Despite Saturday’s much welcomed rain by the agricultural community, the BA Vintage Country Fair was still able to put on a happy face. Although the activities were very much curtailed, many exhibitors took the chance to draw over the covers and have a news until the Saturday night soiree began.
Sunday however was a much better day with only light showers in mid-afternoon during a very busy day.
The warm voice of commentator Don Carney kept the large crowd entertained and educated as the day unfolded. As usual it was tractors which dominated with hundreds on display in both static and working environments.
The north-east is a hotbed of tractor preservation at the moment with a very healthy number of younger enthusiasts getting involved. As expected they tend to have an interest in the larger newer tractors which have not that long left the land. Big tractors included those built by Ford, County, Muir Hill, John Deere, Massey Ferguson, International and Case IH.
Working ground was a Ford TW-25 and a Massey 2620. While parading in the ring was a Muir Hill 141.
The static line-up contained a John Deere 4020 and an IH 955 while Balgownie Ltd showed the latest tractor in their next chapter as Case IH dealers.
A total of 23 County tractors of all shapes and sizes gathered round their stand to celebrate the Scottish County Tractor Club’s 15th birthday before some went to work with a variety of power sapping cultivation tools. The club was joined by the ever present Ferguson Club while the DMR Machinery Club, which promotes IH, Case and David Brown products, was recruiting new members.
This event always throws up something different and 2017 proved to be a year of increased variety with German Eicher, Romanian Universal, Czech Zetor, Canadian Cockshutt and a French Renault all on show.
There was even Britain’s forerunner to the Fastrac – the Trantor – present.
One area that seems to be growing is the plant sector with rollers, loaders, drotts and diggers on display.
Despite the variety and brute force present there were also plenty of mainstream machines with many examples of tractors which worked the fields of the region in the 1950s, 60s, 70s and 80s. However it would be nice to see more from the 1930s and 40s come back to public events.
Many were hitched to soil-engaging implements with some having north-east provenance such as the Ogg of Muchalls drill ploughs behind an Aberdeenshire-registered Nuffield 460.
Ogg was one of the first manufacturers to offer spring-loaded bodies to cope with stony Scottish soils. The 460 was the first model built at the BMC factory at Bathgate and partnering it was a Leyland 702 – one of the last models to be built before Leyland sold off its tractor division.
If the exhibition tractors did not cut it as far as power went then the tractor pulling versions certainly did as the raw power led to plenty of reek and raucous engine sounds for the large crowd gathered along the track.
There was reek of a gentle sort as two ploughing engines with Fife connections put on a display of steam ploughing. The Barrack’s Fowler K7, known as Sam Hird, had worked most of its life in Fife, while the Fowler BB1 from 1918 resides in the Kingdom with the Cook family and its partner.
Smaller engines for powering water pumps, milking machines, turnip cutters and potato dressers in the days before mains electricity were found in the stationary compound.
Other exhibits on show were a fantastic line up of modern and vintage trucks and Vic Mathers of Kintore was presented with an award for supporting the event in front of his amazing AEC replica road train with eight-wheel drive. A fine array of military vehicles, 4x4s and many fascinating static attractions made this a day for the whole family to enjoy.