Deere & Company, the firm founded by John Deere, began to expand its range of John Deere equipment to include the tractor business in 1876. The Deere company briefly experimented with building its own tractor models, the most successful of which was the Dain all-wheel drive.
Foundation to 1948
Dain all-wheel drive The Dain all-wheel drive was the first tractor produced by John Deere, and had only a single rear wheel. In 1911, Deere purchased the Dain Manufacturing Company of Ottumwa, Iowa. The next year, Deere decided to design its own tractor, and Dain founder, Joseph Dain Sr., was directed to design that tractor. After several prototypes, the design was finalized in 1917, and 100 production units were ordered. By 1919 when that production run was complete, Deere had purchased the Waterloo Boy Company. Although the Dain AWD was ahead of its time, with features such as a shift-on-the-fly transmission, Deere halted production in late 1919, partly because the cost of the Dain tractor was double that of the Waterloo Boy, and partly because of the death of Dain Sr.
Waterloo Boy
The predecessor of the Waterloo Boy came about in 1892. It was made by thresher-man John Froelich. It is called the "Froelich tractor". In March 1918, Deere & Company decided to continue its foray into the tractor business by purchasing the Waterloo Gasoline Engine Company which manufactured the popular Waterloo Boy tractor at its facilities in Waterloo, Iowa. Deere & Company continued to sell tractors under the Waterloo Boy name until 1923.
Model D (Spoker Model D)
Despite a rather severe farm economy depression at the time, Deere & Company management decided to build the Model D prototype in 1923, designed by Muir L. Frey (father of Ford Mustang designer Donald N. Frey). The Deere Model D was produced from March 1, 1923, to July 3, 1953, the longest production span of all the two-cylinder John Deere tractors. Over 160,000 were made. The first Model D rode on steel wheels with a 6.5 in × 7 in (170 mm × 180 mm) (later 6.75 in × 7 in (171 mm × 178 mm)) cylinder bore and stroke of the two-cylinder hand-cranked engine rated 15 to 27 hp (11 to 20 kW). It was not, however, the first tractor to bear the Deere name; as a number of Deere experimental tractors, and the John Deere Dain all-wheel drive tractor (of which approximately 100 were produced during 1918 and 1919) had all carried the Deere name before the Model D. By 1925, Deere & Company realized the standard Model D did not meet customers' needs for industrial applications. Steel wheels were not suitable for hard surfaces, and the gearing was too slow for safe road speeds. Solid rubber tires were added, and engineers fitted a 28 tooth sprocket to the final drive, giving a road speed of 4 mph (6 km/h). The company replaced the 465 cu in (7.6 L) two-cylinder engine with a 501 cu in (8.2 L). In 1926, Deere & Company advertised the model as the "John Deere industrial tractor", with 40 in × 8 in (1,016 mm × 203 mm) rear wheels and 24 in × 3.5 in (610 mm × 89 mm) fronts with solid tires. This became known as the "DI". Options also included wheel weights.
GP tractor On June 20, 1928, the model designation was changed from "C" to "GP", to avoid confusion with the "D" when dealers were phoning in orders to the factory. "GP" stands for "general purpose". This new model GP had the same horsepower, engine displacement, weight, and three-speed transmission as the model C. The GP's first serial number was 200211. In 1930, the GP was updated with a 25 hp (19 kW), 339 cu in (5.6 L) engine. The John Deere Model GP was built in five distinct versions through the course of its production:
The standard-front GP, or John Deere standard, built from March 1928 to February 1935 The John Deere two-wheel tricycle-front GP, or GP-tricycle, of which twenty-three units were built between August 1928 and April 1929 The John Deere GP wide-tread, or GPWT, built from November 1929 to November 1933 The John Deere GP wide-tread Series P, a GPWT with narrowed rear tread width designed to suit potato rows, built between January and August 1930 The John Deere general purpose orchard tractor, or "GPO", from April 1931 to April 1935. This tractor had specialized shielding for groves and orchards and around low-hanging branches. Some GPOs were fitted with crawler undercarriages from the Lindeman Brothers in Yakima, Washington. These are commonly known as "GPO Lindemans". The John Deere Model A came off the assembly line in April 1934. The tractor was 25 hp (19 kW), was 309 cu in (5.1 L), and had a four-speed transmission. There were eight different model A variations. Some of these were tricycle, hi-crop, orchard, single front tire, and industrial models. The tricycle wheel design, patterned after that of the Farmall tractor, reduced steering effort, and greatly increased maneuverability. The Model B was introduced in June 1934. This tractor had a shorter frame than the Model A, but it was eventually lengthened so it could use some of the same equipment that the larger models A and G used. There were also eight different Model B tractor variations, the same as the larger Model A. The much larger G model arrived in 1937. It was fitted with a 36 hp (27 kW), 425 cu in (7.0 L) engine, and a four-speed transmission. Deere & Company publicized the G as a three-plow tractor, and it was built until 1941, when the GM (G, modernized) replaced it. The GM model was made from 1942 to 1947. The drawbar power increased to 38 hp (28 kW), and a new six-speed transmission was also added. The G model got a restyled front at this point, as did the other John Deere tractor models. The GM had electric starting and lighting added to its options. During its production time, the G tractor was available as a hi-crop, single front wheel, and styled.
Un-styled row crop tractors
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