold intake diameter by 1/8th and boosting compression. My current viewpoint is; I use a cub for dirt grading and it will fit in my pickup for transporting.
 
I grew up with a 140...loved the offset design for garden cultivating. When I decided to start caring for the old family farm, we needed something that could travel well and still do weekend warrior chores. I began searching for a cub. I was told it would be underpowered and that I should look at other makes and models. But, I already had some implements that would work on a cub with fast hitch (landscape rake, blade). So, I began searching. I finally found what I was looking for....later model (1975 same as 140), red, square nose, fast hitch, a little more HP than the early ones. I brought her home and have been happy ever since...even if we've run into a few minor problems. I do not regret buying my cub!
 
My intrigue for Famall began with my uncle. He operated a dairy farm in Western Pa. I was a kid in the 60's and spent many summers there with my cousins... anyway my uncle had a small fleet of Farmalls from the 40's and 50's so I've been a fan ever since. They are great machines, very dependable, easy to work on, parts and implements are readily available... so yeah - I like the Red ones.
 
Hairy Moose Knuckles":3pgt5svy said:
...One other thing. When were the hand lifts phased out and hydraulics added?
Click to expand...

As you may know, the original design of the Cub included the mounting holes for a Touch Control. If I recall correctly, production lagged behind on the T/C units in the Spring of '47 when the Cub first debuted. I don't know when the spring-assisted lift was phased out as standard equipment, but it was always an option for the buyer to have it or the hydraulic unit.

More knowledgeable members, such as Jim Becker or Ken Updike, will have a better answer.
 
I really enjoyed the stories. We didn't have any "Red" tractors on the farm growing up. We had a couple of John Deere tractors. I think an A and I know one was an M. We also had a small Ford, but I don't remember if it was a 2,8, or 9n. We also had a small Ferguson. I drove the Ford mostly and in fact it was what I learned to drive on.

When I started looking at Farmall tractors, my uncle advised against it because it didn't have 3 point. I had Red fever though, so I bought me a SC. Sitting way up there on that SC was a fantastic feeling. It was a whole different feeling from the low to the ground Ford.

I've been looking, but at the moment nothing is close by. I'm unable to drive, so going after one in another State is out of the question. There is a nice Cub about 2 hours away. The ad says parade ready, (whatever that means) but they are asking a bit more than my budget at the moment.

I do have some likes/wants. First off, it's gotta be Red, round hood, screen grill. I also think I'd rather have a hand lift than hydraulics because I'd rather keep it simple.

That's my story.

I'm at the point in my life where I want a Cub, do I really "need" it? I guess the answer is no. I just "want" one before I croak.
 
I grew up farming in the 50's & 60's on John Deere "two-cylinders". Started tractor collecting several years ago with JD lawn & garden tractors, then moved on to slightly bigger tractors with a 1953 JD-40 Standard, sold most of the L&G collection. Next came a 1980 Power King 2418, decided I wanted a Cub Lo Boy, found this 1961 needing quite a bit of work: Tractors 2018 003 - Copy.JPG I still need to paint the body of the tractor. With the turfs, it makes a nice little yard tractor: Tractors 2019 007 - Copy.JPG

I've since bought a 1944 JD-LA & most recently a 1948 Allis Chalmers model "G". I'm partial to the small & more uncommon tractors, both for my use & for area tractor shows!
 
grnspot":35cyxyot said:
I grew up farming in the 50's & 60's on John Deere "two-cylinders". Started tractor collecting several years ago with JD lawn & garden tractors, then moved on to slightly bigger tractors with a 1953 JD-40 Standard, sold most of the L&G collection. Next came a 1980 Power King 2418, decided I wanted a Cub Lo Boy, found this 1961 needing quite a bit of work: Tractors 2018 003 - Copy.JPG I still need to paint the body of the tractor. With the turfs, it makes a nice little yard tractor: Tractors 2019 007 - Copy.JPG

I've since bought a 1944 JD-LA & most recently a 1948 Allis Chalmers model "G". I'm partial to the small & more uncommon tractors, both for my use & for area tractor shows!
Click to expand...

Man, when you load a cart, you don't monkey around.
 
My family is predominantly IH, so I suppose that helped a lot. The family's first tractor was a 49 Cub, and I grew up on a souped up Super MTA and a little 100. When I started farming on my own, I bought a wore out Cub and a 9n Ford. I found I needed more power and traded for a B John Deere and the 300 I have now. The popcorn popper had to go after two seasons, so now I have the 51 Cub to do my cultivating, pasture clipping, and odd jobs on the farm. It has its place, and is fun to operate too.

Mac
 
when I was a boy living on my grandparents farm they had a super M and an M, we also has an allis and a case. I have always loved farmalls. As an adult I have owned an H, a C, an A a 184 and now currently own 2 fergusons, a 140 and six cubs and an allis B. My grandad bought a cub after he retired from farming. I honestly never cared for it much. I made a poor trade for ole bugeyes and that started my current obsession.
 
For me, my Grandpa had what I believe was probably a 48 Cub that he bought new and used for his garden and to mow the 3 or 4 acre field, I remember Grandma riding an old dump rake to window so he could burn the grass and weeds after they dried. Dad would borrow the Cub and disc for our garden. Grandma sold it in the early 70's and replaced it with a Simplicity Landlord. I remembered the Cub but never really wanted one of those "toy" tractors until my wife and I went to the Red Power Roundup in PA that featured the Cub. With that many Cubs in one place, the bug hit. I bought an Operators manual from TM while I was there, then while I was wandering around tried to figure out how I could fit one in the back of my van and take it home! A few months later there was an auction I passed coming home from work that had a Cub. Went home, got the better half, went back and about 20 minutes after we got there became the proud owner of a 52 Cub. I love that "toy tractor" and now I'm helping my Grandsons create memories for them and me. Have a safe weekend, and don't loose sight of the reason for this weekend. John
 
I've got a Yellow and White Cub (1975 I believe) that technically belongs to my son. My dad gave it to him, but it resides in my shop, he lives in another state, and although he says he has full intentions of coming after it, I somehow have the feeling it's going to be here for quite awhile. It had a stuck governor when he brought it here, and since then I've got it loosened back up and it seems to be running just fine. It does have a radiator leak at the base at the moment. It's kind of underpowered for the belly mower that's under it, and frankly I just don't know what to do with it. It's not mine though so it's going to be here until he comes after it.
 
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