c.1919 International Harvester 8-16 Junior Tractor

Registration no. not registered Chassis no. to be advised

Footnotes

The USA's International Harvester company was created in 1902 by the merger of a group of agricultural equipment manufacturers. The firm is best known for its immensely successful Farmall tractors, production of which commenced in 1924, though before then the company had diversified into the production of light commercial vehicles and trucks.

Offered here is an example of the International 8-16 Junior, a tractor built from 1918 to 1922 in International's factory in Chicago, Illinois. When it was introduced, the 8-16 was built in the style of International's trucks, featuring a sloping bonnet and the radiator behind the engine. The original VB-series was powered by a 251ci (4.1-litre) overhead-valve four-cylinder three-main-bearing engine, borrowed from the Model L truck, and used a three-speed transmission like the smaller trucks. Other noteworthy features included thermo-syphon cooling, steel wheels, contracting band brakes, chain final drive, and a Splitdorf Dixie magneto.

In mid-1919 the upgraded Series HC 8-16 arrived featuring a redesigned engine with the three plain main bearings replaced by two roller bearings. A water-bath air cleaner was another new feature. The International 8-16 was revised again with a larger (284ci, 4.6-litre) engine for 1921. A price war with Ford lead to the price of $1,150 being cut by February 1922 to $670, with a two-furrow plough included. Over 33,000 8-16s were built, of which it is estimated that some 2,500 were imported into the UK where the price, in 1921, was £310.

This 8-16 Junior was imported from the USA and has been mechanically restored by a local agricultural engineer, the work commencing in 2001. There are photographs of the restoration and related bills on file totalling £5,930, which does not include the cost of the new radiator and carburettor. We are advised that the tractor has been started but not driven (the drive chains have been removed to facilitate movement) and that the mudguards and bonnet need finishing and refitting.