Throughout the 44 years Dale and wife Dianne dairy farmed there were several colors of tractors in use at any given time.  Loyalty to one brand changed as dealerships came and went.  As Dale and Todd talked over what tractor they would like to build next, Todd suggested a Minneapolis Moline.  The particular MM model they wanted to try to replicate was a G1000.  The G1000 was manufactured 1965-1969 and was offered in three versions: row-crop, wheatland or Vista.  A wheatland tractor would present some never before details and challenges and also put a new color combo on our paint shelf.

Our MM G1000 started out with a JD 455 diesel garden tractor.  The original hood, side panels, front grill, fenders, seat and tires were removed.  Tires are the usual starting point in T&D builds.  After they were decided on, metalwork and fabrication began.  The biggest challenges were the getting the wheatland fender look and bending some of the side panel curves to encase the front screen. 

When it was time to paint, the era of “not being able to find or get what we need” plagued us and we found our paint job was not as accurate as we hoped.  The G1000 has since gone to a new home and its new owner repainted it “Energy Yellow” to match his other Minneapolis Moline tractor(s).