Tractors do not have an easy life. They are the purest workhorses when it comes to an engine-powered vehicle. They go out and work and when they wear out, they…well, normally that’s that, isn’t it? Some tractors stick around for years doing work, others get worked to death and replaced as needed. For Welker Farms, the tractor of choice is the Big Bud series, built in Havre, Montana. They have a couple of these units, which is pretty cool since the tractors themselves were built between 1979-1982. They come packing a 18.8L Cummins six and as the name suggests, have 525 horsepower.

It would be easy enough to put the money that will be spent cleaning up and fixing this Big Bud, but just like anyone who has chosen to fix the old car instead of buying the new one knows, sometimes it isn’t about having the newest. These tractors have a following and for the Welkers, they’ve worked well…so why not clean up and keep a legacy unit running properly? This is the actual beginning of the restoration, the teardown phase, where interior insulation gets scraped out, body panels get removed and set aside, and rodent nests meet the business end of a shop vac. We will be keeping an eye on this build…after seeing the results of their International Eagle restoration, we have high expectations!