Jason asked me to write about the events that lead me to collect 1/64 scale tractors and not another scale, a specific brand or manufacturer. Growing up I had many 1/16 scale tractors. I would farm the sandbox everyday. I also had a 1/64 1466 that I farmed with inside. This farm needed another tractor and I was able to get my brothers John Deere 4230 through a trade.

^{My 1466 was the first variation to be produced be produced. It didn’t have a rivet in the cab. The rear wheels were also fastened to the tractor using a post that is cast into the toy. A cab rivet was added later to prevent the cab halves from splitting apart during use. The cast post was still used to fasten the rear wheels on the earlier riveted cab versions. The last variation has the cab rivet, but a rivet has also attached the rear wheels now. The white cab and decal on a 1466 can be found in many different shades of white or cream.}

^{It wasn’t until I met Doug Harke at a scout meeting that I was introduced to the vast selection of farm toys and the concept of collecting them. When I went to my first tractor show I realized it wasn’t going to be easy to decide what scale to collect. Maybe it was because I was a little kid, but the 1/64 scale size appealed to me more than the bigger toys. Space and cost may be the two biggest obstacles swaying your decision.}

^{2,200 1/64 toys will fill a small bedroom. I can only guess that this same room will only hold about a hundred 1/16 toys. 1/32 is also a nice scale to collect. There is more detail than the 1/64 and take up less space than the 1/16. Once I decided on my scale I had to choose what to collect in 1/64. There weren’t a lot of toys available at the time, or so I thought, so I just started getting all that I could find. Only a few new toys would become available each year and it wasn’t hard to keep up with all of them. For 15 years I collected every 1/64 farm toy that I could find from every manufacturer. Besides the tractors, I had been given a few semis, some farm equipment and some International construction equipment. For the most part I have gone with the farm models, but I still like to pick up other pieces that catch my eye.}

^{Some of my favorite semis have tractors on them that add a new variation in that series of tractors. The first one is a Michiana Farm Toy Collectors club 1997 truck and tractor set. The other two are the NFTM 10th anniversary 1986-1996 truck and tractor sets. One semi came with two 1466 ROPS tractors and the other, two1066 cab tractors. I know there is some confusion out there about what configuration these sets came in. Some say that there should be one of each on a truck. To answer this question I’ll just say that I was in the museum and helped them open the cases. They came as shown.}

^{There are a lot of new companies out there today making some very nice toys. I had to cut back and limit my collection to specific areas. I chose to stay with Ertl. I also chose to stop collecting any Scale Models pieces made after the year 2000. I have tried to cut back in a few other areas, but I haven’t been successful.}

^{In the end the decision is all up to you. I know people who collect only 4X4 in all scales or just a specific brand or piece of equipment. What ever you decide to do, make sure you enjoy it. There is no such thing as the wrong thing to collect.}