Metal Machines

In 1904, the J.I. Case Plow Works of Racine, Wisconsin manufactured the first threshing machine with sheet-metal panels and a metal angle-iron frame. Sheet-metal panels were easier to manufacture than wood, and it was anticipated that the angle-iron frame would offer greater rigidity than had been possible with a wooden frame.

Skeleton of a Case Metal Threshing Machine

George White Company of London Ontario Metal Threshing Machine (680634)

Despite manufacturers’ assurances that their machines were made with the finest kiln-dried hardwood, and that a regular tightening of bolts would suffice, a threshing machine operating at full speed would have been subject to incredible strain. Although manufacturers of wooden machines initially scoffed at J.I. Case’s product, many — including the George White Company of London Ontario (680634) — followed suit, and switched to the production of metal machines.

Threshing machines had finally reached the pinnacle of their technological evolution. Rubber tires might replace wooden wheels, and grease cups would be supplanted by compression grease fittings, but the internal mechanism would remain unaltered. The threshing machine shown in cutaway in Advance-Rumely’s 1918 catalogue was the epitome of technological development, with every available labour-saving attachment.

Advance-Rumely’s Ideal Separator in the 1918 catalogue

Ferguson Thresher Company of Maxville, Ontario threshing machine (810673)

Although the large manufacturers initially followed the “bigger is better” credo, by the early 1920s many were promoting machines suited to small multipurpose tractors such as the Fordson. The metal machine manufactured by the Ferguson Thresher Company of Maxville, Ontario (810673) could have been powered by any of the multipurpose tractors that were becoming increasingly popular by the 1930s.