Old Pond publishing days

Working Tractors 3: Big Power Special DVD advance information

Working Tractors 3: Big Power Special (Tractor Barn Productions), Stephen Richmond and Jonathan Whitlam. DVD, approx 70 minutes. ISBN 978-1-906853-53-2. £12.95 inc VAT. Now in stock at Old Pond Publishing.

This special instalment of the Working Tractors series brings together some really spectacular machines that share one thing in common - high horsepower! From articulated giants to mighty rubber-tracked crawlers this DVD is a power-packed, ground-shaking tribute to some of the biggest tractors to farm the fields of Britain.

Both old and new machines feature including examples from Caterpillar, Steiger, New Holland Versatile, John Deere, Challenger, Massey Ferguson, Ford and Case IH. Steel tracks,large tyres and mutiple wheels or rubber tracks - whichever way the power is put down to the ground the tractors in this DVD really are in the big-power league.

The models included are:
Case IH 9350
Case IH Quadtrac STX450 and STX500
Caterpillar D8
Caterpillar Challenger 45
Challenger MT865C
Ford FW30 and FW60
John Deere 8345RT
John Deere 8440
John Deere 9320T
John Deere 9530
Massey Ferguson 1200
New Holland T8040
New Holland Versatile 9682 and 9684
Steiger Panther ST325.

Two new Tractor Barn DVDs announced

Stephen Richmond and Jonathan Whitlam of Tractor Barn Productions intend to add two further DVDs to their output later this year. They will be available from Old Pond after release. Working Tractors Part 3: Big Power Special and The Potato Files have been added to the provisional schedule in September and November respectively. 

Farming Diaries Volume Two - new DVD from Tractor Barn at Old Pond

Farming Diaries Volume Two: from the driving seat (Tractor Barn Productions), Stephen Richmond & Jonathan Whitlam. DVD, approx 100 minutes. ISBN 978-1-906853-48-8. In stock at Old Pond at £15.95 inc VAT.

For nearly twenty yearsStephen Richmond has worked for farmer John Raven, near Lowestoft, Suffolk. The farm has grown to well over 500 acres, an arable unit whose main crops are oilseed rape, sugar beet, potatoes, wheat and barley.

  Stephen’s DVD diary covers a typical year from January to December to include all the arable operations from seedbed preparation to harvesting. The machinery used is diverse, including Case IH, John Deere and Claas tractors, not to forget an MF 135 still drilling sugar beet. In addition to these there is a feature on the many demonstration models Stephen has been able to try out on the farm, while a second feature looks in detail at the MXM 120 as a ‘Jack of all trades’.

Other machinery includes the unusual Case IH Axial–Flow 2788 combine as well as a number of harvesters, some belonging to the farm and some run by contractors. The move to use contractors is one of the developments Stephen has seen during his working life, as he explains when he talks about recent developments in machinery and farm practice.

Stephen Richmond, along with Jonathan Whitlam, came to prominence in the late 1990s when their first ‘Tractor Boys’ videos were released. They have since been behind many popular DVDs and now run their own list which can be seen on our main website as Tractor Barn Productions.

Know Your Buses new book advance information

Know Your Buses by James Race. Pocket-sized (104 x 155 mm) paperback, 96 pages including 45 photographs. ISBN 978-1-906853-38-9. Now in stock at Old Pond at £4.99.

Every day in all corners of Great Britain, buses can be found transporting the public for local and long distance journeys as well as sightseeing and school transport.

In Know Your Buses James Race shows 44 models. He selects those which are the most popular among bus operators as well as a few of the models less commonly seen. They are all currently licensed for public use today.

Interestingly, many of the bus chassis are built in different countries from the bodywork which accompanies them. This is shown with the description for each bus.

The buses featured are: AEC Routemaster,  Bluebird AARE,  BMC 1100FE,  Bristol VR, DAF DB250,  DAF SB220, Dennis Dart, Dennis Dart SLF,  Dennis Dominator,  Dennis Dragon,  Dennis Enviro200,  Dennis Enviro400,  Dennis Enviro500,  Dennis Lance,  Dennis Trident,  Irisbus Agora Line,  Leyland Lion,  Leyland Lynx,  Leyland National,  Leyland Olympian,  Leyland Titan,  MAN 14.220,  MCW Metrobus,  Mercedes O405,  Mercedes O814D,  Mercedes Citaro,  Optare Excel,  Optare Solo,  Optare Tempo,  Optare Versa,  Plaxton Primo, Scania N113CRB,  Scania N270UD,  Scania OmniCity,  Volvo Ailsa,   Volvo B6B,  Volvo B7RLE,  Volvo B9TL,  Volvo B10BLE,  Volvo Citybus,  Volvo Olympian,  VDL SB200,  Wright Gemini 2,  Wright Streetcar.

Know Your Buses follows the success of nine other books in the Know Your ... series.

DAF at Work: 2800, 3300 and 3600 book advance information

DAF at Work: 2800, 3300 and 3600 by Patrick W Dyer. Hardback book 210 x 265 mm (landscape), 144 pages including approx 190 photographs. ISBN 978-1-906853-37-2. Now in stock at Old Pond at £19.95.

Truck enthusiasts who have read Patrick Dyer's book Scania at Work: LB 110, 111, 140 & 141 will know what to expect - a wealth of photographs, some from the manufacturer, some from enthusiastic amateurs, supported by interesting and informative captions as well as longer introductions which set the scene for each model.

Patrick begins by considering the early history of the company which, although now owned by the American company, PACCAR, and with links to Leyland, has its roots firmly in Eindhoven, Holland.

The bulk of the book is given to the 2800 and 3300 ranges. The author goes carefully through the steady technical progress made by DAFtrucks and shows how, with its attention to driver comfort and economy of operation the marque became a favourite for a wide range of trucking operations.

The company started truck manufacture relatively late, but in the early 1970s it took an industry lead with its flagship 2800. The ‘Supercontinental’ version, with its wide tilt sleeper cab with two full-size bunks and its powerful 11.6-litre DAF engine was a natural for long-haul work.

The successor 3300 and 3600 models took the company into the 1980s, running alongside Scania and Volvo as a long-distance driver’s favourite. The 330 hp engine suited it for the heavy-duty special transport that became a feature of the period. This book is rich in photographs from the 1970s and ’80s. 

Patrick W Dyer works in the automotive industry and is based in Essex. He has written two books for Old Pond: the Scania title mentioned above and Know Your Trucks, a pocket-sized introduction for novice enthusiasts.

Working Tractors Volume two - forthcoming DVD from Tractor Barn

In their second collection Tractor Boys Stephen Richmond and Jonathan Whitlam have a wide assortment of tractors for you to see and hear in action. They have been filmed at work with a range of implements and accessories on arable, mixed and livestock farms in Sussex, Suffolk and Nottinghamshire. As before, the film-makers include a look at their archives as well as some out-takes.
Stephen Richmond’s lively presentation makes this a programme to keep you awake after the heaviest Sunday dinner.

Working Tractors Volume Two (Tractor Barn Productions), presented by Stephen Richmond. Approx 50 minutes plus extras. ISBN 978-1-906853-47-1. Available now from Old Pond  at £9.95.

Old Pond also has a growing range of other DVDs from Tractor Barn.

Tractors featured in Working Tractors Volume Two:

Case-IH Maxxum MXM 120
Challenger MT 845
Ferguson TEA 20
Doe Triple-D
Fendt Favorit 308
Ford 4100
Ford 5610 Force 2
John Deere 6630
Lamborghini Premium 1300
Marshall 802
Massey Ferguson 3085
Massey Ferguson 6270
Massey Ferguson 8220
New Holland TM 155.

Ice Road Truckers season three DVD information

Season Three of the Ice Road Truckers saga has been given a new dimension with the appearance of Lisa Kelly. This former school bus driver and state freestyle motocross champion makes light work of handling her Kenworth W900 tractor trailer.

Ice Road Truckers: the complete season three, the History Channel. Four-disk DVD set, approx 10 hours viewing. ISBN 978-1-906853-43-3. Available 10 May from Old Pond at £19.95.

Some of the veteran drivers – Hugh Rowland and Alex Debogorski – are also in the show, moving with it from Canada to northern Alaska. Once again, their job is to use the three-month window of opportunity to haul oversize loads of critical supplies to isolated communities. This time it’s America’s booming North Slope oil fields.

This is dangerous work. The History Channel calls it ‘a job to die for’ and says that the 414-mile Dalton Highway, the most dangerous road in North America, has claimed the lives of more than four hundred people since it was built just thirty years ago.

A pretty woman driver, grizzled veterans, outsize loads hauled against the clock on treacherous, snow-bound tracks – it all makes for fascinating viewing.

To obtain the other Ice Road Trucker DVDs go to Old Pond's earthmoving and trucking DVDs.

Starks' Harvesters - contract cutting book advance information

In May 1979 two young Englishmen travelled to Oklahoma to become members of Dale Starks’ harvesting crew.
For Rob and Charlie this was the start of memorable years driving Massey Ferguson combines the length and breadth of the American wheat belt. This is Rob’s story, a vivid account of endless hours of work, rattlesnakes, truck wrecks, summer lightning, tornados, favourite bars and the ‘honeys’ at the grain elevators.

Starks' Harvesters by Robert S White. Paperback 216 x 138 mm, 176 pages including 29 photographs. ISBN 978-1-906853-46-4. Now in stock at Old Pond at £9.95.

Rob went on to do five years’ harvesting with Dale Starks who comes to life in these pages with all his wisdom and cussedness. This is the man who starred in Yellow Trail from Texas, the BBC documentary that first inspired Rob and Charlie to make the trip.

In England, Rob was working as an agricultural contractor. For him, machines and harvesting were more than a way of life – they were a passion. This enthusiasm, which brought Rob long-lasting friendships from his American days, illuminates every page of his book.

To buy Yellow Trail from Texas and other custom cutter DVDs see here.

A short note of Dale Starks' death is on the blog at 3 December 2007. An interesting account of working with Dale by 'Young Tom' is on the blog of 8 February 2009.    

Long Haul Pioneers book advanced information

The Long Haul Pioneers by Ashley Coghill. Large-format jacketed hardback book, 320 pages 280 x 220 mm including 345 photographs. ISBN 978-1-906853-33-4. Available now from Old Pond Publishing  at £29.95.

In 1964 Asian Transport, later to become Astran, pioneered overland transport from the UK to the Middle East, the 10,000 mile round trip that was to become a phenomenon in the haulage industry.

In the early days truckers had to cope with unfamiliar documentation, unmade roads, snowdrifts, dangerous mountains, desert sands and bandits. Some of these difficulties eased over the next twenty years, to be supplanted by problems of congested border posts and wars in the Balkans and Iran-Iraq.

The truckers who persevered were exceptional, needing high driving skills, stamina and diplomacy. Similarly, it was only the best companies – such as Astran – which ran the course.

Ashley Coghill’s celebration of Astran and its drivers covers all these points. He interviewed many of the people involved, not least Bob Paul, one of the company’s founder members. There are mini-biogs of Astran’s drivers and sub-contractors accompanied by a wealth of photographs. Even more detail is given to Gordon Pearce and Dick Snow.

The abundance of fine photographs continues through Ashley’s descriptions of the early, middle and later years of Astran. This provides a comprehensive history of the company.

Chapters are also devoted to other areas of special interest: Astran’s Doha depot; the delights of driving in Turkey; accidents and incidents; and the making of the television documentary Destination Doha.

 

Combine Harvesters Part 2 DVD advance information

Combine Harvesters: Part 2 Improved technology 1985-2009 by Chris Lockwood. DVD approx 100 minutes. ISBN 978-1-906853-35-8. Now in stock at Old Pond, price £15.95. Part 2 of a 2-part-set. Both parts together £29.95.

By the mid-1980s combine harvesters were well developed. However, the next 25 years would see technology become ever more advanced. In particular the threshing system changed as rotary and hybrid combines established themselves in the market. Computerisation transformed the driver’s options, offering automatic steering, electronic monitoring and office management tools integral with the machine. This programme shows these developments by looking in detail at 23 key models at work in the UK in 2009.

Machines included in the programme:

Case IH Axial-Flow 1680
Laverda 3750
Claas Dominator 68
Claas Dominator 98s Classic
Claas Dominator 108sl Maxi
New Holland TX34 & TX36
Deutz-Fahr Top Liner 4060
Massey Ferguson 40RS
John Deere 2064
Claas Dominator Mega 204
New Holland TF78 Elektra
Claas Lexion 480
Massey Ferguson 7278 Cerea
New Holland CX860
John Deere 9780i CTS
Case IH Axial-Flow 2388 X-Clusive
New Holland CR980
Claas Lexion 570+ TT
Claas Lexion 580+ TT & 580+
Case IH Axial-Flow 9010
John Deere S690i
New Holland CR9090 Elevation
Claas Lexion 600 TT