Restored red tractor has historyRestored red tractor has history

If you have red tractors, especially Farmall tractors, 2023 is a special year. Case IH and tractor collectors partial to red paint are celebrating the 100th anniversary of Farmall tractors. The first International Harvester tractor carrying the Farmall name rolled off the line in 1923.

Marshall Martin, West Lafayette, Ind., has several red tractors in his collection. One of his newer additions is a Farmall F-30.

“It’s special because it was my father’s tractor,” he explains. “I grew up on a farm in Illinois, and Dad had red equipment, including this tractor.”

Martin found his way to Purdue University, and spent his career in ag economics, teaching and doing research and Extension. In later years, he assumed administrative duties for the College of Agriculture, and was the liaison between Purdue and many Indiana farm groups and commodity organizations.

“The truth is that the frame of this F-30 was dad’s tractor,” Martin continues. “The original block cracked, and a neighbor found a parts F-30 with a good engine. So, we put that engine in dad’s tractor. It runs well, and the tractor still has tons of meaning for me.”

According to tractordata.com, 28,902 Farmall F-30 tractors were built in Rock Island, Ill., from 1931 into 1939. Martin’s original tractor was made in 1937.

The company claimed 30 hp on the belt for the F-30, and 20 hp at the drawbar. Official tests rated out at 32.8 hp and 24.85 hp, respectively.

The F-30 featured a 4.6-liter, four-cylinder International Harvester engine, and a gas tank holding 21 gallons. It came with a four-speed transmission and manual steering. The F-30 yielded to the iconic M, next in the Farmall line.