The HI
Industrial version of the H
Built in 2000, 1 made
The industrial H, or "HI", was a very low production tractor in its day. In fact, NONE were made by Deere. This, of course, makes them very rare. Luckily, however, a collector managed to find one, and he restored it to show condition.
Of course, many of you now think that I am insane. But it is true! Deere never made a single industrial H. Yet here is an example....
It is actually an H, slightly modified into an industrial version, by its owner, Eric Joel. His story (in his words) follows:
"I found a derelict carcass of this 1939 H which was in a very sorry state with cut axles, no tires, poor wheels, beat up and missing tin - however the motor was loose and complete and for some reason it had been painted a kind of industrial yellow so as I was transporting home (about a 6 hour trip including a small Ferry ride) and thinking about what a mess I had gotten myself into I somehow gave thought to how it would be neat to have a regular "H" much like a "BR" since I already had restored another 1939 "H" and a 1942 "HN". As I went along I further thought why not go with the yellow colour and make it an Industrial Version.
"So over the winter of 1999/2000 I went ahead with the concept and ended up with what you see. With help from some good friends - I shortened the frame by 14 inches, welded a bolster for the front axle (which was a broken one from an "AR" that we shortened),cut down the rear wheel castings and drilled them to bolt onto 24" wheels from an Allis "B", swapped the wheel brakes from left to right to allow them to be applied in the reverse direction plus shortened the pedals, adapted a JD combine steering box , and cut down a set of new "BR" fenders and made my own platform and had a hood made. A friend of mine in a print shop made the raised lettering for the radiator, plus the decals.
"All in all it was a lot more work than I perceived it to be but I was quite pleased with the end result. She garners a lot of attention at shows I take it to especially from other JD enthusiasts however I still hear some onlookers saying "We had one just like that back on the farm when I was a kid" - I just chuckle to myself and let them believe that."
A very interesting story, and a very interesting tractor too! I'm glad Eric shared his story with me, and allowed me to share it. You can see more pictures of his unique tractor below (note its industrial features!):
You can see its setback front axle for shorter turning radius
It has a lowered exhaust, and intake
Note its turning brakes for working in tight spaces
This page wouldn't be possible without help from the owner of the HI, Eric Joel. In fact I wouldn't even have known about it! Thank you!