Info wanted on Lend lease international W6.

Hi

My Father has recently purchased an international w6 and was told by the previous owner it was part of the wartime lend lease program. Was each farm given its own tractor or would a group of farmers use one between them? Is there anyway I can find out where this tractor was used and by whom during the war. Hope someone can shed some light on this.

Thanks


Claire

Hi Claire. If it was made between about 1939 and 1945/6 it is almost certainely lend lease. There is so much rubbish talked about this subject that if you get the truth I should be very pleased to hear it. About all the of tractors from USA in that time frame fall into the LL bracket.. Case Farmall W's Olivers Etc.Obviously some have been imported since WW2 so there is a grey area there Good luck keep us informed MTF

This sounds like a topic that Google would handle well. Put quotation marks around "lend lease" or "lend-lease" and you will get some highly focused info. Ad modifiers like Great Britain, England, Russia, USSR, IH, W6 out of the quotation marks to drill down to more specific info.

A tremendous amount of that equipment was lost to German U-boats. This was particularly true of supplies sent to Russia via Murmansk on the Arctic Ocean.

I'm rather guessing by the question that you're in the UK? If so the following may be of some help, if not then it won't help at all

To find out where the tractor was originally used and possibly by whom you are going to need to try and track down the original registration for the tractor. Did you get the logbook with it or is there still a numberplate with the tractor? Chances are that you'll have to contac the DVLA and cross your fingers. Good luck, Sam

Hi Claire, when I was in the UK about a month ago MJ in the UK was explaining to me about the LL program.
So maybe contact MJ in UK and he maybe have some answers.

JimB

Thank you for the replies do far. It hasn't come with any paperwork or a registration. The DVLA are going to issue it an aged appropriate registration based upon the serial number we send them.

I also read on another forum that LL tractors had an additional decal on them to show they were part of the LL program - is this correct and does anyone know where I could get one from?? and final question for now - we are almost at the stage where we are ready to put the decals on -I know from experience that the quality and authenticness varies greatly, can anyone recommend a place to purchase a set of decals for a w6?? Thank you!!!

Claire

Claire: As near as I can tell you haven't confirmed where this W6 is? Is it Great Britain, US, Canada or down under? I have a book here, lot of photos taken in Great Britain and near as I can tell, even the IH decals on those W series, are different from tractors in North America.

Claire: I have never heard of this Lend Lease program. I was born in 1942, in a place called Musquodoboit, Nova Scotia, a place with rather sparce agriculture, 95% of land mass forested. Since we were located 60 miles from the Port of Halifax, the place where 80% of Canadian troop movements for overseas occured, a great drive was made to supply ships headed for war with local agricultural products.

My dad bought a new W4 in 1942, I've always assumed he bought it, at least he traded it on a new H in 51. No other farmers used this W4, however dad did do a lot of custom work for other farmers. I also know he wanted an H, but had to settle for a W4, as row crop tractors were only being shipped to dealers with a lot of row crop customers. I also know IH moved a lot of W series tractors into this small agricultural area, during the war, (mainly hay crop with dairy and beef cattle.) There are a lot of 1942-W4 in that area. I also know as a result of Halifax being a major military port, my dad was able to increase his dairy production 10 fold during WW#2 and 10 years that followed.

This thread got me curious, particularly since bankers of that era were quite tight fisted. How did these guys, just coming out of a depression afford all this new equipment?

Hi Clare, were in the UK are you located. I am in Newark and one of the orgernisers of the Newark Tractor Show on Nov 7th and 8th. This years theme will be International Harvester tractors. Lease Lend was set up in 1942 tosupply british farmers with tractors and machinery wich the paid for. The British goverment then used the money to buy arms from America and the British goverment paid the debt off in instllments only finishing two years ago. We stoped importing USA built tractors in 1949 when our dollars run out. IH then started building the Farmall M tractor at Doncaster and was known as the BM. I am hoping to get the first UK built Farrmall M to the Newark tractor show. MJ

Hi Claire. As I am of that era+ I have just taken the advice of one of the other gents and "googled" it.It makes interesting reading but will not I think answer your actual question. Most of it was already known to me but Google gives to it the slant in the context of USA legislation. Sadly I think that you are unlikely to arrive at the real answers to your questions. Lend Lease agreement was 1941. Initially USA LENT equiptment and war materials in return for LEASE of bases in various parts of the world.
However as MJ has pointed out it then became a financial 'thing' which lingered in repayment until about 2004?.
The first Farmalls out of Doncaster were M's: BM followed after about one year Mid 1950 as I understand.And I believe the first W6's at Bradford at apprx the same time. (MJ this has always been subject to some controversy, surely enough records still exist for us to obtain a definitive answer, and not just unsound memories). The serial No should tell you where your W6 was made. I am also in UK and will give any help that I possibly can. However don't shoot the messenger! Feel free to call MTF

Hello Claire if you are looking for a set of decals for your W6 you might like to try this company.
Dunlop Tractor Spares
67 Crankill Rd
Ballymena
Co Antrim
N Ireland
BT4 35NN
028 25682560
I believe that they stock the set you are looking for i bought a set of decals for a W4 for a friend who has 14 wartime IH Tractors
some purchased over here some from the USA.
Hope this is of use to you
Many Thanks Nigel

Thank you for all your replies so far. We have now found out that the tractor was first registered in Hampshire and that Winchester Records office hold details of lend lease vehicles. So there is a slim chance we maybe able to get the original number plate back once we find out what it was!!!

MJ we are based on the West Sussex/Hampshire border and the engine and chassis number come back as being produce in 1941.

We are still trying to find out more about the lend lease scheme and how it operated.

Finally does anyone know of any International clubs we could join???

Hopefully if we can transport it their the tractor will be at "Harvesting the old fashioned way" at West Stoke on the 12th/13th September.

Claire