In 1870, George Fahr started Fahr Maschinenfabrik in Gottmadingen, Germany, to produce hay-making and harvester machines like hay tedders, mowers and reaper-binders. Due to their outstanding quality, these tools quickly spread across Europe and can still be spotted in the German countryside today, known for their fine detail. By the late 1930s, it was time to build tractors, with the first one – the F 22 with a Deutz engine – known for being compact and easy to handle.
During the Second World War years, the company concentrated on producing gas-powered tractors. The Fahr HG 25, built to follow Hitler’s 1939 law that banned liquid fuels in farming, had a unique carburettor that could run on both petrol and wood gas.
The abbreviation HG in fact stands for HOLZ GAS, which translates to wood gas. This tractor had a vertical, twin-cylinder Otto engine made by Deutz or Güldner. It was water-cooled, had forced circulation and used spark plugs for ignition. It generated 25 horsepower and hundreds were made in two versions: farming and military. The gas generator, made under licence from the Imbert company, was fitted at the front, before the radiator. The lid on top of the wood store was firmly sealed when a fire was lit at the bottom. The fire could not burn the wood, but merely overheat it to a red charcoal state to draw out the gas. This gas was then drawn out, cleaned of solid particles, and then cooled using a radiator. It then needed to be combined with air, drawn into the engine cylinder, and ignited as required. Consumption was measured in kilograms of wood per HP/hour of operation. With this solution, farmers were able to use a readily available material from their daily lives as fuel, namely wood (usually beech). This had to be not overly dry and chopped into small logs. This tractor’s red livery remained the brand’s signature colour until 1961.
After the world war, the newfound supply of oil and diesel made this type of tractor redundant. We still hear about them today because the ones Fahr made were some of the best, built with this “intrusive” fuel.
Yet another instance where the world of tractors never fails to astound us!