Search results for ""author michael thorne""

Born In London, the son of a successful builder and developer, Mike Thorne gravitated to agriculture in his teens and soon became familiar with the tractors then used on the land, having a particular admiration for the revolutionary grey Ferguson, with its unique three-point hydraulic linkage for mounting machinery. At this time he also, if asked, would construct modest buildings for local farmers, and this activity grew from being a sideline into a major business, involving large industrial buildings as well as ones for agricultural use. In the 1980s his love of tractors moved him to start acquiring examples of many makes, and over time he bought more than 100, before a change of direction saw him reduce the collection to only Ferguson and Massey Ferguson models, to house which he designed and constructed a fascinating pair of showrooms, open to the public by appointment and well known to tractor enthusiasts. In this book he writes about all the tractors he has owned, making an absorbing account of a great passion, with nearly all the tractors illustrated. He has written three books on Ferguson and Massey Ferguson tractors for Herridge & Sons, all of them now standard works.

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One of the world's best-loved farm tractors, the Ferguson T20 was built in huge numbers across the world. Harry Ferguson was a remarkable inventor and a man of vision and he is best remembered for the small unobtrusive grey tractor that bears his name. Launched in the 1940s, it rendered its competitors obsolete and provided farmers worldwide with a tool that could meet almost all their requirements. This book charts its development and evolution, including the US- and French-built models, special purpose versions and industrial types. Over 500,000 Ferguson T2s were sold all over the world. It replaced the horse on many post-war farms. This book, by a renowned expert of the marque, includes many unpublished facts and photographs. It contains an extensive study of the extraordinary range of implements available, with additional information on tractor options and accessories.

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Launched in 1958, as the successor to the ubiquitous Ferguson TE20, the Massey-Ferguson 35 was a product of the merger of Massey-Harris and Ferguson. It incorporated numerous improvements and new features and became massively popular worldwide. Its companion, the 65 model, was introduced shortly afterwards and was a larger tractor, offered with the revolutionary Multi Power system that gave 12 forward and four reverse gears. Durable and versatile, these tractors are still a practical proposition today, and even unrestored examples command high prices. Michael Thorne, author of Ferguson TE20 in Detail (2006; ISBN 978 0954998 13 4), continues the story as he describes the development of these models, the production versions and their capabilities, options and extras, conversions, implements and their use today.

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