Demonstrator Models

[Hengy]

Hi there all!

I was reading the recent posts on the white "Demonstrator" models. I have never seen or heard of a white cub like that. Why did the company do that, though? Would have though that they would want to show the tractor in its shiny red glory...

How many years did they produce the white demonstrators? Were the produced right up until they stopped producing them?

Thanks for the hours and hours of joy reading up on this site!

Mike in La Crosse, WI

[Bill Blansett]

Mike, The white Cubs along with a few other Farmall models were part of the mid century celebration and sales promotion in 1950. They were produced for just a few months, supposedly built in Jan, Feb. and March of 1950 and within a certain serial number range. The tractors were not planned to be delivered to customers in the white livery. Most were repainted prior to sale but apparently a few slipped on through. They are a collector item, however, other than the white paint under the red and the specific serial number, they are the same tractor as the red ones. some show up at the Cubarama tractor event and other tractor shows. Mr. George Willer on this forum owns one. Others may also.

You can find more info on this in Ken Updikes book "Farmall Cub and Cub Cadet". Lot of good reading here. Easy to get from Amazon.com. Hope this helps. Bill

[Buzzard Wing]

Now they are quite collectible. When the dealer was finished with them they were repainted, probably not as good as a factory paint job. Also they were considered 'used' so they sold for less than a regular Cub.

ArtC just bought one!

I spotted one at a fair that was painted yellow, then red. That was a work tractor and the owner may not even know what a 'demonstrator' is or what they have.

[John(videodoc)]

mike , i just picked one up. the PO spray can painted it red. so i am in the process of getting it back to white. heres the pics.

http://photobucket.com/albums/b46/video ... emo%20cub/

you can see under the hood, it was white, with s/n 100271 its clearly in the demo range. Just got the report back on the gas tank, it was clean (sent it off to be boiled), amazingly after looking how bad the sediment bowl was. Anyway the tank is being coated today, so there wont be any future problems to worry about. and then off to the body shop. john

[RustyVT]

A collector told me once that the special color tractors were important back then to differentiate a new model, or to make the "same old" seem new again and attract attention. Let's face it, if you drove by a Farmall dealership every few days in 1950, it would be hard to tell whether they even had any new tractors in, let along any new models. In other words- the white Cub stuck out like a sore thumb on the lot and got a prospective customer to stop in and hear the salesman's spiel. Considering the few changes made to Cubs over the years, it would have taken something to get people to stop if they'd looked at them before. Ford did this same thing with the Seclect-O-Speed tractors in the late fifties, painting the demo models with the new transmission- otherwise identical to all the others on the lot- gold. Too bad the transmission turned out so bad!

[RustyVT]

A coworker just reminded me that Case did this in the late sixties or early seventies with a back cowling and gold stripe.

[gitractorman]

Yes, IH did the "demonstrator" program again later, in the 1960s and 1970s with AG equipment. I have seen pictures of big stuff, like the 1456 and others that were painted all gold. Again, this was done to bring attention to the new models at dealerships, and to really stand out at County fairs and tractor shows, where farmers were likely to see the new models for the first time.

Something that I find interesting, and very seldom talked about, is the industrial tractors. IH tractors, including the Farmall Cubs, were available in many different colors, directly from the factory, if ordered in quantity by a municipality. I have seen pictures of all orange, all yellow, and all green Farmalls (forest service green) and IH tractors, that were ordered for municipal use. Many however, were re-painted red by the second owners, so they would look like "normal" Farmall IH equipment. Certain tractors like the Super A, 100, 140 line were offered in Industrial configuration, with fixed front axles, gas pedals, hazard lights, etc. offered as part of the Industrial package.

Anyway, just some info.
Bill

[countershaft]

The Farmall Cub Demonstrators were produced in the 3 months mentioned. January , Feburary and March of 1950. Serial #'s 99,536 thru 106,511. There were approximately 6,975 made and sent out to dealers to be used as demonstrators . Once finished with that process , they were to be re-painted "red" and sold as used tractors. As mentioned, some however were not re-painted and sold and used with the white paint. To authenicate one you not only have to look for traces of white paint , the serial number sequences, but also very important , the casting code letters ( S @ T ) I found one and am in the process of refinishing it , #105,395. What a jewel.! The records at International are somewhat hazy and accuraccy is sometimes questionable with what , and why all this happened. Evidently some were special ordered and painted red durning that period too.

[George Willer]

Now they are quite collectible. When the dealer was finished with them they were repainted, probably not as good as a factory paint job. Also they were considered 'used' so they sold for less than a regular Cub.

Quite a few forum menbers have them.

The reason they were sold as used is that that's what they were... used. For "demonstrating" to any imagined potential buyer. They were sent out to do as much work as possible and attract as much attention as possible because of their unusual paint job. Some were painted red as intended, but many were not. Mine was one that wasn't re-painted until many years later, when it was painted with a brush.

I know 4 of the children of the original owner and they tell me the red paint wasn't considered until they were grown and left home. Their father found that when he had to do the work he didn't like the glare from the white hood, so he got out the brush and paint bucket.

BTW, those "children" are now geezers my age or older.

[countershaft]

as always George, an excellent response .

[Joe in Pa.]

I may be wrong, but, in one of the Red Power Roundups I also saw one that had "special" decals.... I seem to remember seeing several gold rimmed stars affixed to the tractor with statments such as "with cultivision" & "available with fast hitch". That really impressed me if those were originals.