Tractor Trove

Retired C.Falls mechanic loves all things John Deere

Green and yellow are sacred colors at Arlie Toavs' house.

His collection of prized antique John Deere tractors sprawl across the lawn of his rural Columbia Falls home. In every direction, antique pieces of John Deere farm equipment are positioned as lawn ornaments. Green and yellow John Deere memorabilia fills most nooks and crannies.

Yes, he's a fan of the famous farm machinery brand that declares "Nothing Runs Like A Deere." And he knows more about the tractors' insides than most people.

He owned and operated Toavs' Auto Repair in Columbia Falls from 1955 to the mid-1990s, and spent a lifetime honing his skills as a mechanic.

After a stint in the Air Force from 1951 to 1955, he started his auto-repair business the day after he got out of the service. Though he was raised north of Wolf Point, he'd worked for Flathead Valley farmers and decided to hang his hat in Columbia Falls.

About 10 years ago, Toavs was crippled by a debilitating muscle disease and had to learn to walk again.

"I recovered what was left of me, and I needed something to do," he said.

That's when he decided to start collecting John Deere tractors.

"I like them because the John Deere has two cylinders that fire unevenly," he explained.

Toavs has done all of the mechanic work on his antique tractors, many of which will be on display and running this weekend at the Northwest Antique Power Association's antique tractor show and threshing bee. He makes parts when he can't buy them, and leaves the paint jobs to someone else.

"This is a Model GM - M stands for modernization," he said, pointing to his 1945 John Deere. "It's kind of clunky, the gears sing and grind."

He knows the history of all his John Deere pieces. His Model GM was built in 1945. Production of that model was shut down during World War II because it took too much cast iron.

"Then when they wanted to build it again, they wanted to add a generator, battery and lights, but the War Price Board turned them down," Toavs said.

A 1955 John Deere Model 70 is his pride and joy. The company manufactured the two-cylinder diesels for only two years.

"They have a little V-4 starting motor. Farmers hated it because it didn't have enough power," he said. "They modified the motor later."

Toavs, 75, found all of his tractors in the Flathead Valley area and has rebuilt their motors by hand.

The love of John Deere equipment runs deep in his family. Toavs' cousin at one time had the largest collection of John Deere tractors in the world. His cousin died four years ago, but a museum still houses much of his collection at the LLL Ranch 15 miles north of Wolf Point.

Toavs well remembers the work involved in threshing grain on his father's homestead north of Wolf Point. His father owned one of the largest threshing machines in the area.

"We'd get together to thresh the bundles [of grain]," he recalled. "There would be two people pitching on each wagon, one wagon on each side. We went through lots of straw in a hurry."

Spectators at this weekend's power show will get to see old-fashioned threshing machines that were powered by steam engines from the late 1800s through the 1920s, when gas tractors began proving more efficient and reliable.

It's the educational aspect of the show that motivates power association members.

"That's our big theme," Toavs said. "We want to show all the machinery it took to do the harvesting of grain back then."

Show hours for the threshing bee are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. Admission is $5. It's held at Olsen Pioneer Park between Columbia Falls and Kalispell. Turn east from U.S. 2 on Pioneer Road (across from Glacier Park International Airport) and go a half mile to Helena Flats Road.

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by e-mail at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com