The Farmall F-20 is a medium-sized two-plow row crop tractor produced by

International Harvester The International Harvester Company (often abbreviated IH or International) was an American manufacturer of agricultural and construction equipment, automobiles, commercial trucks, lawn and garden products, household equipment, and more. It wa ...

under the

Farmall Farmall was a model name and later a brand name for tractors manufactured by International Harvester (IH), an American truck, tractor, and construction equipment company. The Farmall name was usually presented as McCormick-Deering Farmall and l ...

brand from 1932 to 1939, with approximately 148,000 produced. It replaced the Farmall Regular, and was itself replaced in 1939 by the

Farmall H The Farmall H is a medium-sized two-plow row crop tractor produced by International Harvester under the Farmall brand from 1939 to 1954. It was the most widely produced of International Harvester's " letter series", with approximately 390,000 pr ...

Description and production

The F-20 was a modernization of the earlier Farmall Regular. It had a more powerful engine, improved narrow front wheels and a four-cylinder overhead valve engine with , feeding a four-gear sliding-gear transmission. The F-20 name implied that the machine could pull two plows. Versions were available for distillate and

kerosene Kerosene, or paraffin, is a combustibility, combustible hydrocarbon liquid which is derived from petroleum. It is widely used as a fuel in Aviation fuel, aviation as well as households. Its name derives from the Greek (''kērós'') meaning " ...

fuels. Gasoline was not an option, except to start the engine. The rear

portal axle A portal axle (or portal gear lift) is an off-road vehicle suspension and drive technology where the axle tube or the half-shaft is offset from – usually above – the center of the wheel hub and where driving power is transferred to each wheel ...

used drop gears to raise the clearance underneath the tractor higher than a simple axle would allow. A wide front axle was available as an option. The first tractors were delivered with steel wheels, with pneumatic tires being offered in 1933. Early-year F-20s were painted gray, like the Regular. Beginning in 1936 the F-20 was painted bright red, to increase visibility; this quickly became a trademark of the Farmall line. About 148,000 were produced during the product run. Purchase prices were between $895 and $1,000.Pripps, p. 55

Variants

A version with high clearance, a narrow rear wheelset and wide front wheels was produced for sugar cane cultivation, known as the F-20 Cane Tractor.

Comparable product

The John Deere Model A was a comparable model from

John Deere Deere & Company, Trade name, doing business as John Deere (), is an American corporation that manufactures agricultural machinery, heavy equipment, forestry machinery, diesel engines, drivetrains (axles, Transmission (mechanical device), transmi ...

.Pripps, p. 42

References

External links

NTTL Test #264 - Farmall F-20
at the

Nebraska Tractor Test Laboratory The Nebraska Tractor Test Laboratory (NTTL) is a program operated by the University of Nebraska in accordance with Nebraska law to test the performance of agricultural equipment that is to be sold in the United States for compliance with OECD stand ...

archive
NTTL Test #276 - Farmall F-20
at the Nebraska Tractor Test Laboratory archive {{commonscat, Farmall F-20 Farmall tractors Vehicles introduced in 1931