By 1950, the bloom of the post-war tractor boom was fading. With the Korean conflict came material restrictions that favored the larger implement producers. Harry Ferguson was desperate to keep his operations afloat, what with Henry Ford II backing out of the famed “handshake agreement” and struggling to get his new Detroit factory into production.
At the same time, Massey-Harris of Canada was also struggling with its Scottish tractor factory. The company’s Model 744 row-crop tractor was generating little enthusiasm in the British market.
Harry Ferguson and M-H had made overtures toward some kind of cooperation. Ferguson wanted to add a combine to his product line and thought Massey-Harris could help, but misunderstandings and misinterpretations of the other’s intentions blocked progress. Finally, M-H – wanting to utilize excess Scottish factory capacity – approached Ferguson about manufacturing a combine for him. Ferguson and Massey-Harris Chairman James Duncan met face to face. That meeting ultimately led to the merger of the two firms, creating Massey Ferguson in 1953.
An undercover operation
Meanwhile, Ferguson sensed market readiness for a larger three-point hitch tractor. Back at Banner Lane in Coventry (Ferguson’s British headquarters), Ferguson had authorized top engineer John Chambers to move forward rapidly. Chambers aimed to double the power of the Ferguson TO-30 (then in production) for a 60hp five-plow TO-60. It would be the first tractor of that size to have a draft-compensating three-point hitch.
Development of this tractor, also known as the Big Fergie, the LTX (Large Tractor Experimental) and the Ferguson 60, was shrouded in secrecy reminiscent of that surrounding the famed Manhattan Project for fear that Massey management would shut it down before it could prove itself. This work had been going on since 1948. When the merger occurred in 1953, the tractor was well along in field testing.
Designed in-house, the drivetrain of the Big Fergie was sized to take up to 100hp. Previous Ferguson tractors had problems with rear axle failures, so final reduction gears were placed at the outboard ends by the wheels. The engine was also an in-house product, configured to be used in two-, three-, four- or six-cylinder arrangements with either carburetors or diesel injectors. The four-cylinder unit for the TO-60 would displace 275 cubic inches, ample for 60hp.
“Give it 1,000 hours”
In 1949, the first prototype of the Big Fergie (along with appropriately sized implements) was ready for field trials at a remote farm in Warwickshire in England’s West Midlands. The tractor featured live hydraulics with a three-piston pump, a differential lock, a live 540/1,000-rpm PTO, and a transport lock for the three-point hitch. The hitch itself had a lifting capacity of 6,000 pounds. The tractor’s 12×36 rear tires were used with 6.00×19 fronts.
This first iteration met engineers’ expectations and further examples were constructed to accelerate the test program. Harry Ferguson came to the farm to see the tractor in action, and even plowed a few rounds with a five-bottom plow. “Give it 1,000 hours,” he said, and left the field.
The test crew then plowed 16 hours a day, rain or shine, with no problems reported, except that the combination of power and traction stripped the lugs off of the rear tires. The tire manufacturer provided stronger tires and testing resumed.
The test prototypes looked much the same as the TE/TO-20 and 30 production tractors, except larger. One final version was modernized to be styled like the TE/TO-35.
Ferguson 60 gets lost in the shuffle
At the time of the 1953 Ferguson / Massey-Harris merger, testing of the Big Fergie was halted while company leaders sorted out the two product lines. M-H had standard-tread tractors in the 50hp to 60hp range, and 40hp row-crop tractors. They were also adding the Ferguson three-point hitch to their row-crop tractors.
The M-H marketing team saw no need for an additional entry in the market that was not adaptable to the row-crop configuration. Ferguson marketing staff maintained that the market was ready for a five-plow, three-point hitch tractor, but saw no need for a row-crop entry, and since their TO/TE-35 was selling well, why risk anything on the big tractor? Thus sounded the death knell for the Ferguson 60. The prototypes were destroyed and drawings and documents were shredded.
Miraculously, one prototype escaped immediate destruction, safely ensconced in the barn of the farmer who had hosted the testing. This farmer had used the machine in routine farm chores for about 500 hours when the clutch went out. He requested a factory replacement, but instead of parts, the company sent a truck to pick the tractor up. The farmer never saw it again.
More than a passing resemblance
By the mid-1950s, the market had a clear preference for more powerful tractors in the utility configuration. Ford’s popular 800 series approached 50hp and the Fordson New Major was also just under 50hp. The 1958 50hp Farmall 460 had a four-plow rating. By 1960, there would be a number of 60-plus horsepower, 5-plow tractors on the market, with one very notable example: the Massey Ferguson Model 85, the heir-apparent of the Big Fergie, and the first in its class to have a draft-compensating three-point hitch.
It is not clear that any design data from the Big Fergie was actually available to the designers of the MF-85, but there certainly is a family resemblance. In both cases, gasoline and diesel were contemplated, but only gasoline materialized. The Fergie got a four-cylinder, 275-cubic inch engine, while the Continental four-cylinder, 242-cubic inch engine of the MF-85 was officially rated at 62hp.
The two were about the same size and weight and both had excellent weight distribution. The MF-85 featured a two-range transmission with eight forward and two reverse speeds, while the 60 offered just four forward and one reverse speed. The 60 had a three-cylinder hydraulic pump with a Ferguson-system three-point hitch (before categories were established) with upper-link sensing; the MF-85 had a four-cylinder pump with a Category 2 hitch with lower link draft sensing.
While the MF-85’s heritage is clearly from the Ferguson 60, the styling is definitely Massey-Harris. The tractor’s steering wheel angle is Ferguson (or Ford) but unlike some brands, the steering wheel is centered. A short shaft ends in a universal joint connecting a long, horizontal shaft to the power steering unit and gearbox at the front. This shaft runs through a tube through the entire length of the 20-gallon gas tank.
Both tractors featured live hydraulics and live PTOs. The MF-85 offered only a 540rpm PTO while the 60 provided both 540 and 1,000rpm PTO outputs. Both tractors used the two-stage clutch to control both the PTO and the transmission, a feature covered by a Ferguson patent.
The Massey Ferguson Model 85 was introduced with much fanfare in late 1958 for the 1959 model year. It was available in the standard utility configuration and a row-crop style, with various front-end arrangements, all of which would be considered “high-clearance” types. Gasoline and LPG fuel systems were offered; a diesel was promised, but if any were built, they were extremely rare. Actually, all ’85s are fairly rare, as only about 8,000 were built in the three years of production.Â
At the time when the Model 85 was being planned, Massey-Ferguson was still under the Two-Line Policy, meaning different designations for tractors for competing Massey-Harris and Ferguson dealers. Accordingly, Ferguson dealers were to get a Model 80 while Massey-Harris dealers received the same tractor with a different “Model 90” grille. However, before production got underway, the Two-Line Policy was ended and, as a compromise, the designation was changed to MF-85. FC
After 36 years in the aircraft industry, Bob Pripps returned to his first love and began writing about tractors. He has authored some 30 books on the subject and several magazine articles. Pripps has a maple syrup farm near Park Falls, Wisconsin. In harvesting the maple sap, he relies on a Ford Jubilee and a Massey Ferguson 85.
