The Tractor Dynasty

During the late fifties, old spade lugs seized up and came to an ignominious end amongst the stinging nettles in the rickyard. DWP carried on for a few more years before it too was finally parked in a shed to spend a peaceful retirement, it's cracked cylinder block the result of an unexpected frost, due to Ray Harper being either too skinny to buy five bobs' worth of anti freeze, or too lazy to drain it. Then GAW appeared. The little grey 'Fergy' was the bees knees. Raymond had managed to pick one up for next to nothing and it was immediately installed in a freshly cleaned out barn until the novelty wore off. Naturally he was like a cockerel in a hen house as he deftly put it through it's paces. One of the first pieces of kit he begged off some poor unsuspecting creature was a fertiliser spinner. After a few times of use and being too idle to clean the nitro chalk off the back of the Fergie, it now resembled everything else on the farm … tatty, thus we were all now allowed to drive it.  Suitable instruction on use of the clutch was given as, after the Fordson, this little gem could 'loop the loop' if the clutch was not treated with kid gloves. (The Fordson did 0 to 5 miles an hour in something approaching a shade under a couple of days as I remember). Ploughing with GAW was a joy. Light car type steering replaced the Fordsons arm wrenching ordeal. The mounted plough was easily backed into wherever and a touch of an independent brake quickly swung the front around to point in the intended direction. (Always a tricky operation on a left turn as the clutch pedal clashed with the brake)

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