“My dad, Neil, switched the day-to-day tractors to John Deere when International and David Brown combined as Case International, Dad couldn’t bring himself to drive a David Brown,” he said.
From the early ‘70s, Neil collected and meticulously restored vintage John Deeres.
When he passed away, he had one of the largest John Deere collections in New Zealand, and a big machinery sale was held.
Six tractors were purchased back by family members.
“My favourite was a 1955 John Deere 70,” Houghton said.
He remembers ploughing on the farm with his dad driving the JD G with a two-furrow plough and him driving a JD 70 (pre-restoration) with a three-furrow Reid and Gray plough.
“At lunchtime, we had to go back and fill the G up with petrol, but the 70 would easily go all day on one tank of diesel,” Houghton said.
“It was John Deere’s first row-crop diesel tractor.
“One of six imported new by Gough, Gough and Hamer, and another 7-8 followed later, mostly second-hand.
“The JD 70 is quite rare in New Zealand.”
Houghton described the two-cylinder, 50hp JD 70, with six forward and two reverse gears, power steering and a hand-operated clutch, as an “interesting tractor”.
Reece’s father Neil Houghton working with the John Deere 70 in the 1990s prior to restoration. Photo: Catherine Fry
“It has huge pistons, a 6 1/8 inch bore and 6 3/8 inch stroke, with live power takeoff, live hydraulic power with hydraulic-stop cylinder, and Roll-O-Matic front end suspension.”
The 70 is started by a John Deere four-cylinder V-type cranking engine, which exhausts through the air intake of the diesel engine and shares the same cooling system, making the tractor easy to start in cold temperatures.
“It’s well known for its fuel economy and efficiency,” Houghton said.
“Pre-launch trials of the 70 at the University of Nebraska showed a result that was deemed too good to be true, but when it was retested the next day, it was even better after being broken in the previous day.”
Houghton is on the committee of the Waikato Vintage Tractor and Machinery Club.
He takes the 70 to club events and uses it for splitting firewood, grass seeding and ploughing around the farm.
He admits to being a bit averse to getting it dirty, as it’s in such beautiful condition.