The Massey-Harris Model 81 was a
two-plow small-farm
tractor
A tractor is an engineering vehicle specifically designed to deliver a high tractive effort (or torque) at slow speeds, for the purposes of hauling a trailer or machinery such as that used in agriculture, mining or construction. Most common ...
built by Massey-Harris (later
Massey Ferguson
Massey Ferguson Limited is an American agricultural machinery manufacturer. The company was established in 1953 through the merger of farm equipment makers Massey-Harris of Canada and the Ferguson Company of the United Kingdom. It was based in T ...
) from 1941-1948.
[Pripps, p.72.] Introduced to replace Massey's
General GG,
[ the 81 was paired with the Model 82 (which used ]kerosene
Kerosene, paraffin, or lamp oil is a combustible hydrocarbon liquid which is derived from petroleum. It is widely used as a fuel in aviation as well as households. Its name derives from el, κηρός (''keros'') meaning "wax", and was regi ...
, or tractor vaporizing oil
Tractor vaporising oil (TVO) is a fuel for petrol-paraffin engines. It is seldom made or used today. In the United Kingdom and Australia, after the Second World War, it was commonly used for tractors until diesel engines became commonplace, es ...
, as it was known in Britain)[Pripps, p.131.] and was very similar to the Model 101 Junior,[ which first appeared in 1939.][Pripps, p.61.] It was offered in standard-tread and row-crop versions, as was the Model 20
A model is an informative representation of an object, person or system. The term originally denoted the plans of a building in late 16th-century English, and derived via French and Italian ultimately from Latin ''modulus'', a measure.
Models c ...
that followed it. The Model 81 was joined in 1946 by the Model 20,[ both of which survived in production until 1948.][
]
Pricing
With a base price of around C$800,[Pripps, p.79 cap.] it was competitive with the C$900 John Deere
Deere & Company, doing business as John Deere (), is an American corporation that manufactures agricultural machinery, heavy equipment, forestry machinery, diesel engines, drivetrains (axles, transmissions, gearboxes) used in heavy equipment, ...
A.[ and less than Ford and Ferguson-Brown models of the period.][
]
Weight
The bare weight without ballast[Pripps, p.78.] was 2,600 lb (1,170 kg),[ some 1,100 lb less than the contemporary Model 30.][
]
Engines
The 81 used the same 124 in3 (2,031 cc)[Pripps, p.104.] engine of the 101 Junior, while the 82 used a 140 in3 (2,293 cc) model.[ The 124 in3 was rated at 21 hp (15.7 kW) at the belt,][ and was manufactured by Continental, like all Massey-Harris tractors at the time.][
]
Use by Royal Canadian Air Force
The Royal Canadian Air Force
The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environm ...
used blue-painted standards as aircraft tug
In aviation, pushback is an airport procedure during which an aircraft is pushed backwards away from its parking position, usually at an airport gate by external power. Pushbacks are carried out by special, low-profile vehicles called ''pushback ...
s,[ out of under 2,600 standard-tread 81s made.][Pripps, p.74.]
References
Sources
*
Further reading
*Pripps, Robert N. ''The Big Book of Farm Tractors''. Vancouver, BC: Raincoast Books, 2001. .
*______. ''The Field Guide to Vintage Farm Tractors''. Stillwater, MN: Voyageur Press, 2001.
*______. ''Vintage Ford Tractors''. Stillwater, MN: Voyageur Press, 2001.
*Denison, Merrill. ''Harvest Triumphant: The Story of Massey-Harris''. New York: Dodd Mead, 1949.
*Farnsworth, John. ''The Massey Legacy''. Ipswich, Great Britain: Farming Press, 1997.
*Gay, Larry. ''Farm Tractors 1975-1995''. Saint Joseph, MI: American Society of Agricultural Engineers, 1995.
*Wendel, C. H. ''Massey Tractors''. Osceola, WI: Motorbooks International, 1992.
Tractors
Massey-Harris vehicles
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