"One-Off" Loader Tractors Ideal For Muddy Ground

"One-Off" Loader Tractors Ideal For Muddy Ground TRACTORS Loaders 32-1-27 So far, John Fehr of Warren, Manitoba has built six of his special "Fehr-Trac Loader" tractors, keeping the price down by using salvaged combine components and used Chevy engines. "I developed this loader because the area I live in gets very soft in the spring and it's hard to maneuver with a conventional tractor - you're always getting stuck carrying bales," Fehr says. "I built a front-wheel drive unit to get better traction and floatation when feeding cattle. The straight-arm, self-leveling loader, which I built from scratch, is a big feature, too. I can load semis, double-decking them from just one side. With most tractors, you'd have to go around to the other side to load." Of the six units he's built so far, Fehr uses two of them on his own farm, and has sold the other four. If there's interest, he's willing to build more with a price tag of $25,000. The Fehr-Trac Loader's framework is made from a salvaged semi-truck frame and the cab comes from a 1500 New Holland combine. The hydrostatic front drives are out of an 815 International and he mounts a New Holland TR70 steering axle at the rear. All four tires come from combines and the wide profile provides great floatation. The unit also "turns on a dime" and weighs only 9,000 lbs., according to Fehr. He builds the self-leveling loaders from heavy-walled square tubing. The extra heavy-duty main arms are made from 8 by 3 by 1/4-in. square tubing and the loader has a reach of 13 1/2 ft.. "The lift capacity is quite extreme. If I put the 3 pt. hitch on, I can carry four 1,200-lb. bales at a time - one on the 3 pt. hitch, which is on the steering axle, and three on the loader. I build a teepee and pierce the bottom bales closer to the top, which cradles the top bale," he explains. "If I need to, I use counter weights on the back instead of a bale." Fehr says he salvaged "120-hp, Chevy in-line 6-cyl. gas engines" for the first five tractors because they're economical and easy to replace. On the last one he built, he put in a new 80 hp, 3.9-litre, 4-cyl. Cummins motor. This change was because Fehr wanted to try a diesel to benefit from lower fuel costs. "The only thing that's brand new on these tractors is the hydraulic system and the loader," he points out. Fehr also makes 8-ft. buckets for his tractors and to use for clearing snow. All the units are compatible with a 12-ft. front-mount haybine, and Fehr just raises the loader up out of the way when cutting hay. It looks like a giant swather with a loader on it, he says. "The hardest part of building them was developing the loader - it took lots of hours and went through a test period where I made a few changes - but now I wouldn't live without it." Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, John Fehr, P. O. Box 266, Warren, Manitoba, Canada R0C 3E0 (ph 204 383-5943).

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