The era of the late teens was a watershed for J. I. Case, a time
of enormous activity as the company moved into the growing small
tractor market, with new and innovative machinery coming out of the
factory on a regular basis.
Case’s first major entry in the gasoline tractor sector came
in 1912 with the huge 30-60. But unlike some of the old-line
manufacturers making the transition from steam to gasoline or
kerosene, Case quickly focused its efforts on building smaller
tractors to meet the demands of a changing agricultural market.
This ad, which appeared on the back page of the March 1917 issue
of The American Thresherman and Farm Power, shows the
direction Case was moving with its tractor line.
At top is the smallest tractor Case built in 1917, the 9-18.
Introduced in 1916, Case built 6,687 of these litte tractors until
late 1918, when the 9-18B with unit construction and cross-ways
four-cylinder engine was introduced.
Next is the 10-20, a three-wheeled tractor with four-cylinder
power. Case built 6,679 of these between 1915 and 1918.
After that comes the 12-25, introduced in 1914 and discontinued
in 1918 after a run of 3,351 units.
And finally, the 20-40. First introduced in 1912, the 20-40
stayed in production until 1919. A total of 1,757 early style and
late style 20-40s were built. This ad shows the late style.
Special thanks to Dusty Ericson, 7950 E. Redfield #160,
Scottsdale, AZ 85260, for supplying us with this old issue of The
American Thresherman.
