How did you get hooked on Allis?

My dad farmed with them. He also had a H-3 dozer. I now have the dozer and we are still looking for the WD-45.......Mark J.

Grandpa had the first WC on rubber in the area, that was when he took over farming and got rid of the horses.  He also had the first All crop, which great grandma was thrilled about since she didnt have to cook for all the threshing men anymore.  From then on its been all AC with two exceptions, the first was when Grandpa tried farming with an army tank after the war and the second was a Farmall 400 which everyone hated.  We now farm with mostly AC equipment and a Gleaner combine.  I guess I got hooked just by growing up in it.
 Joe  

The first one I drove was a CA pulling a disk from my grandfathers farm to my Dads farm back in the 60's but the WD is my favorite.

I rode many an hour sitting on the tool box of a D17 and a WD45 with my uncle on mom's side of the family. He had all A-C except for a pony start JD 730. The first tractor I got to drive was a B with hand brakes. Later on it was the D17 picking up hay. I was too small to reach both the clutch and brakes. Good thing the power director is on the same side as the brakes...

I grew up on a small farm that used older A-Cs and with the exception of a cross motor Case in the 30s there was never another brand of tractor on the farm.  When I was 15 I decided it would be a fun sideline to own a few pieces of A-C equipment.  16 years later I can safely say that it has been more than I was planning!

Grew up with them. My first memory was dad's two WD45s & my first actual  drive experience was a D14 on a crimper. I always loved the PD stick it is soo handy especially when baling hay. The D17IV was the best tractor ever made. When dad died he had two of them and I owned a 200. I still have the D17 with a 500 series loader. I now farm with a N6 Gleaner, 8030FWA, 7060, 190XT and the D17 loader. 

Both of my grandpas used AC's;  My dad and I still have some of their original tractors including a restored WD45 gas wide front and a 160 diesel.  WD45 is restored and the 160 is still in use;  This point is exactly why I wish the ORANGE would continue even if as an AGCO product.  The current and next generations will only associate orange with Kubota and not the heritage of Allis that has remained thru AGCO.  John Deere and IH have capitalized on this for years and will continue to do so;   

Edited by AC1 - 20 Jan 2010 at 9:22pm

We built farm equipment for living at our shop Krause Mfg Inc. in Bellingham WA. They loacal AC dealer was Meridian Equipment which was owned by Bob Vanderploeg who is 1/4 mile down the road.  So I would see stuff everyday. My dad started tractor pulling after our family went back to Lake Crystal Minnisota for FarmFest 76 when I was 5 years old and soon be built a sled, with Bob Vanderploeg. He pulled everthing that had a motor on his lot ! He had this D 21 with a 7080 motor in it and I FEEL IN LOVE with 21 !!!  I drove one of his new tractors in the local parade everyyear  when I was about 5 years old uo to when he sold the dealer in 82. Since then I have bought and sold 20 D 21s over the years and wish now I had some of those back. Oh well, cant have them all. Oh my dad grew up on a WD 45 then the businees started at the Dairy farm in Blaine WA. in the early 60s.

Dad started farming in the 30's with a square back WC and horse then added a round back WC, I was born in 1950 and he purchased a new WD the same year then added a 1954 WD45 These were the first tractors I drove. While I was home he at one time had 3 WD45's then traded for a Series IV D17 and then a another 45 left to get his first Diesel a 180.  I left home went to college then farmed on my own and my brother joined Dad at home. I purchased a 190XT III and sold it to my brother (mistake) and went IH 1066,706 (loved my 1066) and even had a 44 MH.  Left Farming to become an agronomy manager for a Coop and been there 28 years. Now when I can I help My brother and drive either a 8070, 8050, 8010, or 200. Some times a M2 or M3.  He still farms about a 1000 acres near Dad's who at 89 combined 400 acres of beans and 100 acres of corn this fall and drives that 8070  and 24 ft disc in the spring  I have a mechanically restored D17 II which I use to clear snow for me and my neighbors and give grandkids a ride.  Hope to help Bill when I retire on those AC's.     

Kind of like most others, didn't have much choice.  Dad, uncle, grandpa, and great-grandad farmed with AC's.  Later on, Dad & my uncle owned an AC dealership in the 60's and 70's.  Grew up with the WD's, etc. and then got to be around the new ones (100 series) when I was in high school.  Still looking for that perfect One-Ninety XT Series III with a canopy (I've seen a picture of it on the Forum before) to add to the collection.

Sitting on the toolbox of my Dad's WD45 when I was 4 watching the short flame above the muffler while we were plowing in the field north of the house. When I started farming I bought a WD with a mounted picker and stuck motor for $200. I cut the picker off with a torch (whoops!) got the motor unstuck and went to farming 107 acres. 1981. A lifetime of it. GO ORANGE!!!FOREVER!!!

Mark, now that's a great story. I'm printing it out.

My father owned the local AC dealership from 68-93 and I spent most of my childhood and teenage years there.

Edited by split51 - 20 Jan 2010 at 12:10pm

Alberta Phil wrote: Mark: You should send that story with a pic of the WD to the Old Allis News!!

When Lonn said Bucking Bronco that made me remember some things I saw my Dad do on a WD.Those were the good old days!