Addicted to Old Iron

By Cecil Hicks
Published on September 5, 2014
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Three of Bryce Frazier’s restored tractors pulled plows during his antique club’s annual plow day in May 2014. Bryce is shown here with his parents, Sharon and Barry Frazier, and three of his tractors.
Three of Bryce Frazier’s restored tractors pulled plows during his antique club’s annual plow day in May 2014. Bryce is shown here with his parents, Sharon and Barry Frazier, and three of his tractors.
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By the end of the plow day event, after plowing, discing and harrowing, club members had 30 acres ready for planting.
By the end of the plow day event, after plowing, discing and harrowing, club members had 30 acres ready for planting.
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With four bays, Bryce’s tractor shed can hold up to eight tractors.
With four bays, Bryce’s tractor shed can hold up to eight tractors.
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Bryce Frazier at 13, at the wheel of his newly acquired Farmall C. The Farmall would be his first tractor restoration.
Bryce Frazier at 13, at the wheel of his newly acquired Farmall C. The Farmall would be his first tractor restoration.
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Three of Bryce Frazier’s restored tractors pulled plows during his antique club’s annual plow day in May 2014. Bryce is shown here with his parents, Sharon and Barry Frazier, and three of his tractors.
Three of Bryce Frazier’s restored tractors pulled plows during his antique club’s annual plow day in May 2014. Bryce is shown here with his parents, Sharon and Barry Frazier, and three of his tractors.
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Bryce’s John Deere Model B tractor before restoration. Because his grandmother Mary helped sponsor its restoration, Bryce renamed the tractor “the Mary B.”
Bryce’s John Deere Model B tractor before restoration. Because his grandmother Mary helped sponsor its restoration, Bryce renamed the tractor “the Mary B.”
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For Bryce, plowing a field on his restored John Deere 40 is a good way to spend a day along with fellow antique tractor enthusiasts.
For Bryce, plowing a field on his restored John Deere 40 is a good way to spend a day along with fellow antique tractor enthusiasts.
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Bryce tackled restoration of this 1924 3 hp Fairbanks, Morse & Co. Model Z engine as a surprise for his dad.
Bryce tackled restoration of this 1924 3 hp Fairbanks, Morse & Co. Model Z engine as a surprise for his dad.
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Bryce's latest project: a Ferguson TO 30. At this point, the tractor was running but still needed new sheet metal hood and fenders.
Bryce's latest project: a Ferguson TO 30. At this point, the tractor was running but still needed new sheet metal hood and fenders.
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Bryce with his pride and joy, a restored 1954 John Deere 40 pulling a 1937 Case 2-bottom plow. “I’ve learned that tractor restoration projects are like fingerprints,” he says. “Not one is the same. Some tractors only need tires, some only need paint and some need a lot of work.”
Bryce with his pride and joy, a restored 1954 John Deere 40 pulling a 1937 Case 2-bottom plow. “I’ve learned that tractor restoration projects are like fingerprints,” he says. “Not one is the same. Some tractors only need tires, some only need paint and some need a lot of work.”
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Bryce with his John Deere Model B, after restoration.
Bryce with his John Deere Model B, after restoration.

By his own admission, Bryce Frazier is addicted. Nobody knows that better than his family, all of whom cheerfully support his habit — old iron, 24-7. At 16, the Sagle, Idaho, teenager has solid restoration skills and a tractor collection that many twice his age would envy. And he’s just getting started.

Although he can’t remember a time when he wasn’t fascinated with antique tractors, Bryce says his hobby got its start four years ago, when the then 12-year-old tagged along with his mom to a yard sale. There he spotted a pair of 1949 Farmall Model C tractors. One was in running condition (more on that, later); the other was a parts donor.

“I took a good, long look at the Farmall tractor engine,” he recalls. “It seemed amazingly simple compared to our Yanmar sitting at home.” Even the purchase price (the tractors were tagged at $600 for the pair) seemed manageable. “I had the money saved,” Bryce says, “but I had to convince both the owner and my mom to let me buy them.” His only hesitation? The tractors were red — not the green of his beloved John Deere line. Still, a few weeks later, the tractors were his.

School of hard knocks

By the time Bryce became a teenager, he’d restored his first antique tractor: one of the Farmalls he’d bought at the yard sale. When he bought the tractor, the engine would turn over but it made ominous sounds. The tractor had very little power and consumed oil at an alarming rate.

As he and his dad, Barry, tore into the engine, they discovered that, at some point, it had been stuck. A previous owner had somehow managed to get it running. But the damage was done: Rust had eaten piston rings and valves in three of the cylinders and the piston in the fourth was damaged. The engine was badly cracked. “Everything inside was garbage,” Bryce says.

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