IH Club Restores Rare No-Till Planter
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Jim Brewers, South Dakota Chapter 21 International Harvester Collectors Club, restored a rare M-21 International Harvester till planter. This planter was sold from 1953 to 1955. It was a 2-row unit with the tillage unit mounted on the front of the tractor, similar to a front-mounted cultivator, and a planting unit mounted on the rear.
The original owner of Brewers’ IH planter, Robert Schuller, purchased it in 1954 and used it until he passed away at a young age from cancer. “The planter was about 10 to 15 years ahead of its time,” says Brewers. “There weren’t many herbicides yet, so farmers didn’t have a good way to use it. Only about 23 of these were ever sold, and I know where six are today.”
After the original owner’s death, Darrel Jensen bought the planter from Schuller’s hired hand, mounted it on a Super MTA, and parked it outside his John Deere dealership as proof that IH was the first to release a no-till planter. “Pretty innovative marketing strategy, I guess,” laughs Brewers.
In 2021, Jensen was ready to part with this planter, but only to someone willing to restore and display it. He donated it to the South Dakota Chapter 21 International Harvester Collectors Club. That’s where Brewers got involved. “The chapter president contacted me and asked if I’d take on the restoration for them,” he says. “I can’t resist a challenge.”
Brewers received the planter in December and had it fully operational by April, working on it as time allowed. He estimates that the cost of replacement parts, which were covered by the International Harvester Trust, came to around $2,500. The main challenge was sourcing all the correct supplies. “You can’t go to the junkyard to look for parts when only 50 existed.” It’s a two-row unit, so Brewers kept one side intact when restoring the other. “I needed it as a model; that was my only blueprint.
“It was a fun project,” he says. “The neatest part was the people I met on the way. I got to see the farm where the planter came from, the original tractor that powered it, and even met the nephew of the owner.” Plans are still in the works by the IH Trust to find the planter a permanent home for display. But perhaps the most significant benefit for Brewers was the sense of community he cultivated while working on it. Speaking of the camaraderie at the IH club, Brewers shares, “The red tractor got us together, but the people keep us coming back.”
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Jim Brewers (eastacres@yahoo.com).
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IH Club Restores Rare No-Till Planter PLANTING EQUIPMENT No-Till & Min-Till Jim Brewers South Dakota Chapter 21 International Harvester Collectors Club restored a rare M-21 International Harvester till planter This planter was sold from 1953 to 1955 It was a 2-row unit with the tillage unit mounted on the front of the tractor similar to a front-mounted cultivator and a planting unit mounted on the rear The original owner of Brewers’ IH planter Robert Schuller purchased it in 1954 and used it until he passed away at a young age from cancer “The planter was about 10 to 15 years ahead of its time ” says Brewers “There weren’t many herbicides yet so farmers didn’t have a good way to use it Only about 23 of these were ever sold and I know where six are today ” After the original owner’s death Darrel Jensen bought the planter from Schuller’s hired hand mounted it on a Super MTA and parked it outside his John Deere dealership as proof that IH was the first to release a no-till planter “Pretty innovative marketing strategy I guess ” laughs Brewers In 2021 Jensen was ready to part with this planter but only to someone willing to restore and display it He donated it to the South Dakota Chapter 21 International Harvester Collectors Club That’s where Brewers got involved “The chapter president contacted me and asked if I’d take on the restoration for them ” he says “I can’t resist a challenge ” Brewers received the planter in December and had it fully operational by April working on it as time allowed He estimates that the cost of replacement parts which were covered by the International Harvester Trust came to around $2 500 The main challenge was sourcing all the correct supplies “You can’t go to the junkyard to look for parts when only 50 existed ” It’s a two-row unit so Brewers kept one side intact when restoring the other “I needed it as a model; that was my only blueprint “It was a fun project ” he says “The neatest part was the people I met on the way I got to see the farm where the planter came from the original tractor that powered it and even met the nephew of the owner ” Plans are still in the works by the IH Trust to find the planter a permanent home for display But perhaps the most significant benefit for Brewers was the sense of community he cultivated while working on it Speaking of the camaraderie at the IH club Brewers shares “The red tractor got us together but the people keep us coming back ” Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Jim Brewers eastacres@yahoo com
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