I Drive a Tractor For the First Time Ever! | Fordson Dexta 1959
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- čas přidán 12. 09. 2024
- I'd like to say a massive thanks to Malcolm for letting me drive, his 1959 Fordson Dexta. Thanks also to Chrissie for organising this, but not for your videography! Perhaps I should be looking at buying a farm?
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All drivers could do with a dose of driving different vehicles + horse & cart 😂 it deffo gives you more respect for other road users ! excellent vid Ashley 👍.
I'm a lorry driver and find your videos very useful for my day to day Ashley. I didn't see this video coming mate.
😆🤣
A big Thank You and thumbs up to Malcolm for agreeing to be featured. He also comes across as a very friendly and affable chap. So Thank You Malcom.
Hello Ib S. Do you plan on filming a video with Ashley. It would be nice to put a face and voice to the comments, given you are so prominent here
@@BertyMagic Hello there. Haa yes it has crossed my mind, though Ashley and I are geographically far apart, as he is in Liverpool and I'm in Canterbury. Even without that hurdle, I have to admit it would be a case of me plucking up the courage to be featured on a Viewers Drives. No reflection whatsoever on Ash, more just from myself. But you never know. It has certainly crossed my mind on several occasions.
I'm not sure if you are aware but Ashley and I have actually met in person. It was at the NEC Classic Car Restoration Show in Birmingham earlier this year. Ashley and his wife Liz were there to meet one of his other viewers and featured that viewers Ford Corsair. Ashley just happened to ask me if I was heading to the NEC, as he was well aware from my comments over time that I attend many car shows. I'm actually heading back to the NEC in November for the even larger Classic Car show which is around twice the size of the Restoration Show in March.
Anyhow, Thank you for the suggestion. I'm quite honored to read your comments actually. In the meantime, hopefully my profile photo and style of writing will give you some idea of my persona. I am actually genuinely very impressed by the standard of comments from others on this channel and it seems to just be getting better.
I’m up for it Ibrahim 👍
@@ashley_neal I'm up for it too Ash, though it would have to be in the New Year. We'd also need to be reasonably near geographically.
Sidenote: I'm away in Vancouver for 8 weeks starting mid January.
The loose steering is handy on fields, as the wheels can wobble a bit without sending the steering wheel back and forth. Also a hint for road driving... just use 1 hand as you can better feel the load change for the wheel to adjust for a straight line 🙂 I spent many years driving similar aged Fordson Diesel and Fordson Super Majors.
yes, tractors aren't made to be precise. you don't drive it so much as you herd it.
In the sixties, I used to drive my uncle's tractor, pulling a trailer, which the men used to load with hay using pitchforks. Only ever inside the farm. I loved it.
Watching this upload reminded me of a conversation I once had with an Army Veteran. When his unit was on a Desert exercise it was customary for the driver to loosen the steering to enable a high degree of play. Due to the rough terrain, despite a lack of precision, it made the job a little bit easier as the steering wheel could easily accommodate huge potholes without causing a large change of direction.
Having a seperate throttle - hand rather than feet adjusted - also makes a lot of sense.
First time I've though about that in years. Fond memories of my old pal revisited. Thanks.
From the opening style of presentation, for a moment I thought this was Live!
That tractor is the same age as me and it's in better nick. Very entertaining, thanks for posting.
Me too. And both my nuts need tightening.
Amusing (in a good way) to see Ashley driving like a new learner driver.
Well that was most interesting and fun to watch. I'm now wondering what other types of vehicles we will see you driving in the future, as you've covered quite a few so far. Maybe one day I'll be sitting on the plane bound for Vancouver and hear the announcement "This is your Captain, Ashley Neal speaking". 😀🇬🇧🇨🇦
This could have been combined with the video entitled "I drive home without signalling." 😂
Not sure how this one dropped off my viewing radar but that looked like so much fun.
One thing I love about farm vehicles is how simple they are. The steering, while not true and straight, is simple to fix if something breaks in the middle of a field.
Looking forward to next year when you drive a combine harvester through the streets of Liverpool…maybe 😉
I love how Malcolm's property has plenty of space and a long driveway for vehicles. Being the classic car petrolhead that I am, my mind is immediately thinking how many classic cars could be kept on his property...and what sort of cars I'd have in my dream collection. An E- type Jag immediately comes to mind, though there would be plenty of others, trust me!
Jag E-type would be my dream car, too. I have driven one. Amazing styling that doesn't look dated even after all these years. Have also driven various tractors and forklifts.
@@jefflerner7526 You have excellent taste Jeff! I'm not sure if you are aware but when the E type was first unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show in 1961, it caused a huge press storm. Everyone was in such awe at the gorgeous design. So much so that they quickly summoned another E type from the UK to turn up at the show and was driven at high speed across Europe to Geneva.
True story: Back in the early 1970's and before I was of driving age, I almost won an E type. It was from a competition in a car magazine. You had to identify the name and model of different cars from partial close up photos. I successfully identified all 10 but lost out on the tie breaker slogan. First prize was a gorgeous red E type. Alas, I was one of many folks winning a runner up prize of...a tin of car polish!
I attend many car shows and am always lingering about the E types as well as photographing them from various angles. I particularly love the curved styling, the wire wheels as well as the very practical opening rear hatch on the Coupe models.
I also still remember as a little boy, seeing a very large scale model red E type in the window of Hamleys toy store in London. Alas my parents said no. I've been thinking about it ever since.
That takes me back more than 50 years to the first time I drove an old Fergie 35. You soon found out the benefit of covering the seat with a fertiliser bag.
I really enjoyed this video. We need some more of these. It was great to see Ashley learning to drive something for the first time. More like this please!
Ah what a lovely piece of nostalgia. My father's childhood home has the same tractor. Would be nice to give it a try some day.
For those of you here in the UK, don't forget we "fall back" an hour at 2am on Sunday. I know many devices adjust automatically but plenty don't.
Remember to adjust your car clock if it doesn't do so automatically. Wouldn't want to fall foul of any time sensitive traffic restrictions such as bus lane operation times, no right turns etc. On the flip side, wouldn't want to lose out when such manoeuvres are permitted either. Of course you can use the "always accurate" time on your phone if it's mounted in the dash, as long as you don't use the device whilst driving.
I also find it pays to check and adjust the minutes as these can drift over time.
Bear in mind other countries don't fall back this weekend, in case you have friends or relatives abroad. As an example, my other homeland of Canada as well as the USA don't do so until Nov 5th.
Accident rates go up right after the time change, so take extra care folks. 🕑
I just leave mine on GMT; usually I remember to add the hour during BST, but recently, on a stressful day, waiting hours for roadside assistance during Storm Babet (they were understandably busy!) , I forgot and it felt like time had slowed down!
@@davidhowe6905 Sorry to hear of your breakdown experience and I do hope everything got sorted out thereafter. Funnily enough, just as I write this, there is a tv ad about one of "the leading" motoring organizations.
As for leaving time pieces on GMT, you are certainly not alone. I know some folks that do that with their car clocks "because it's just too complicated". As long as you are aware of the real time, it's not a big issue. Though as mentioned in my original comment, the minutes can also drift over time.
Very kind of you! Turned out to be very minor but noisy damage (just the undertray dislodged by water); I could have carried on but didn't risk it. All sorted in the end. @@ibs5080
My best friend and his dad have 3 classic tractors, his peronal one is a Davie Brown and they have 2 ford Fergies. i got to drive one at 2 different shows as part of the parade line up.
first time i did it was at Dunblane/ bridge of Allan show many years ago, his dad told me the engine rev lever but the opposite way, so i wheelied the tractor 4 times as evertime i moved forward i blocked the view of someone with a camera to my right so they would step in my way as i was trying to turn right to join the queue. eventually i worked it out to turn the revs down and tell the guy to move out the way to get round lol
second time was last years Scone Palace show where i was getting wound up because i did 4 wheelies last time but now i know how it works it was straight forward to drive. even got to reverse it too without hitting anything lol
thats a well finished tractor in the video, he has put a lot of work into it. and yeah, steering one is fun and games as its very vague lol
This was fun! Once, when I was taking my late Mum for a drive, we pulled over, on a similarly narrow road, to let a procession of lovely old tractors like this pass by; presumably on their way to a rally. Many modern ones are scarily big and fast!
even knowing they have been making farm equipment more roadworthy, I was a bit surprised to see a convoy of brand new combine harvesters cruising down a US freeway (motorway) at 65 miles per hour.
Wow! Quite a sight!@@kenbrown2808
That's a brilliant little machine to have a go on, you can really feel what they are up too and adapt. Spent many a very happy hour on the Fordson Power Major and Super Major tractors that replaced the Dexters.
They are great fun to drive but not on the road. Used to drive one at a gliding club to tow the gliders back to the launch. The electrics were gone so you had to park it at the top of the hill in the evening so you could push it down the hill and bump start it. You had to make sure it ran all day without stalling it.
The hand throttle is vital. For those that haven’t driven a tractor it’s not like a car throttle. It’s not spring loaded. You set it to position and it stays there. So you can drive for long distances at constant speed. Worth knowing that when you encounter them on the road. They don’t like changing speed.
This is the type of vehicle on which I learnt to drive on, while also learning to strip them down and maintain them.
My grandparents had a tractor, which we kids were taught how to use - to help transport animal food out onto the back fields, in Kenya. 😊😊😊
You can palpably feel your nerves and excitement. Grand. The jog was unexpected 😂
I live in a farming community and they regularly have a tractor run each year. I still turn into a big kid seeing them bouncing down road.
First 4 wheel vehicle I ever drove, used it to tow launch cables at our gliding club
Having been raised on a farm and first learned (when my feet could barely reach the pedals) how to drive a tractor, it was on the Dexta. I know this tractor extremely well. There is no way you should have learned how to drive the Dexta on a paved, winding, narrow road in high range! I'm glad you survived.
My neighbour has a John Deere current model that he let me drive , real eye opener so much tech in them
I passed my farm tractor test in December 1977, a few days after my sixteenth birthday. The road was covered in frozen rain, so I was offered the option of another test another day if I wanted, but if I felt I could control the tractor on a sheet of ice we could proceed. That was in the 'elf and safety days of course. The test was easy enough. You had to go through the gears of high range and come to a controlled emergency stop. The tractor was a 1973 Massey Ferguson 199 with a four speed [times two range] crash gear box, and very good oil immersed brakes in the back axle. Braking was easy on this tractor, but the gearbox was a real nightmare ...
I passed the initial Highway Code part and after five minutes driving through the gears I managed a controlled emergency stop and got my pass. On those old crash boxes you could get very good at clutchless gear shifts, which remove the need to double de-clutch, but you had to know your machine for speed/rev matching!
I failed my first car test using the same technique in a Mini Clubman estate. I was told to get some driving lessons and learn to drive in a way that would pass the test. I passed the car test third time! All because I was used to lorries [off road on the farm] and tractors. Driving a car is hard to learn once you are used to heavy stuff!
Love your vids!
Best wishes from George [Still in Herefordshire after six decades!].
Takes me back to my childhood and the small Dexta and the Fordson Super Majors and laterly the Duffield tractors. I'm old enough to remember the farm "Horse". Boy am I getting old.
CZcams gold, never thought I'd see Ashley just more than a little anxious, and then break the poor man's tractor! 😮. Had to watch it twice!
I'm so pleased to see the bailing twine tied between the rear 3-point hitch. A real tractor :)
My father had an old Dexta petrol tractor on the farm back when I was a kid. It was my favorite tractor to drive.
Cheers mate
Wonderful old machine, same age as me! You'll have to see if you can get someone to let you drive a traction engine next.
Fanrastic! 3 cheers to Malcolm for restoring these old timers 👏👏👏
Thia is a great video really enjoyed you driving this tractor. You did great driving it forbthe first time.
The reason the steering is so vague is to protect you when off road. If the front wheels hit a rock or something in a vehicle with very tight, precise steering what will tend to happen is the front wheels get forced to turn by the impact, that causes the steering wheel to snap round with them, which can injure the person holding the wheel, broken wrists, broken thumbs, stuff like that. With a little bit of play and vagueness in the steering it reduces this tendency for the wheel to snap round like that and hence helps prevent injury to the driver. At low speed, much as you might expect to be doing on a tractor or other off road vehicle, the vagueness isn't such an issue, of course, if you try to drive it down the road it can feel a little scary, especially as the speed picks up.
I remember the first tractor I drove was 1964 Ford 5000, Select O Speed, my favourite now is the Massey Ferguson 135, 1972, the modern stuff is a mystery to me. Thanks Ashley and and Malcom.
Enjoyed the Crotch eye view for the journey back 😊
So sweet for him to share the tractor with you! Looks great fun :) Congratulations. Your videos are amazing
Now you need to try a nice modern tractor, if you're ever in the Fens I can let you loose on the drainage board one, side mounted mower as well!
What a brilliant change of pace. Thanks. Down to Bovington tank museum next then. Let us know if you do, I'll come out to cheer you on.
FWIW, we get the Warrior tracked armoured vehicles up and down the hill here on learning runs for the brown jobs. They would count as the loudest thing you've driven.
No disrespect intended, but the steering on that tractor is worn out, and they're not all like that. Our Dexta had excellent responsive steering. Where ours wasn't so good was on braking!
That's not a bad effort for a first drive, and driving a tractor is quite a bit to driving a car, and I'd like to suggest taking a more modern one out for a run, though if you do, keep to small ones! At least until you're comfortable and confident with a tractor.
My first tractor experience was on a Dexta, and after a bit of yard driving I was let loose on the road! After a little bit of that, I got my bum on the seat of our Fergy 165! Still no power steering, but nature compensates for that, and after a while you end up like Popeye.....
Then I was unleashed on a brand new Ford 3000. We thought about a 2000, but that was a direct replacement for the Dexta, so we decided to go with the 3000, which was a bit more powerful. It was a nice tractor, but being equipped with an early ROPS (safety cab) it was a rattly beast and ruined my hearing.
My next upgrade came in the shape of a Ford 4600, and that was a whole new experience - Sankey Super Q cab, power steering, filtered air ventilation and a full compliment of road lighting. One of the best tractors I drove. By then, I was in my late teens and moving forward to the big stuff, Ford 6610, and 7610! The TW series were still in the future at that point.
Then I moved on from farming and went to work at an agricultural college - Here, the world was my oyster, with regard to bigger and better equipment.
Now retired, I have a small fleet of classic David Browns, and a couple of acres of land to play with.
Tell you what though, if the Dexta made you feel a bit on edge, try belting down the road on a vintage JCB III, that'll be a handful to think about.
And no, I don't, and haven't, driven any of the modern "twenty foot square thunderers" that work the land nowadays - even I'd feel a bit edgy on of those! 🙎🛣️☠️
I absolutely love this Ashley. Great video and really cool to watch. Thanks to Malcolm also for letting you drive his tractor!😁
First vehicle I learned to handle, then a dumper truck, then the tractor and trailer, then car, then an artic!
Back then you could go straight for class 1 missing out class 2/3
Enjoyable to watch, wouldn't mind seeing more like it with different types of vehicles 😊👍
Takes me back some 50 years when were three young lads working at a big garden centre in Kent and we used to ride the old Massey ferguson like it was a bucking bronco. Great fun. One skill we did learn really well though was reversing with a trailer which is not the easiest thing to do.
my dad's first backhoe had hydraulic steering, and in the last bit before he upgraded, you just kept adjusting to the left. you'd make a full revolution of the wheel about every minute or so.
my mothers father took an interest in old tractors, late in life, and had models from the 40s. never drove those. as for the oldest, I've ridden in a steamer, and a 20s Ford truck, but the oldest I've actually driven, is a 41 or 42. (the model is the same, but the only provenance is it was purchased in 1942.)
Gorgeous machines
Happy memories! The first vehicle I drove was a tractor at about 13 years old.
Great video Ashley, it reminds me of driving a massey fergusion 135 i think it was,, no cab , red little tractor on a fruit farm in a orchard, cutting grass,, sweeping up prunings,, spraying chemicals, everything to do with tree or land management we used to do, great fun driving it, and yes it had lots of steering lock and it had a ferce clutch obviously i never used to floor it or pop wheelies on it,, because i was a young 18 year old with no one around 😂..great times.
Thanks for your like, I'm glad u liked it , strange how the memories get sparked by your video, I hasn't thought of that for years. Great times with good people. 👍
Lovely old machine. It's funny but now I'm out in rural France, these thing are common. My next door neighbour has an identical Dexta with comedy frog headlights, which is in regular use. Another neighbour has a 1963 Massey Furguson and I can think of another three tractors of similar vintage in use nearby. In France, old tractors never die (they just get slower).
As for buying a farm, Ashley, I often think when I see the signs up saying 'Farm shop ahead' or whatever, "But I don't want to buy a farm..!" 😋
That’s like the typical classic tractor.
Next week, Ashley drives a hovercraft.
Absolutely loved this, having driven lots of different tractors and previously restored many. I loved taking them out for a run. Every one was different. I have always believed that every driver should go out and experience every type of machine possible, it can only make you a better driver as you will appreciate how much road others need. At risk of sounding like a old fart, when I started driving the vehicles I could afford had cross ply tyres, leaf springs, drum brakes and a 0-60 time that was measured in days. You pass your test and then you learn to drive and continue to learn every time you get in a vehicle.
Look up rule 123 and tell me what you should not have done!!!!!
It was a good job I didn't try and turn it off where I left it, with me breaking it a few minutes later!
Stunning Tractor and what an experience for you!
The Dexta is a lovely tractor to drive, a good choice for a first try.
Torquey little beast,just takes off! Same age as me but in much better nick!
Hi Ashley, I had the pleasure of driving one of these around the end of the nineteen sixties!, OI worked on a fruit farm near Cambridge for one season, this involved driving one of these and also on of the Massey Ferguson equivalents, the M S '35', with what at the time seemed very large four wheel trailers carrying loads of wooden boxes of plums and apples from the orchards to the store.
The one skill I was most keen to learn was the art of reversing one of those trailers with the articulated front wheels.
This meant turning the tractor steering wheel in the completely opposite direction to start the turn!. Another one of those skills that in the end depends on much practise and muscle memory!.
The way the steering works on the one you drive is determined by thew 'toe in' adjustments on the front wheels, adjust the track rod slightly longer, they can be set to self centre better, this does however slightly increase the rate of tyre wear.
Cheers, Richard.
Hi Richard loved your comment, i made a comment a bit later , we shared similar experiences by the sound of it, I used to drive a massey fergusion 135 in red on a orchard growing apples in Devon, I gained a nvq in fruit farming..used to love the land before i had to infourtunatly move out of horticulture..no job at the end and no local work..boo..ahh well at.
@@paul8161 Hi Paul, delighted to make your acquaintance like this!, I was also doing a City & Guilds course at the time!, I too passed the exams but also the lack of earning potential sent me sideways into the construction industry!.
Cheers, Richard.
@@richardharvey1732 aww,,what a shame for both of us ..oh well it was lovely to share some good memories and times, as they say it's a small world eh.😂..well I'm still outside, I work in warehousing driving forklift and other equipment so ,not quite a tractor but close 😅..
As the driver of a 77land rover, that sloppy stering is soon gotten used to small adjustments regulaarly and before you know it you do it automatically.
I used to drive a Fordson Dexta everyday back in the mid 80's.. on a fruit farm (Rookery farm in Swanick).
Takes me back to being a kid on the farm at 7 and you would steer sitting on his lap or would set it off get out with it running and got told when you come to the end just pull the stop button to stop and pull the hand brake on.
Now, try verge cutting with a tractor. Best try in a field. One hand on steering wheel and the other on the controls doing 1, 2, 3 or 4 mph. A lot of farm machinery work is single hand driving with the other on the controls, especially if no GPS fitted. Once saw Alister Stewart driving a combine with both hands on the steering wheel, when there are so many things need adjusting on the move, with one hand on the controls. Finally, I was turning right in to a gate driving a tractor empty on it's own, indicators going. I was overtaken by a driving instructor, not teaching. I pulled in a lay by opposite the gate, and the instructor apologised for not seeing the working indicator, as he was looking at the straight clear road ahead of me.
great fun so enjoyable to watch
That took me back to the 1960s when my uncle used to let me ride on his tractor when ploughing the fields. Very dangerous of course as I had to hang on tight standing on the side of it - but he would have to stop and let me off when my Grampy (his dad) was in sight!
Massive improvement on the Golf GTi
No engine management lights at all
Lol 😂
Nice video
Ashley Neal does Jeremy Clarkson. Next; Ashley Neal runs a farm! Lol.
JCB was born out of one of these...old mr bamford put a backhoe on one in his garage...rest is history.
I used to drive one of these on a regular basis on a small holding.
Despite living in a city, I want one
i actually really want to drive a tractor and try have a go at some farming but idk where to start and who to ask as i dont know any farmers.
Enjoyed that, first thing I noticed was the lack of roll over protection, probably not even thought of when that tractor was in use, but a bit scary on fields with lateral inclines I would have thought Lol!
ROPS became a mandatory fitment on all new tractors from circa 1972 onwards, and a mandatory retrofit to all working tractors from 1975. There were a few exceptions, which included:- vineyard tractors, orchard tractors, and tractors that were used inside buildings where the roof or doorway was too low to allow a ROPS equipped tractor from entering. Strict limitations were applied to tractors without a ROPS frame or cab, and such tractors were forbidden from working on any fieldwork, roadwork, or yardwork where the yard was on an incline, and an especial footnote forbidding any none ROPS equipped machines from operating on silage clamps, which is where by far the greatest number of fatalities and life changing injuries occurred. The same rules still apply to this day, but you could be forgiven for thinking otherwise. Tractors for restoration and show purposes are (I think) exempt from ROPS requirements, but by the same token, are forbidden from taking part in any agricultural activities.
@@whitesapphire5865 Thank you very informative 👍
A handbrake! A luxury that mine doesn't have.
9:44 "Luckily the camera didn't get run over" Luckily it wasn't securely mounted on Malcolm's head.
Yeah, the steering on old tractors is tough.
Same year the BMC mini was launched.
The Dexta's had far more precise steering when new. Steering box needed a look at, possibly a matter of removing some shims.
Hi there
First 😊 whoop whoop
Beautiful tractor by the way used to drive similar fifty years ago. Today's tractors totally different kettle of fish 😊
I drove a massey ferguson 133 after changing the head gasket. It is better to test dive everything. It went slow as it had special low range gearing suited for that specific task in greenhouses.
Farmer Neal, got a ring to it that, he just needs to grow that beard 🤪
Smashing. When will you take it on to the A1? 😜
Learnt to drive on a tractor at 15 working on a pig farm, Next step is to reverse a trailer through a gate with only a couple of inches gap either side. 😂
10:40 is that a helmet cam?
You know they’re anything but clueless when you see driving gloves😂
Weirdly like old tractors like this, my gfs dad recently sold his old porsche standard 208 N from the 50s, wasn't in a drivable condition though, engine had seized and he didnt have time to fix it/restore it.
Traction engine next?
I can't read or write but I drive tractor lol😂 next Ash you will be in a combine and will need a key haha
Shame you didn't try 1st low (or any if the lower gears), that would have been interesting for you.
Groin cam 😂😂😂
The AA should employ you first class steam always level headed
You could turn this into a new Reality TV show: called X-Tractor.
It’s a hoe from me
Hello
Ibrahim takes it 🥇
@@ashley_neal Thanks Ash. Of course, it's really just a little game. The important thing is your content and to learn from it.
Is Crotch Cam going to be a new feature in your videos Ashley lol?
First we had Clarkson's Farm.... Neal's Farm to come? 🤣🤣
Well they did mention the phrase "Top Gear" in this video, though admittedly in it's regular context.
You now need to drive a modern tractor for comparison.
I am old enough to have a license for one before my car lol
Money shot.😂
This video could be titled:
"How to drive a tractor like a driving instructor"