Old Iron in Star Valley

Tag: Cows

  • 1936 Farmall F30

    About a year and a half ago we picked up a non-running 1936 Farmall F-30 tractor from someone over in Eastern Idaho. The F-30 is the predecessor to the popular Model M tractor. Where I already have a Model M and the successor Super M, I thought the F-30 would be a good addition to the lineup.

    The F-30 is a hand-start only tractor with no battery or lights. It also originally shipped on all steel wheels, so the four speed transmission tops out at around 5 MPH. It’s not exactly the tractor to take if you want to get somewhere in a hurry… However, it was considered a big tractor for the time–almost too big, as the smaller Model F-20 was the top seller (by a long shot).

    The John Deere tractor that competed with the F-30 was the Model G. The earlier G did not sell as well either, where the smaller Model A has significantly higher sales. The John Deere A was even outsold by the even smaller Model B. I guess farms at the time just weren’t ready for the larger equipment yet.

    Anyway, I’ve been slowly working on the machine for the past year. I finally took the plunge and purchased new back tires, which was the last thing it really needed to be able to get it out and use it some. Where tires are so expensive I was procrastinating the purchase for a while.

    I hope you can enjoy this old piece of history.

  • Feeding with the 630, December 15 2019

    It’s winter time again. And with that, feeding the beef cattle. In this video I am feeding the cattle with a John Deere 630. Dad loaded the bale on the 3020 Diesel PowerShift, as well as brought a little more hay out (alfalfa) to supplement the bale where the weather was so cold (it was below zero f while feeding).

    The hay is a three-way mixture of barley, oats, and peas, which the cattle quite enjoy.

  • Planting with the John Deere A and LL-A Grain Drill

    This year I took the opportunity to have a little fun with planting oats in one of our smaller fields.  I used the 1947 John Deere Model A that I recently restored, as well as our old grain drill (aka planter, late 1950s).  It may not have been the quickest way to plant the oats, but I, and the dogs, had a lot of fun doing it!

    The three videos here show us getting the drill ready and making sure everything on it works.  The second video shows the John Deere 4230 disking the field.  Last year we used the Model A as well as the John Deere 2010 to plow the field.  Since it was plowed last fall, you disk it before you plant it to break up the larger chunks into a more fine powder, so the drill can do accurately seed the crop.  The final video shows the actual planting process.

  • Feeding Cattle & Spring Update

    Sometimes feeding cattle can be more than just driving out to the cows and dropping off hay.  For instance, watching hawks fly by and Sandhill Cranes walk around the field looking for some leftover food (grains) left over by the cattle.

    This spring has been an interesting one.  Although the snow is gone in the video, as of today we still have a few inches… We received about six inches yesterday, which isn’t very unusual for this area.  Summer will arrive just in time for fall, and then back into winter.  We don’t know if we’ll receive a summer, but we’ve never missed a winter!

  • October Through December 2012 Photo Journal

    I finally got around to finishing the photo journal 2012.  As you may notice, there are many photos of me feeding cattle.  That’s because with the days as short as they were, my schedule basically consisted of going to work, coming home and feeding the cows, then getting home just in time for it to get dark.

  • 1939 John Deere A and Spring Baby Calves

    Here’s a video that was taken up at the calves.  This video is similar to the previous post, except it has more of the calves and shows the tractor stationary.

    Our beef cattle calf in the spring, and we feed them during the summer on the range, so our beef is only Alfalfa and grass/range fed (organic).

     

  • Drive to the beef cattle on a 39 John Deere A

    I took a nice little stroll to the beef cows that are currently on the dry farm on the 1939 John Deere Model A.  I’ve been working on the tractor most of the winter, so I thought it would be a good opportunity to warm the motor up a bit and let it stretch its legs.  It was so pretty that I decided to film it.  Since I’m just holding my camera, it’s a little bumpy.  The video shows the beautiful west hills in Freedom, Wyoming (which is actually in Idaho) on the Robert Weber farm.

     

     

  • Wintertime Feeding Cattle

    Even though we sold the dairy a few years ago, we still have a few beef cattle.  It’s kind of fun feeding them when dad isn’t doing it.  Here’s a few random photos of our cattle feeding experiences.

     

  • April Photography Weekend

    I know the farming season will start very soon, and I have spent the entire week working for the school district.  So what better thing to do then get out and enjoy the beauty of Star Valley (Freedom).  So that’s what I did. This is a collection of some of the photos I took on the 25th and the 26th of April, 2009.  Another reason why I wanted so much to get out and take photos is because of my Fathers Utah siblings whom have come up with a plan to “support” my grandparents–but in reality it’s selling off most of the dry farm to pay for a luxurious retirement for themselves…  I have to enjoy it while I can, and pray for the best.