Bomford Superflow Restoration.
During the course of the year I try and attend a few local shows with either a single combine or a tractor or two.
After purchasing the 1200 I needed something which would compliment the tractor, and probably the best known implement which featured on a lot of the sales brochures of the 1200 was the Massey 24 chisel plough.
This cultivator was a Massey badged Bmford superflow, which was very popular throughout the sixties seventies, and still in use today on many heavy land farms, even though New technologies in cultivating has somewhat curtailed their use.
The cultivators were available in various configurations and leg tine numbers and positions, and could be adapted with low draft leg tines also, depth wheels were also an option.
The cultivators were suited to four wheel drive tractors county, Roadless, also two wheeled drive 60/70 hp tractors depending on size of cultivator and ground conditions.
Proving very popular at breaking up hard panned ground and a substitute to just a shallow depth plough.
What follows now is a few photos of my restoration of a previous Massey Badged cultivator that originally came from Lincolnshire, I was fortunate this one was pretty straight and had not suffered from any damage in its life with everything present and correct including the depth wheels.
The first job was to strip off all the legs from the frame, and free off the adjusters on the depth wheels.
With the legs removed a start was made on removing the rust from the frame and old paint, the frame which is heavy would need to be lifted over with a fork lift to strip the bottom side.
this is the quickest form of stripping an implement of this size.
The old red paint can still be seen here despite the age of this cultivator which probably dates back to the seventies!
Top of the frame nearly completely stripped
work continues on frame.
Frame cleaned off and two coats of red oxide primer applied
Legs and depth wheels laid out in the open to harden off before a light hand sanding before two pack primer is applied.
With the help of a settled couple of days weather, work continues on applying the two pack primer.
The jcb acts as a hanging horse for the legs to be sprayed.
Applying the super red top coat to frame
Legs left to harden off with clamps reattached.
Left out in the sunshine to harden off, before the hard work begins in reattaching legs to frame.
The work begins, with assistance from my good friend Hillary, several new leg retaining Bolts were used to secure the legs, and several new tips which are still available, and fortunately the frog adapters were all in good condition and they are now quite hard to source.
A few hours in and the cultivator takes shape again courtesy of a long bar and a multiplier.
After a busy afternoon the cultivator sits complete ready for the decals.
With the decals applied just in time for an outing to the local Bath and West Show hitched up to the 1200
Worth the effort to save one of the many thousands of these implements made.
On parade at the show, a worthy implement for this classic tractor.
On show with The Ferguson Club.
Restoring the paintwork on this cultivator was very enjoyable and unlike mechanical items tractors and combines a lot less work and time involved.
My choice of paint is normally two pack, obviously it wont suit everyone and it comes with various issues as to correct use and adequate protection from the harmfull toxic isocyanate released during the paint mixing and spraying process, along with the correct air fed helmet and clothing, means you get a quality finnish with less coats and paint applied that is harder wearing and more resistant to fading and harder wearing than cellulose which will need a constant polish and cut being red especially if left out for long periods in strong sunlight.
And for an amateur paint sprayer as I am I find it far easier to use despite the safety aspects.
My grateful thanks to Scotty (Hyperblast) for the use of his sand blasting equipment.
And also Dave Titch Saunders Machinery Decals for once again supplying the quality copy decals.
And Hillary and Howard for assistance in reasembling the cultivator.
Also Brian Pickering for locating implement.
Kind regards
Isaac Tipson
Hi Colin! I'm make modifications for the Farming Simulator game, and would love to make one of these as a project. Is there any chance you could get me some up measurements of your 24? Thanks.