John Deere Pedal Tractor Restoration

Growing up in Iowa you can't help but like the pop-pop of a John Deere tractor. My Grandmother had given me a 1941 John Deere B when I was a teenager. After driving it 35 miles from the farm to my house I spent the next few months sanding it down, repainting it, and applying fresh decals. It was a blast to putt-putt around the fields on and in the winter no amount of snow could stop it. I ended up selling it to the couple who farmed our land and last I knew it was still running the grain elevator during picking season. That was my last tractor until this week...

1952 ESKA John Deere Small 60 Early Version

I came upon this tractor during my weekly Craigslist review. While not quite a full sized Johnny Popper, it looked like it would be a lot of fun. The ad didn't ask for a price, just to make an offer. I immediately called and left a message on their voicemail and waited like a giddy kid for them to return my call. While I waited, I purused the internet to see what replacement parts would cost in addition to trying to identify and attach a value to it. My research led me to discover this in a ESKA 1952 John Deere Small 60 Early Version pedal tractor. I figured it would require a couple of hundred dollars in new tires, paint and decals. I located a few tractors on eBay that had sold in the $800+ range recently. Armed with my information I was ready when the owner called and I inquired what he was looking to get out of it. A few minutes later, sight unseen, I agreed to a price and jumped in my truck to fetch my new treasure.

The owner had the tractor cradled in a wooden box and had been carting it around for 10 years hoping to restore it someday. He had recently purchased a new home and was packing up and decided to put the tractor up for sale. We pulled the pieces out of the box and I was relieved to see all the parts intact. The steering wheel and the rear axle were broken, but at least everything was there. I loaded it up and headed home.