The Vim
The Vim Tractor Co. of Schleisingerville, Wis., could not have come onto the market at a worse time. Its 1919 appearance coincided with the take-over of the Standard Machinery Co. of Schleisingerville, and a looming agriculture depression and a battle between major tractor companies trying to establish supremacy, often selling tractors for less than $400. As a result, it was impossible for the $1,650 Vim 10-20 to compete.
At 3,300 pounds, the 10-20 Vim was a small tractor. It carried a 4-cylinder Waukesha with a 3-3/4-inch-by-5-1/2-inch bore and stroke engine, and bears some resemblance to tractors produced by another Wisconsin manufacturer, Lauson.
The front of the Vim showed the Vim logo in a small circle set far to the left of the radiator. The tractor was rated for two or three 14-inch plows, pulled with a sliding gear transmission of 2-1/3 to 5 mph forward. It could also travel 5 mph in reverse.
The Illinois
Not many tractors were named after states, but the Illinois was one exception.
The first Illinois tractor was a 1916 motor cultivator, an 8-16 built by the Illinois Silo Co., of which none are known to exist. Drive wheel diameter on this Illinois tractor cultivator was 48 inches in diameter with a 7-1/2-inch face. The tractor cultivator was 90 inches long, 60 inches wide and 60 inches high, and used a Sterling 4-cylinder vertical motor of 3-inch-by-4-1/4-inch bore and stroke.
The Illinois 12-30 tractor followed in 1918 as the company changed names to Illinois Silo & Tractor Co. This newer tractor kept a few features from the motor cultivator, including the basic body design, but gave the 3,700-pound tractor more power. It was also larger, with 56-inch drive wheels with 9-inch face. The 12-30 sold for $1,200.
When the company name was changed to Illinois Tractor Co. in 1919, it also began making a different tractor, a 16-36 Illinois, which weighed 5,200 pounds and sold for $2,250. The tractor had a Climax 5-inch-by-6-1/4-inch bore and stroke L-head 4-cylinder engine which could pull four 14-inch plows.
The best-known Illinois model was probably the 18-30 “Super-Drive” tractor, which came out in 1919. With a 4-cylinder Climax engine of 5-inch-by-6-1/2-inch bore and stroke, the 18-30 weighed 5,500 pounds and sold for $2,250. The 18-30 had springs between the rear wheels and spokes to minimize strain on the engine.
In 1920, Illinois Tractor Co. came out with its 6,200-pound Super-Drive 22-40 tractor, but after that, the company faded quickly; 1921 trade directories no longer list it.