Greetings from Dyersville!

Welcome to July. It was a hot June in our neck of the woods, and with hardly any rain the crops were starting to suffer. In the last two weeks the rains have finally started coming. It’s amazing how fast things can “perk up” after a good shower. I’ve been behind on my garden and finally got the cucumbers, pumpkins and late beans planted.

My wife and I were able to sneak away for a week of vacation in California. I’ve been to California several times over the years, but always around LA. We’ve always wanted to see northern California so we decided to fly into San Francisco and head north. Along the way we had to look at the giant redwood trees, and made it as far north as Eureka.

On our way we stopped in the town of Ukiah. Just off the main road I spotted something I had never seen before in person, a grape harvester. I never realized how large these machines were. At some point I want to see one of these in operation. I guess I need to plan another trip back there.

When I was young my dad logged in the winter months, primarily hard woods such as walnut and oak. We had a small Case 310 crawler with a winch that he used to pull the logs out of the timber. I loved listening to his logging stories about trees he cut down and the people he met. Here’s a picture of him standing beside our Case 310. It was used for more than just logging, with the bucket on the front we used it to clean out the barn, move rock and just about anything you would use a loader tractor for including snow removal. On the subject of dads, I hope everyone had a wonderful Father’s Day!

On the other hand, the equipment they have to work the huge timber lands of northern California is quite different. Here is a unit I found up by Eureka. It’s seen better days but I bet it can still get the job done. Although there are limits to everything.

When you get trees this size, it would take some specialized equipment to move them. Redwoods are now protected from cutting. Most of the roads in this area had to be built around these giants. I don’t envy the truck drivers trying to drive through this area. I can honestly tell you there is not a lumber shortage. We saw more trucks loaded with lumber than anything else. Hopefully lumber prices start coming down later this year!!

Before we get into new product, we’re continuing our series of introducing you to members of our team here in Dyersville that make all of this happen. This time we’re highlighting two of our Brand Managers.

Let’s talk about some of our newer items we have coming out. First up is a new 1:64th AGCO set which includes a Gleaner A86 combine, Challenger MT975E 4WD tractor with duals, J&M grain cart and a grain semi (Stock # 16420). The A86 includes a 12-row model 3000 corn head and a 30 foot, model 8200 flex auger head. The A86 also features dual front wheels, mirrors, railings and a moveable feeder housing. The J&M grain cart is painted yellow to match the Challenger tractor which is a first for us. This item should arrive in July, so be on the lookout at your local AGCO dealer, or wherever you buy your farm toys.

Other new items we showed at the Summer Farm Toy Show include the 1:32nd New Holland T8.435 SmartTrax Tractor (Stock # 13944) and the 1:32nd Case International vintage 4894 Prestige Tractor (Stock # 44273). The New Holland T8.435 features the special “Blue Power” paint scheme that includes silver rims and silver hood screens. The Case International 4894 Prestige model features the “red” paint scheme that these tractors had after the merger between Case and International Harvester in 1985. Our model also includes steerable axles with duals and a detailed 3-point hitch. Both of these tractors will be available later this fall at your local New Holland and Case IH dealers.

Last but not least, we’ve also been busy tooling up some new 1:64th scale pickup trucks. The first pickup coming out is our Ford Ranger XLT (Stock # 47168). These pickups are starting to ship now and will be offered in both a blue and red paint scheme. Next up is our new Chevy Silverado 2500HD assortment (Stock # 47167). We will offer this pickup in both a black or white paint scheme. These new pickups are also available now. We can’t forget RAM, so we’ve also tooled a new 3500 dually pickup. (Stock # 47169) The first colors produced include units painted in white and blue. Look for these new trucks to be available in September.

Until next time,

Bill