The Downfall of Muir-Hill Tractors

[@MatheoMisiak]

If you like my videos please consider subscribing!🤠 I will be very grateful for sharing the movie wherever possible so that it can reach as many audiences as possible! Thank you!☺👍 I would also like to invite you to join my Faceboog group Matheo Machinery and to follow my FB & IG accounts @MatheoMisiak for more tracotr and machinery content! All links down below: Matheo Machinery: bit.ly/MatheoMachinery Facebook: bit.ly/FB_MatheoMisiak Instagram: bit.ly/IG_MatheoMisiak

[@ChefAtPlay]

I remember some years back when I was in Mozambique for work there was an old Muir Hill MH101 that we used for launching boats and towing trailers on the beach. She sang beautifully and never gave a moments trouble even in the harsh conditions and sub standard maintenance. Great fun to drive. Thanks for the video, awesome as always.

[@TJMack-]

We had a 161 on my family's farm in the North of Scotland throughout the 1970s. Absolutely loved our 'Honey Monster' and, by far, my favourite tractor of all time. If you are of similar age to me you'll remember that they even had Matchbox toys of them.

[@MatheoMisiak]

I'm to young I suppose + in Poland hardly anyone has heard of Muir-Hill. We used to have our own brands like Ursus, Crystal or Ślązak

[@olenilsen4660]

@@MatheoMisiak I grew up with an Ursus in Norway - it was a 4x4 385. That was the closest I´ve ever driven to a tank! Nothing could break on those... Now, we also had a Muir-Hill at one point, which was used for drainage work, with a big digger wheel in the back. The pulling power was awesome, but it needed an entire county to complete a 180 turn...

[@theunemployedtrucker]

@TJMack, I remember the Muir hill toys my parents got me the Matchbox Muir hill tractor and dumper trailer one Xmas and I loved it, I really wish I still had it.

[@pmurt8932]

I had a muirhill tractor matchbox toy. 1975 era

[@benaubrey6651]

I owned a 121 from 1975. The thing would do about 30mph on the road and had a great steering lock. May find another one day. Underrated tractors of their time. Would have one over a county

[@formidable38]

We had a 121 at the agri college I went too after leaving school in 1983. We rebuilt the engine in it. Offten wonder if it still survives today.

[@grahamallison6704]

Good video, brought back memories. I worked building the 111,121, 141, and 171 when I left school. Mainly on the introduction of the 171 and building and development the model for farming, industry and United Nations use. Happy days. 👍

[@MatheoMisiak]

so you remember the best years of tractor industry - i envy you 🙂

[@grahamallison6704]

@@MatheoMisiak yes, at 17 years old being involved was great, building and driving the tractors as they went through the production process. I remember the challenge as the 171 model came in to replace the 161s. Also when the mk2 cab units came along, which was a vast improvement. So many memories, that started my career as an engineer.

[@andykane9866]

I live in ireland here love the videos ,,I live not far from the Moffat factory ,,I remember they used to convert the Ford newholland 7840s to loaders multi tractor

[@andrewmartin9313]

We have a operational 111 and a 101 as parts on our farm in Australia.

[@cormacbrowne9571]

Thanks Matheo, subscriber from Ireland. Drove and operated one of their loaders on a farm in England. It was ex-British military and still had the camo colours. It came with a backhoe that was detached while I was there. A machine build to last no doubt, it's loader boom looked to be cast though I'm not 100% sure about that. Sadly it was not well maintained and lacked functioning brakes and the torque converter was fairly worn out. An impressive machine nonetheless.

[@MatheoMisiak]

Thanks! This month I met @Farmer Phil from Ireland and I heard from him that there are a lot of Ursus/Zetor tractors in Ireland and they are in very low prices. In Poland they achive astronomical prices and they're very in great demand by polish farmers because of low costs of maintenance and easy repairs

[@VelEire_]

Weheyy another Irish subscriber Zetors are a fan favourite here for the same reason. Cheap to run and pull above their weight.

[@benohsten9323]

I grew up watching one of these on a neighbouring farm. Thanks for the excellent description and research in perfect English.

[@bobtaylor6508]

I had the pleasure to drive both MH 101 ans MH 121, great tractors, even today there pulling ability is legendary.

[@nickbaxter4460]

Lovely tractors , used to work on them for a dealer in Lincolnshire England

[@therabster1995]

Superb as always keep it up

[@ryanwiese5280]

Props to the designer, every machine they built was good looking.

[@HorseMalone]

Nenthead village in Cumbria have a Muirhill tractor used as the heavy snowplough . It has a large V plough and chains on all four wheels fitted permanently and is owned and operated by the community as the local clowncil, as with all clowncils, is totally inept at keeping the roads open in winter.

[@darreng745]

On the four wheel convertors you missed out County's main rival in Roadless both of whom vied for that market before Ford took the plunge and offered four wheel drive versions of their tractors straight off the production line. I was lucky that through my child hood a very dear family friend ran Muir Hills while the farm on which we lived ran an eclectic mix of County's some of which now would be worth serious money, yet they were given to new drivers to use as a test to see if they were up to the job.

[@johncone9516]

Worked on many a Muir Hill in the late 60's. The 161 had a Fuller Road Range truck gearbox which could be a bugger to get out. They also got let down by using steel hydraulic pipes and metal olives. The pressure on the couplings was too great. We had a contractor that had 2 161's and would double shift them around the clock for weeks without turning them off, only for oil and filter changes.

[@jamesbarbour8400]

Whilst Matteo is correct in stating that most Muir Hills did indeed incorporate Ford 5000 (and successor models) transaxles, the MH 161 & 171 tractors were quite unique in that they utilised a model specific drop box mated directly to the back axle, which was from their loading shovel range. The remainder of these two tractors had transmissions and engines dropped into and attached to substantial fabricated plate steel side members in the case of the MH 161 and large section 'C' channel members, which ran the full length of both sides of the machine, in the case of the MH 171 tractor. About the only thing these two larger tractors had in common with their smaller counterparts, was the drive/steer front axle, the outer trumpets of which were derivations of the rear axle design of Ford 5000 (and its successor models). Interesting to note, that whilst the rear wheels had their centre discs dished in, the front wheels were dished out to allow for the reduction gearing in the front hub and its vertical trunnion. The wheel centre discs were identical on all four wheels, albeit reversed in pairs, to one another. This allowed the rear wheels to run in the same track as the front ones. The Muir Hill range of tractors had a much superior turning circle to any County tractor, as Muir Hill utilised a centrally mounted drive shaft, under the chassis of the tractor, whilst County famously utilised twin propeller shafts, one on each side of the tractor. The positioning of these is what limited County tractors turning circle - famously 'generous'. Where Muir Hill also scored over County, was with regard to brakes. Muir Hills had brakes on all four wheels, whilst County had potentially more stress on their brakes, as they only had two on the rear axle, but which were required to also brake the front wheels, via the twin propellor shafts. County tractors, on the other hand, had a lower centre of gravity than a Muir Hill, where the cab was set up high above all the transmission components. That said, there was a lot of wieght in the principal castings, which were all located down low in the chassis. The cab still wieghed a fair bit though, as it had to be strong enough to protect the driver in the event of a roll over.

[@gordonwilkinson4389]

Superb video driven the 101 and 110 great tractors to drive loved them

[@royjacques5650]

Thankyou this is one of the best videos I've ever seen on muir hill tractors it's just a pity that muir hill did not get the recognition that county tractors had i still think muir hill had better cabs and comfort they are lovely to drive i still have my 121 mk3 and still using it. Roy

[@roberthiggins6401]

You just popped up in my recommended. I've just learned a lot in the space of ten minutes. I didn't know they'd been around so long and converted to locomotives etc. I watch some of the you tube channels that you featured here. I just saw in the comments you've met with Phil Stewart. It's there an upcoming video with him? Cheers and good luck to you from England.

[@MatheoMisiak]

Hi! Thanks for the comment. We met on Michelin event with Phil, had a bit of conversation about tractors and took a photo 🙂

[@roberthiggins6401]

@@MatheoMisiak Ah right. You met Kurt as well?

[@africadreamin]

Back in 69 or 70 I went to the Dowerin Field Day in Western Australia, there was a Muit Hill on demo, it had a dozer blade on the front and they were using the blade to push an earth bank, its party piece was to push the bank then stop I assume they engaged 4 wheel drive or it shifted down a gear either way it hunkered down and pushed its way through the bank, quite impressive.

[@SchnelleKat]

Just keeps geting better & Better Matheo! I have been looking into these for some time and Now have a Completed Model In Farming Simulator 19. Working on Expanding to the Complete 4wd lineup.

[@memyselfandaeiii]

Hi, just wondering if you modelled the machine in Farm Simulator yourself & if so, what software did you use? I'm coming from a CAD background and am interested in breaking into asset creation for games. Love Muir Hills by the way :)

[@SchnelleKat]

@@memyselfandaeiii i use 2.92 blender. Notepad++ for scripting and the required giants editor v9.0.3 for putting it into readying ingame .

[@memyselfandaeiii]

@@SchnelleKat sounds cool :) - I know of Blender at least & was thinking of learning it soon. Do you have any pointers for getting started in that line of work?

[@SchnelleKat]

@@memyselfandaeiii its fairly simple for being an open source software vs Autodesk. (Which I learned in HS) just too expensive $1880+ yearly license. Best i can say is have lots of time ready & There are lots of long & short or simple tutorials on KZbin. Basically how i learned it all.

[@animallover19581]

That's where Muir Hill finished and J.C.B. Fast track started. Great video thanks.

[@tdolan500]

Always loved them, know a guy who still runs several of them.

[@tonymckeage1028]

Great Video, Interesting history, thanks for sharing

[@drawingboard82]

Absolutely top quality. I've subscribed!

[@EoineyMTX125]

Love your channel keep up the good work

[@pipww]

Thanks for such a great video, very interesting

[@matthewdickson7838]

We used to run a MH110 on a farm i worked on was built in 1970 was an excellent machine could pull a bouse down ....👍👍🇬🇧🍺

[@fasteddiers8418]

Brilliant video my freind, very educational many thanks ❤

[@johnsachar5777]

We still use a MH101 for some smaller jobs. The young man who operates it, Matt, thinks it is a beast. Pulls 4-16's in wet conditions like a hot knife through butter.

[@nickhill3362]

Hi there was a plant hire company near me in the UK that used a 171 for many years on dump trailers and also did agricultural contracting with it I once spent an afternoon in it they sold it eventually and bought a JCB fastrac

[@mountainblokemoments]

JCB tractors and Tele handlers have a very similar look to the MH tractors👍🏼👍🏼🇦🇺

[@markrskinner]

Excellent. My neighbour ran a 121 for many years.

[@grahampartridge9335]

Hello, thanks for another video. A good friend of mine just round the corner from me has a MH141 . Its a bit of a beast, Sometimes i give him a hand fixing it

[@joebatyo]

Nice video again! Thanks a lot!

[@spoutnikmox3455]

As always, very interesting and well documented videos but way too much ads cuts which ruins the watcher’s experience...

[@TrevorStruthers]

Lovin it. Keep them coming.

[@MatheoMisiak]

thanks! join my FB group for more tractor & machinery content :)

[@TrevorStruthers]

@@MatheoMisiak im one step ahead of you. Already did it.

[@JD-eq4dp]

I remember seeing these great tractors as a kid growing up in South Warwickshire, England, during the early 80s. Happy Memories.

[@joemclaughlin995]

Class looking tractor! Would love to own a Muir Hill 141 and a Massey Ferguson 1250. Off to buy a lottery ticket. Great video!

[@MatheoMisiak]

Some restored County tractors achive prices of even 200 000 pounds!😱

[@joemclaughlin995]

@@MatheoMisiak possibly the greatest durable all round tractor in my opinion Matheo was the Fiat 110/90. Bullet proof 6 cylinder engine. Starting to make good money too,at auction.

[@stevehill4615]

We've got a Muir Hill (have to check model) up at our sheds if you're interested ------ also a factory County bucket loader

[@WilliamSmart-g7t]

Good tractor I worked for a Ford dealer 79.to 1983 good girl's worked well 😊 especially dual power dropping or raising 1/2a gear when operated 😊😊😅

[@KenMorgan-ku4kd]

Brilliant, I love them. It’s a pity stop making them. I think they was a good tractor.

[@jimdieseldawg3435]

Cheers Matheo! There are a few restored M-Hs on the British show circuit, some restored and some with ex-farm patina. Matchbox Toys “King Size” range included an M-H tractor paired with a dump trailer in the ‘70s, so kids of that generation may recognise the outline, if not the brand 🙂

[@allistairc123]

My photo on the thumbnail! How do you get around the copyright using so many videos?

[@MatheoMisiak]

it is fair use - all copyrights to original creators, I tagged each creator in the lower left corner, links to original videos in the description - I just needed to use some parts to ilustrate the story. Thumbnail comes from scandinavian broschure I supose - I hope you don't mind :)

[@allistairc123]

@@MatheoMisiak thumbnail comes from my camera of my dad in his 171 working at fingal show Ireland. im pleased its reconised my only request credit or link to my channel thanks. Video is very well put togeather Be nice if it was new footage. I believe fair use Wikipedia script videos will be the end of KZbin eventually.

[@MatheoMisiak]

@@allistairc123 I put a credit and a link to your channel in the description. Here in Poland we don't have a single muir-hill tractor I suppose, so I wouldn't have had a chance to record it myself anyway :(

[@ronniehoyle9671]

Great video 👍👌 I live near Halifax which is very close to Hipperholme. A good insight into the history of these great tractors 👍😊

[@paulmcgovarin1683]

I worked for muil hill from 1980 till 1984 when it closed as a machinist in gloucester

[@dogwoodtube]

Nice video

[@gggbon]

Interesting video. You mentioned that after many different owners what remained of the company was purchased by JCB? I'm wondering if the current lineup of JCB FasTracks are kind of the heir of those Muir-Hill. They even look a bit the same

[@davidweekes6267]

Muir Hill, County, Roadless etc were all built in the 1960's and 70'S when the major manufacturers built virtually no large 4wd tractors themselves. The company I worked for bought lots of Muir Hills and Counties for sugar cane operations. Once the majors moved into the big 4wd market all these small companies were doomed.

[@terrycarter5584]

Drove a 141 for a few seasons

[@TRPGpilot]

Very informative!

[@matthewdickson7838]

Fabulous tractors we had a 1970 110 would pull a town down

[@andysaunders3708]

They're neat. Have a look at some of the Australian Frankensteins that were made!

[@landyandy7]

You forgot to add the follow on to muir hill's history , Myth-Holm produced a limited run of a model the 131 when it was owned by Lloyd loaders

[@craigstacey7694]

very good video

[@toddgittins5692]

Could they keep the batteries charged?

[@andrewmellon5072]

I remember lots of jumping starts in 1970 on 101.

[@andrewwilson6085]

Very interesting,

[@stevenmaguire5772]

Class video

[@CALOCALKY]

Is this where the fast track came from

[@andyhutch8262]

I operated 121,141 & 171 Muck Hills, worst by far with all 3, twats to get in and out of the cabs, a real pain in the arse if you happen to be in and out a lot of the cab at lot , like stones getting fast in the machine coupled at the rear, of the 3 I operated, the 141 was the best, one I drove had the Perkins engine fitted.

[@paulnolan1352]

That Perkins V8540 was one of the reasons Muir Hill lost sales, it was unreliable and costly to maintain.

[@jamieshields9521]

Another interesting vid👍I don’t thing brand came to Australia but can see why other countries like UK like it. Unfortunately like Leyland, Marshall, County n Muir Hill these fall out of flavour, to slow adjust to market demands which Ford brought out TW range it ended these brands.

[@allistairc123]

I seen a good few of them in Australia theres even one in a museum... Dardanup heritage park W.A

[@BerlietGBC]

Very good fella Check out Weatherill from the UK as well

[@chrisloukes7042]

Hi we are the owner of a muir hill MH1 and we’ve been trying to find some more information about it even a picture of what it looks like because it is missing it’s cab

[@pvtimberfaller]

They look like anIH 4100 series which were junk from the factory.

[@pvtimberfaller]

The Skagit company made Fordson locomotive conversions.

[@christophermuir9877]

Nice

[@garysymonds4963]

Had three of these in the eighties one with four cylinder ford engine it was ok iceing on the cake was the 6354, Perkins bullet proof used in coal merchants business loading coal hoppers Daily could not fault them service department was very if you had problems they were very helpful also if you had basic mechanical knowledge you could fix them yourself they were brilliant as loading shovel rear wheel steering

[@donwright3427]

Loaders good 6354 perkings powa dude

[@radharcanna]

A great story. Attractive looking tractors. What was their arrangement with Ford? Did they have to get special permission or a licence from Ford in order to convert their tractors?

[@darreng745]

If they worked on the same basis as County/Roadless then they bought the basic skid unit from Ford and then added the axles/gearbox and tin work to it. Ford would warranty the engine as long as the owner stuck to the service reconmendations and did not fit an after market turbocharger as that was the easiest way to annoy Ford as the engines were not deemed suitable for that until later. Some convertors like JJ Thomas would change the four pots for an industrial engine that was a 6 pot by Ford and stretch the tin work and chassis rails to include that. I would say that Muir Hill with their experience did not need to do that level of conversion as like County and Roadless they were acceptable rebuilders of the basic skid units to Ford as their tractor division did not offer factory built four wheel tractors in the UK until around 1979 or so with the TW range.

[@radharcanna]

@@darreng745 Fascinating. Those companies were so inventive. Thanks for the information.

[@jasperedwards2713]

what about weatheril loaders

[@megomansur6103]

Thx for information bro . Wanna ask you about Investing in grain cultivation in Poland .. Are foreigners allowed or not allowed to invest with a Polish partner

[@MatheoMisiak]

We have very strict law when it comes to farming. Polish farmers have priority to buy a land and non-farmers cannot buy land at all. Now also a rent for a land is becoming strictly regulated so I don't think it going to be easy

[@megomansur6103]

@@MatheoMisiakalso rent land with Polish partner. The procedures are strict and difficult ?

[@MatheoMisiak]

@@megomansur6103 to be honest I don't know exactly how to proceed this

[@germanyisthebest1599]

3rd time asking plz do poland

[@melburchell7602]

I never liked ford much...the engines were so thirsty for fuel The Perkins engines were much better I love the Massey Fergusons but I guess Muir hill were a hybrid of Ford and Massey

[@jasperedwards2713]

i no someome who had muirhill dumper forkliftsd

[@DMJ52]

Dumpers and forklifts were Winget. Made on the same site in Gloucester.

[@Pablo-hm1su]

On dis episod ajm... about this shitty Korbanek😉😃😆

[@alanchatfield4271]

Lol it's not a globe mate

[@ArmpitStudios]

Those are some very interesting looking machines. Especially some of their earlier loaders and such. I love oddball looking equipment like this.

[@roblonsdale8927]

I was fascinated by those loaders to, particularly the cable operated one

[@conmanumber1]

It's a Ford County wannabe.

[@KenMorgan-ku4kd]

Brilliant, I love them. It’s a pity stop making them. I think they was a good tractor.