Both passions in one place Studebakers and Cockshutt Tractors

[avantibngrant]

I was just looking on Ebay as I occasionally do to see what is for sale that I absolutely need to have in the Studebaker or Cockshutt world. I have seen this brochure before, but I wonder what the story is behind it. The 57 Transtar brochure has a Cockshutt 40 on the cover along side the truck. You can see the live power take off handle and other distinguishing features of a Cockshutt 40 of the 1950 to 1955 era. Sometimes I wonder how different my life would have been if my father had Chevs and IH tractors. Perish that thought! These Cockshutts and Studebakers have a way more character and share Raymond Loewy's creative genius in many of the designs I have from both companies.
Neil

[BobPalma]

Neil, the tractor looks generic enough that there probably isn't one person in 100, maybe even fewer than that, who could identify the tractor as a Cockshutt.

That said, by using a Cockshutt, Studebaker would avoid "taking sides" in the fierce McCormick/Deering vs. A/C vs. M/F vs JD (and who knows how many others) tractor loyalty wars of the 1950s! BP

[lugamatic]

you are forgetting the Studebaker-oliver relationship, oliver owned cockshut tractors. Neil the farm where this picture was first taken still has the cockshut 40 in the wagon shed

[avantibngrant]

Probably right enough on the competitiveness back in the day. I posted a similar item on Facebook and one of my good Cockshutt friends send me a link to some of the sketches Loewy used in the 500 series tractor design. http://digital.hagley.org/cdm/search.../nosort/ad/asc
He also did work for International Harvestor for years -even did the IH emblem. it would have been nice to meet him. I do remember meeting his Bob Bourke at the 1986 meet in Indianapolis and if memory serves me right Lowey died at the same time the meet was on. Was Loewy's daughter at the meet? I think she was if my memory is not playing tricks on me!

[avantibngrant]

you are forgetting the Studebaker-oliver relationship, oliver owned cockshut tractors. Neil the farm where this picture was first taken still has the cockshut 40 in the wagon shed

Now that is interesting. Is it far from you? Lugamatic - that was the 995 with the torque converter if I recall correctly. Oliver never really owned Cockshutt. White bought Oliver and Minneapolis Moline in 1960 or so and then bought Cockshutt in 1961 end of year. They went with a pruned line of equipement, the Cockshutt combines and the oliver and Moline tractor. I had the great pleasure of working with the engineering department of White farm in Brantford where the Cockshutt f was built. At that time it was the White combines that were being built. Far and away the best job I have ever had. Massey bought the rights to the White Combine. I worked there for a while, but it was not the same at all. Just stupid decisions such as sendind a prototype 4 wheel drive to dust dry Idaho for testing and a 2 wheel drive machine to Missouri where it was so badly flooded we had to drive around the town to get to our hotel!
I have one Oliver design in the fleet. A Cockshutt 70 standard - 1941 that was my father's. It will be around as long as I am around. Eight others of the Canadian Cockshutt design.

[BobPalma]

Were Cockshutt tractors ever manufactured in The United States, you guys, or are they all of Canadian origin? BP

[qsanford]

Does anyone remember the Hoyt-Clagwell tractor? It was the faithful servant of Oliver Douglas on the "Green Acres" Program. <G>

[avantibngrant]

Were Cockshutt tractors ever manufactured in The United States, you guys, or are they all of Canadian origin? BP

Hi Bob. One of those yes and no answers. From the mid 30's or so Cockshutt sold the Oliver tractors rebadged and repainted as Cockshutt tractors. After the war, they decided to develop and build their own tractor. The feature which was developed by Cockshutt was the live power take off. All of a sudden all of the big companies had to retool to get LPTO. There must have been patent protection, because only Oliver had it before about 1952 or 53. Probably because Oliver had been working with Cockshutt up until that time. As an Ag Engineer, it would say it probably is about the second biggest improvement in tractors of all time, with the first being the 3 point hitch. If you are baling hay on a hot day without live pto, you might think it is the first most important improvement though!
After the White buyout, Oliver tractors were then again sold as Cockshutts and were all US made and designed. Oliver Combines where then made and designed in Canada and sold in all three colours - Cockshutt, Oliver and Minneapolis Moline colours.
In the period Cockshutt had their own tractor - 1946 to 1962 - they purchased the Ohio Cultivator company in Bellevue Ohio and marketed products like discs and planters and other cultivation implements made there.
Sort of a long answer, but I think it pretty well sums it up.
Neil

[lugamatic]

your answer about white buying cockshutt in 1961 is somewhat correct. oliver board of directors voted in late 1959 to buy cocshutt tractor works,but before this was finialized the shareholders voted to sell oliver corp to white motor corp in early 1960 oliver had the first live pto tractor in fall of 1948. do you remember which model ?

[2moredoors]

Some of the later (1970's) models, White,Oliver and Cockshutt were made by Fiat and painted the appropriate colours and sold through the respective dealerships.
My niece owns a White/Fiat.

[Milaca]

Some of the later (1970's) models, White,Oliver and Cockshutt were made by Fiat and painted the appropriate colours and sold through the respective dealerships.
My niece owns a White/Fiat.

Some of the last Minneapolis-Moline tractors sold were rebadged Fiats also. I think the M-M name ended around 1973. The Fiat tractors were a mid-sized utility tractor whereas the large tractors were either M-M or Oliver (or a combination of both). Now Fiat owns Case IH, Allis-Chalmers Industrial and New Holland (Ford) whereas White, Allis-Chalmers Farm and Massey Ferguson is owned by AGCO. At least John Deere is still John Deere.

[Chris_Dresbach]

Were Cockshutt tractors ever manufactured in The United States, you guys, or are they all of Canadian origin? BP

avantibngrant answered your question accurately, but I will expand on it. I know mostly about Cockshutt "E" series tractors, the E1 through E5s. An American Cockshutt was sold as just a Cockshutt, but if you bought one in Canada chances are it would have been decaled "Cockshutt Blackhawk". Cockshutt's were painted white, but lets say you wanted to buy a Cockshutt E4 and didn't like white. Well, you could get the same tractor in ORANGE but it would be called a CO-OP!! They are all the same identical tractor, just painted different depending on what the dealer or customer wanted and there is no way to tell by serial numbers which tractors left the factory painted what way.

[Guido]

I have owned many Studebakers as well as Oliver and Cockshutt tractors over the years and in addition to my various Studebakers still have a Cockshutt 20, 30, 35, 40 Deluxe (with Cockshutt loader) and 50 diesel along with 3 plows and a grain drill. I still own an Oliver 440, Super 55, 551 forklift and 2 OC-46 crawler loaders (one gas and one diesel) and an Oliver 2 bottom plow. Those of you who are familiar with Mac Albaugh (who was part owner of the prototype Cockshutt 580) may recall that he also had several Studebaker trucks. I still regret not buying one of them when Kurt Aumann auctioned off his stuff a dozen or more years ago.

When Webshots shut down I lost most of my tractor pictures, but you can see a few in this shot.

[avantibngrant]

Wow pretty nice collection. I have similar ones also. A 41 Cockshutt 70 Standard, a 51 Cockshutt 30, 56 Cockshutt 35L Deluxe, 56 Cockshutt 20 Deluxe, 58 Cockshutt 550, 61 Cockshutt 540, 62 Cockshutt 570 Super. All are great fun. I have a 63 Avanti and a 47 Champion 4 door, 47 Champion Convertible as well as Studebaker number 1 for our family a 48 champion 4dr which is just parts now. I just got in from setting the new valves in the 47 4 door. Looking forward to starting it up with the new valves and ground seats!!
The Fiat connection was brought in by Cockshutt in about 59 or so. The Cockshutt family lost control of the company about that time in a hostile takeover from an English concern. The company was ripe for take over as a downturn in the farm economy left the assets being worth more that the shares.
Here is a link to a pretty good summary of the history: http://www.yesterdaystractors.com/ar.../artint190.htm
A description of the Canadian made tractors from 46 to 62: http://www.cockshutt.com/equipment.html
Lugamatic, what Olivers and Studebakers do you have? The first Oliver with live pto was the first 80 with the 70 styling. Came out in 47, one year after the Cockshutt 30 with LPTO. There was a move in the mid fifties for Studebaker and Oliver to merge per what I have read in Oliver Heritage. Can you tell me where that 40 is that the Studebaker truck was photographed with? Would be nice to redo the picture, but probably not practical!
I do know of one other fellow from Ontario who is a "dual hobbyist" of Cockshutt and Studebaker. I think his father sold both of them. Are you reading this Nick?
Neil

[lugamatic]

neil; did you know the oliver80 answer, or did you have to look it up? I am an x oliver-white-mm-hesston-new idea-massey -agco dealer. also ford new-Holland. I have around 200 Studebaker cars -trucks-wagons,plus 100 oliver tractors-combines,about 35 white tractors and 1 ford model a roadster. I planted my first grain crop using an oliver 60, 70, & 80 tractors which I still have, I harvested it with an oliver 77 with #18 combine and hauled to mill with 1947 m pickup and 1949 2ton grain truck all of this equipment still runs today including the stude trucks. ps;the tractor you refer to as a 80 with 70 styling was an 88 not 80.