The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1919-06-27
TRACTOR BUILT
BY PREBLE MAN
HAS new IDEAS
Jesse D. Flory, Living Near
Camden. Intends Soon to
Commence Manufacture.
BY WILLIAM r. sANsoRN


BY WILLIAM r. SANBoRN
(. A farmer living in Preble county,
Ohio, has an amazingly well out.
fitted machine shop In one end OF his
big barn. That a farmer should have
q work shop In which to do odd re-
pairing is a matter Of course, where
the owner has taste for such work
and ranks among the progressives.
But a completely fitted up machine
shop, with a power lathe, first class
drill press, real forge with blower
and, to cap the climax, an oxy.
acetylene welding outfit that works to
perfection-well that's something
else again." as our friend Mawruss,
puts it.
"A farmer running a machine shop
IN his barn" you say. Exactly, and
that same machine shop is apparently
in the way of making farm tractor his
tory. 1t is because of this fact that
the writer visited the Jesse D. Flory
farm, the very farm on which the
present owner was born 43 years ago.
The fame of this machine shop. and
the fact that its owner had built
tractor that works, and which works
differently" promised an interesting
story, which would make the trip
I
appointed.
In this 1Sx354 foot, cement floor
workshop was constructed the first
farm tractor ever built by any farmer
on any farm IN America, so far as
tractor history relates, for farmers are
buyers and not manufacturers. It
isn't at all likely. that Mr.. Flory saved
a lot of money by building tractor
after his own ideas: for consider the
cost Of his machine shop. But that
isn't the nub OF the story; there was
Z no thought of saving money, but to
build better tractor "a, model for
many another Flory tractor, after the
original had satisfactorily stood the.
test in action. and which 1t surely has.
FIory Universal Tractor.
The Flory tractor differs from all
others, so far as we know, in this:
1t is automatically Stabilized" which
means that the wheels stand vertical.
regardless of grade or side inclina-
ton of the ground in which it is
worked. For instance. with one wheel
in a furrow and the other on un.
plowed ground, the Flory comes to
and maintains a balance: it always
runs level; there is no fitting of the
machine and the wheels always run
as nat as IL on floor. This Is the
most IMPORTANT claim made for the ma.
chine. aside from the fact that it will
do all that any tractor Is designed
to de. z without exception, and do it
without the danger of an upset or
taking a header. In brief, its inventor
claims that it runs safe in all posi-
tons
Now this would not be quite so sur
pristng perhaps, but for the fact that
it Isl a two-wheeled tractor. The OPP
orator rides on the implement, just
as one does when. doing the work
with horses In good ground this
tractor pulls two 14.inch bottoms on
high gear, though plowing is usually
done on low gear action. The wheels
are braced in such a way that they
can be "trued'' or adjusted as to tread
at will, this also being an important
matter in regular use of the machine.
They are adjusted as to bottom tread
and this "trues" the top, of course,
also. In connection with the hitch
bar there is patented vertical ad'
justment, to raise or lower according
to the pitch of the land or the depth
of the furrow, and according to the
pull of the load. The wheels have
F.. standard 10-inch rims, are 81 inches
QlgQ, ana Lie CIOdI dhSC "a 49,
tread is "a inches, and of the outside
81 inches. The gripping Tugs are
inches deep. There is a. clearance OF
80 inches for the cultivation of crops
and it is said that no tractor so faI
built has a higher clearance than
this. some having but 80 inches OF
less.
Safe in Operation.
In two-wheel tractor constructor
ALI the weight is traction weight and
all the pull is drawbar pull. There II
no waste of power. His tractor is 81
adjusted, Flory claims, that there il
no undue strain or wear on the bear
ing or other parts, or is built to be
adjusted in moment. according u
the work and the load.
Did you ever notice." asks Flory
"how quickly the weight of tractor
/ ia thrown on one wheel when tina
side is lowest" He also asks: VIVA
would happen if, when blowing will
one wheel of your tractor in the fur
row. the other wheel should mount |
rise in the ground Of s or 10 inches il
addition to the depth OF your furroW
Or suppose you had your tracto
wheels adjusted for blowing and thel
undertook to travel on slanting groun'
leaning the opposite direction to which
your wheels have been set?
We shall not attempt to tell yo'