Sleeping Beauty

Sometimes one has to take matters seriously!

A friend offered me a D8 several years ago; said it was in everyone’s way, couldn’t get it to run, tiny compared to other D8’s…..just come haul it off!

I never gave it another thought (even though I was reminded). I just assumed it was an ancient clapped out 2U or perhaps 1H as my friend never had anything to say nice about it.

We visited on the phone and he mentioned how they had enough of it, using it for a parts shelf/collector of dust etc.

Well, time for me to kick myself! His truck mechanic reached out to a neighbor; they swapped magnetos and the rest is history LOL. He got a quicky lesson how to start the thing. Turns out it was an early 36A!

I don’t think I’m getting it for free now. My buddy is so excited he wants to bring it to shows now.

Not bad for something that hasn’t moved in almost 30 years! Snooze you lose! I might have to buy another toy to calm my nerves. JM

🙄 Deep breaths to com yourself. Now just think how many smaller Cats you can keep in the same square footage under the roof. 😊Because you tell us it breaks your heart to put a Cat out in the cold. 🤣

That would have been a great addition to increasing the clod yield of the Rio Linda playgrounds.

You Paso Robles guys like to kick a man when down! Lol. It’s true Ray, I don’t like having iron sitting out in the cold or getting sunburnt.

CR: Let’s see where it might appear.

And to think my goal was to only own from D2-D9.

Stuck at D7 and no advancement! JM

JM -- I am so dissapointed 😥😥😥 I would have tied that D8 to the "ridger" then I would not have such a rough ride as the "tailseat D2. You might have to extend the "trip" ropes though. I would be a bit concerned if the D8 would be a bit overpowered for the load though. Nice looking machine, next to the 4R-9U series engines the D8's were so smooth. -- cts

The good news is it is still out there and not turned in on a scrap program. Speaking of D8’s and ridgers, there is a junk pile that has a D8 sized ridger in it… actually it’s sitting right next to the 3-30” Atlas plow. Not sure what it was used for… Rice or make two passes side by side and have a canal in between.

CR - was this a disc ridger or a "checker" (two wings that narrow at the rear. Some later models here in the rice country were hydraulic or cable to lift them. A pair of wheels. Some of these put up one huge check (levee). I had heard of a couple that were local, said they would stick three sixties! Big Load. -- cts

CTS this would have been more of the checker category, rolled moldboards about 4’ tall

towards the rear massive frame Y&J style on steroids. I always heard the farmed land in between the levees as the check.

CR - yes, that is what I was trying to describe, If I have opportunity, I will try to capture a photo or two of one if it still exists. Your last photo reminds me of what we called a "float" long before the common use of the "Marvin Landplanes- then the Marvin Tri-planes". Thanks - cts

The memories! Love it. That looks like a Y-J ditch filler has a Putman auction ID tag on it, LOL. The other photo looks like Koda Farms Dos Palos,CA? We had a wooden float back in the early 60's when I wasn't allowed to slave away on a tractor just yet, only allowed to operate a hoe or shovel...The tiny HD-3 my dad had could pull it okay, but when the IH 544 came about, it spun out. That was the Cadillac tool for the orchards before Marvin planes came about. Back when life was simple. Thanks for posting fellas. JM