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Views and opinions: Lawn & Garden Tractor taking orders for first farm toy model

 

Lawn &Garden Tractor (LGT) magazine has announced its first farm toy model, which is the first in a series of miniature garden tractors, a 1/16-scale Panzer T-758 ES.

Built by Top Shelf Replicas, only 500 of these will be made, and LGT is accepting orders from current subscribers for this cute Panzer miniature. Top Shelf Replicas is headed by toy maker and collector Alan Chestnut.

Kate Goelhauser, managing editor for LGT, said she and Editor Brandon Pfeiffer selected the Panzer because they wanted the tractor to be something uncommon and attractive. “The Panzer was more widely known on the East Coast and has an attractive turquoise and white color scheme, which no other garden tractor during that era used,” she explained.

“What makes it special is that recently my business partner Brandon Pfeiffer and I bought out the remaining assets of the Panzer Company,” she added.

Kate provided some history of the Panzer Co. “It all stated in 1953 with a fellow by the name of James Clark. He was an engineer at a company that did missile research called Ahrendt Instrument Company, located in College Park, Maryland.

“At the time, the company had nothing to do with garden tractors, but James had recently moved into a new home and was looking for a small tractor that a homeowner could easily use. As a result of his searching, he decided to design a simple but sturdy tractor that used the rear ends from salvaged Chrysler vehicles.

“Once the president of Ahrendt gave the okay, they built one and took it to a trade show in New York, where it was well received. They named the early ones Copar Panzer,” Kate explained, “saying that it was built like a tank. At that time they were red; they changed the color scheme in 1959 to the more commonly known aqua and white.”

Like many tractor companies, Copar Panzer had changes over the years. In 1960, the company was sold to Virginia Metalcrafters, then in 1963 they acquired the Pennsylvania Lawn Products Co. and, at that time, they began to produce a smaller tractor.

“Pennsylvania Panzer is a name that you hear frequently in the lawn and garden tractor world,” Kate said. “In fact, since we purchased the company we have noticed a surge in collectors who are finding the old reel mowers that Pennsylvania made, and restoring those to display with their other Panzer machines. Production of the tractors ended in 1972.”

Kate and Brandon not only are promoting lawn and garden tractors through their magazine and the new toy they are building, they have tractors of their own – and a few Panzers work into the mix. Besides acquiring Panzer in 2016, Kate said, “I personally bought an earlier model Panzer model 1110, which has a square hood and a wide seat. Mine was one of the last ones made and has a lot of variations compared to the others.

“Brandon and I also purchased a Panzer with a front loader on it for our private collection. We also bought an unrestored three-wheel Copar Panzer that will be restored by a friend in North Carolina. Brandon also owns a Copar model 220 that he bought several years ago before we bought the company.”

The toy will sell for $89.50, and $15 shipping and handling. Collectors wanting to add the Panzer toy model to their collection need to subscribe to LGT and complete the pre-order form. Kate noted, “We are awaiting the 3-D prototype of the Panzer toy. Once we approve it, it will take about three more months for it to arrive.”

What’s next in the LGT lineup? “Our plans are to continue the series with other vintage brands of garden tractors such as Speedex, Beaver, Power King Economy and Colt are a few names that come to mind. Our choices are made based on brands that do not require licensing agreements with the big name brands such as John Deere, Wheel Horse and Cub Cadet.”

Log onto www.lagtmag.com or call 812-985-0828.

 

Readers with questions or comments for Cindy Ladage may write to her in care of this publication. Learn more of Cindy’s finds and travel in her blog, “Traveling Adventures of a Farm Girl,” at http://travelingadventuresofafarmgirl.com

 

 

2/8/2018