Ferguson TED 20

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One of the more important technological developments to have occurred in the field of agriculture was the introduction of the Ferguson TE20 in 1946.

A bold claim maybe, but Harry Ferguson’s stroke of genius came when he designed his new lightweight machine as a tractor and plough combined, increasing the efficiency of land preparation by such a margin that farming was never the same again.

Hitherto, a tractor had simply replaced the horse, pulling the same sort of plough that had been used for generations. Harry’s breakthrough development involved two Ferguson principles – his use of variable hydraulic control for plough depth and his brilliant three-point linkage which effectively transferred the ‘pull’ of the plough into ‘downforce’ over the rear wheels. The combination of these two systems allowed the small TE20 to do the job of machines weighing five times as much.

During demonstrations, the salesman would pull a two-furrow plough through heavy clay soil, the farmer’s initial scepticism soon changing to wondrous disbelief. When he hooked up the three-furrow plough, the salesman's job was done.

This 1946 TED 20 is the petrol/TVO (Tractor Vaporising Oil) model, introduced to keep running costs to a minimum. Its low compression engine would run on TVO (basically paraffin) when hot, but needed to be started (and stopped) on petrol so that it could be started again from cold. The problem was that most TEDs never got up to running temperature, only doing so when working hard on jobs such as ploughing and as a consequence were often found to be performing somewhat under-par. Not an issue these days, as most owners simply run them on petrol all of the time which works just fine.

Purchased from the side of the road back in 1998, it had lived for many years at nearby Lyonshall Nurseries. It has performed admirably since acquisition, although hasn't been used for several years so will require a new battery and some recommissioning before use.

In sound external condition, we were unable to test the hydraulics, although the vendor confirms that they were fully working when the tractor was last used. Complete with a V5C, it is an ideal candidate for the ever popular tractor runs. Everyone should have a grey Fergie at some point in their life and, with prices rising rapidly of late, this one looks most tempting at the sensible guide price suggested.