There are certain tractors that seem to stick in your mind and Todd came back to the John Deere 6030. It was a body style that he always liked looking at, but that was not the main reason a 6030 came up again. We had already done a 6030 but keeping with our thoughts to do only one of a kind this one would be different. We wanted to take on the challenge of making Wheatland fenders from scratch.

A John Deere 655 compact tractor was the starting point. Tires almost always come next to get the look we’re hoping for.

Time to start with some sheet metal and come up with some way to shape the fenders. Our shop is a farm shop and we still rely on the basic tools we started with years ago. Our techniques are not textbook so we rely on whatever ideas and processes we think might work. Trial and error(s) and the shaping for the Wheatland fenders had potential.

Like many of our builds, the frame was lengthened and widened. Encouraged by the attempts on the fenders, Todd was on to redoing the front end of the frame. Dale and wife worked on rear wheel inserts and designing the metal front weight patterns. Since we don’t have the equipment to cut consistent shapes out of heavier metal, we search out machine shops that will cut out our patterns for the thicker metal and then we assemble in hopes our ideas pan out.

This is a tractor that probably is best seen in person instead of making a list of everything that was done. There were very few parts of the body that weren’t touched. It took a while longer to get this one done. Trying to build our memories….just on a smaller scale.