Rare toy tractors are often from short production runs, sometimes due to factory mistakes.
The top model, a 1/64-scale of an Allis-Chalmers 7045, has the very difficult-to-find white border decal – unlike the unbordered decal on the 7045 below it, which is considered common.
1-2. Big Bud 525/50 and Big Bud 400/30 toy tractors. Only 12 sets were made, according to Jason Dalton, Newton, Iowa, a longtime collector of 1/64-scale farm toys. "The Ertl Co. (Dyersville, Iowa) made these sets for different collectors to inspect and see what the final toys might look like," he says, "but Ertl was told they were the wrong color."
3. Allis-Chalmers 7045 toy tractor with the white border decal. "This is the hardest of all the 1/64s to find," Jason says. "It's just that scarce; I've only had two in my life."
4. Ford 9700 tractor with dome rims.
5-6. Massey-Harris 2775 and Massey-Harris 2880 toy tractors with domed rear wheels. "These are hard to find," says Kate Bossen, who is in charge of selling farm toys at Bossen Implement, Lamont, Iowa.
7. John Deere 730 toy tractor with metal fenders. This model was the first 1/64-scale farm toy ever made by the Ertl Co. The metal fenders broke off easily, Jason says, so production was switched to plastic fenders.
8. Friggstad 4-wheel-drive toy tractor. This tractor is similar to a Big Bud tractor, but orange. Jason says just 156 were made for the KFYR Ag Expo in Bismarck, N.D.
9-10. John Deere 4430 and Massey-Harris 1155 toy tractors with small, narrow front wheels. "You can find the largewheel versions all day long," Kate says, "but the others are a lot harder to find."