March 12, 2001

Power toy

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This 1/16 scale Ertl represents the Model 5020 Diesel standard with a wide front end, one of the New Generation tractors built from 1966 to 1972. The toy 5020 holds the honor of the longest production run (1969–1992) for an Ertl model. Naturally, numerous variations result from a long production run. These variations can be found in the air cleaners, axle braces, and dash levers. Some special editions also exist. This 1969 version still has its original box…adding $100 to its value. © 1999 Nick Cedar

As the Tim the Tool Man would say, "You can never have too much power." And that was what drove Deere to ditch the trusty two-cylinder tractor design for a "New Generation of Power" in 1960.

Farmers wanted more: more power, more speeds, more fuel capacity, more operator comfort, more hydraulic power, more tractor for the money! Four new 4-cylinder models answered farmers’ prayers for more — the 1010, 2010, 3010 and 4010 set the new standard for farm tractors.

The biggest of these first four (4010 Diesel) would soon become the most copied design in the tractor industry.

But just three years after making a grand entrance at Deere Day in Dallas, the 3010 and 4010 were replaced with an updated 3020 and 4020. The latter would eventually become the most popular tractor of its time. The 91-horsepower 4020 Diesel truly deserved its reign from 1964-1972 due to its ideal blend of power and performance.

Late in 1972 (the year The Green Girl was born), the "Generation II" line launched with new styling, Perma-Clutch™ and a Sound-GardÆ body. Nationwide prosperity coupled with strong demand for these tractors kept the Waterloo factory on its toes trying to keep up.

The new model winning "most popular" honors in this line was the 4430 at 126 PTO hp. A 1974-1975 line of utility tractors impressed the industry and convinced customers that these machines could do more than just chores.

Signs of the times

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The pair of red and yellow nameplates once adorned the grille of Lanz Bulldog models built between 1952 and 1960. The larger greenish Lanz nameplate matches ones on Diesel models manufactured around 1960. The pewter pin (possibly a visitor’s badge) shows the Mannheim factory with its famous water tower landmark that survived World War II bombing. The deck of playing cards says "Lanz. First Trump. Your bet is doubly safe with John Deere Lanz." © 2000 Denny Eilers

Because you can never have too much power, Deere introduced five new row-crop tractors in 1978 from 90 to 180 PTO horsepower. The 4040 to 4840 models offered more of what farmers demanded.

A cab with the Sound-Gard body on the 4640 tied the all-time record low for official sound tests at maximum available power with a reading of just 77.5 dB(A). The tractor it tied with had much less horsepower!

The introduction of 10 new models in the "50 Series" made manufacturing history for the company in 1983.

Fuel efficiency was much more important, and mechanical front-wheel drive made a big difference. It allowed up to 40% of the tractor’s power to go to the front wheels to improve traction, reduce slippage and last, but not least, improve fuel economy.

Deere’s answer to the common problem of poor maneuverability and turning radius was the patented Caster-Action™ feature. A fancy 15-speed Power Shift transmission advanced the industry, giving farmers more speeds in the critical working range. This line of tractors set several records at the Nebraska Tests for fuel efficiency, low sound levels, and drawbar pull.

As farms grew in size, so tractors grew in horsepower to match. From the 55 Series in 1988 that broke the 200-hp level to the 400-plus-hp of today’s high-tech marvels, John Deere tractors continue to deliver powerful performance to farmers all over the globe.

Lanz galore

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The first John Deere-Lanz models came from the Mannheim, Germany factory in 1960. The Lanz name was incorporated into the trademark leaping deer logo as shown on some of these promotional items. A ballpoint pen, ornate pocketknife, tape measure, key chain, and Swiss Army knife advertise the German tractor manufacturing venture. © 1999 Nick Cedar

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German toy manufacturer Rex made the plastic 1/21 scale Lanz Bulldog tractor with wide front end in 1959. Several color combinations were released, including this blue body with red wheels. © 2000 Denny Eilers

With that international influence, some tractor lines were even built at overseas factories with our foreign friends in Germany, for example.

The historic Model R diesel tractor introduced in 1948 was Deere’s first diesel, and the first tractor with a live independent PTO and all-steel cab option. More than 21,000 units were built from 1948-1954.

The Model 420 utility tractor came out in 1955 from the Dubuque Tractor Works factory.

Designed to replace the 40 Series, the seven different models didn’t look much different until June 1956 when the yellow panels were added to the finish.

In 1963, Deere updated the 3010 and 4010 to become the Model 3020 and 4020 tractors.

The 4020 later earned most popular tractor honors of the 1960s, accounting for 48 percent of all 1966 sales. A new Power-Shift transmission brought back the single-lever forward-reverse operation first seen on the Dain All-Wheel-Drive tractor of 1918.

Next week’s: Let's look at Deere’s hay machinery line made by Dain and memorabilia associated with the company’s Carrollton, Missouri and Ottumwa, Iowa locations.

Foreign farming friendships

While most people think John Deere tractors are as American as apple pie, some of Deere’s models were made in foreign countries such as the Lanz line from Germany.

Heinrich Lanz built engines and threshers at his plant in Mannheim, Germany, which was established in 1859. On a visit to the United States in 1902, Lanz met John Deere’s son Charles. Heinrich’s son Karl took over the business and later orchestrated a deal with the Deere organization.

In 1911, Lanz built its first-style Landbau-Motor "field-working machine" and began to export models to Russia. However, the onset of World War I eliminated exports, so Lanz turned to wartime production of airships and airplanes.

After the war, Karl Lanz led the development of a new agricultural tractor, the legendary Bulldog in 1921. Designed by Dr. Fritz Huber, the Bulldog was the world’s first hot-bulb-fired, crude-oil-burning tractor.

By World War II, Lanz had built more than 100,000 Bulldog tractors. At its peak, Lanz enjoyed more than 40 percent of all German tractor sales, with Deutz as the other prominent player. But World War II was a disaster as the majority of the Mannheim plant was leveled by Allied bombings in 1944 and 1945.

Still, the 200,000^th Bulldog came off the line in 1956 when Deere purchased the Lanz line and factory. Two years later, the entire line of Bulldog blue-and-orange became John Deere green-and-yellow. By 1960, the first two models (300 and 500) of John Deere-Lanz tractors were introduced. Between 1962 and 1965, the 100 and 700 joined the line.

In 1966, the entire Mannheim line was updated as the 10 Series. In Germany, these models still carried the "John Deere-Lanz" nameplate, but the Lanz name was eventually dropped for other markets.

There was also a Spanish line of Bulldogs from the Getafe, Spain factory between 1956 and 1963. The Lanz Iberica line didn’t get green paint until 1961. The first Deere-designed tractors rolled off the line in 1963. Today, the Mannheim, Germany factory still operates as a Deere tractor plant.