Largest
Farm Tractor - world record set by Big Bud Tractor
BIG SANDY, MT, USA -- BigBud 747,
a
custom built agricultural Tractor is 28½ feet long, 14 feet
high, 21 feet wide and has a wheel base of 16 ½ feet; it weighs
in at 45 tons with a full diesel and hydraulic oil tank -
setting the new world record for the Largest
Farm Tractor.
BigBud 747, the world's
Largest Farm Tractor was built in Havre, Montana USA
in 1977 by Ron Harmon of the Northern Manufacturing Company,
for a cost of $300,000.
The Largest
Farm Tractor in the worldis a 16 cylinder behemoth
powered by a 24.1 litre Detroit V16 92Turbo engine delivering
900hp; it has 6 forward and 1 reverse gear driving all eight
foot tall wheels
With hydraulic powered steering and
air brakes, similar to those on a semi, and a 1000 gallon
diesel tank with a 150 gallon hydraulic reservoir tank, BigBud
is big enough and has the endurance for any job.
"That motor has a potential of up to 1100
horsepower..." said BigBud's current owner Robert Williams.
"...It can handle our biggest equipment at the current setting,
so there's no advantage to burning more fuel and putting more
stress on the drive-train."
The BigBud
747 Tractor was rebuilt and reconditioned at the end
of 1990, after successfully working for many thousands of
man hours.
The world's
Largest Farm Tractor was originally designed for the
Rossi Brothers, cotton farmers in Bakersfield, California.
The Rossi Brothers used the tractor for deep ripping. They
owned and operated the 16-V747 for 11 years.
After leaving the cotton farm of the
Rossi Brothers the Big Bud found its way to Indlantic, Florida.
The second owners, Willowbrook Farms, also used the tractor
for deep ripping purposes. Willowbrook Farms retired the Big
Bud and left it to rest.
In 1997 the Big Bud found its way back home
to Montana, only 60 miles from where it was built. The world's
Largest Farm Tractor at present resides in Montana,
where it is still in use today, pulling a huge 80 foot wide
plough.
It is owned by The Williams Brothers of 'Big
Sandy' who's farm is in Chouteau County.
The world's
Largest Farm Tractor can work more than one acre per
minute, at speeds up to 8 mph. Except its new paint job, chrome
stacks, and a whopping 900 plus horsepower - the Big Bud looks
like it did when it rolled out of the Northern Manufacturing
Company building back in 1977.
"We've had people from all over the
world come to see it..." said Williams "...we welcome visitors,
and if it's on a day when it's running in the field, we might
even give them a ride."
Heartland
Acres, the agricultural exhibition center in Independence,
Northeast Iowa, will house Big Bud for the next two-and-a-half
months.
