EDITOR

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Tharran Gaines was born in North-Central Kansas where he grew up on a small grain and livestock farm near the town of Kensington. He attended Kansas State University, where he received a degree in wildlife conservation and journalism. However, he began using his agricultural background as a technical writer for Hesston Corporation in 1974, and has been a writer for the past 43 years.

As a technical writer, he has produced repair manuals, owner’s manuals, and assembly instructions for companies that include Hesston, Winnebago, Sundstrand, and Kinze. Later, he moved to the editorial side of the business, where he worked for a couple of advertising/public relations agencies and a weekly farm publication.

As a creative writer, he has crafted and produced everything from newsletter and feature articles to radio and TV commercials to video scripts and advertising copy for such companies as DeKalb Seed Company, DowElanco, Farmland Industries, Caterpillar, Challenger, Gleaner, Massey Ferguson and T-L Irrigation.

In 1991, he began his own business as a freelance writer, and today continues to operate Gaines Communications with his wife, Barb, out of their home office in Missouri. The majority of his business involves producing editorial and advertising copy for agricultural clients involved in the farm machinery industry. However, he has also written a number of books on tractor restoration and classic tractors.

Ken  was raised in Milton, WI. His many trips to his grandparents’ farm in his childhood started his interest in farm equipment. After obtaining a B.S. in Ag Engineering Technology, he began working at a dealership, eventually becoming Service Manager. At this same time he started writing articles for Red Power Magazine. 

He switched to the Parts Department and began in-depth researching of the history of his farm equipment companies of interest: IH and Steiger Tractor. He has authored a number of tractor books covering the history of IH and Farmall tractors. His first book was a self-made (on a typewriter) IH tractor serial number book. His most recent book is the award winning Red Tractors 1958-2013. Besides being a contributor to Heritage Iron, he also contributes to Red Power and Classic Tractor. 

Some of his hobbies include collecting IH tractor and truck brochures and toys, Steiger tractor brochures, and Kenworth truck brochures. He also enjoys restoring and collecting IH Cub Cadet garden tractors, restoring muscle tractors, O-gauge electric trains, and writing/reading history books. He enjoys writing/researching articles for Heritage Iron, as he gets to cover brands and topics that are not presented in other publications.

Doug is an avowed tractor addict. But, unlike most tractor addicts who fill up their garages, sheds, and barns with tractors, he fills up paper by drawing them. “The good thing about my approach to collecting is I can have any make, model, and as many tractors as I want, which is nice.” 

His collecting got out of hand so he went as far as to get his wife, Brenda's, permission to quit his normal job and start up a small business drawing tractors called TRACTORS ink. He knows that's nuts, but figures “Hey, this is America… if you don't chase your crazy dream, what's the point of living here?" Currently he does three regular cartoons for tractor magazines and a bunch of custom work including logos, toy tractor box illustration, and muscle tractor sign art. His tractor work can be seen on his Facebook site (Tractors ink) and his website: www.tractorsink.com.

Tyler is a seventh generation Kansas farmer from rural Southwest Kansas. He attended Wichita State University and obtained a degree in Mechanical Engineering. On top of this, he operates a toy business named Hook’s Legacy Customs, where he specializes in antique and Kansas-built machinery.

From his interest in antique equipment, Tyler has built up a collection of equipment seen widely around his part of Kansas, including Minneapolis Moline, Dempster, Wegele, J.I. Case, Gleaner, and International Harvester. He also has a large reference library of brochures and memorabilia for a wide array of farm industry history. 

In 2023, Hook finished a rough draft of a book encompassing the history of the Gleaner and Baldwin combines. This began a concerted effort in sharing the stories of the roles of Kansans in items such as cabs for tractors and combines, as well as planting and tillage equipment that furthered the growth of large scale farming still growing to this day. From the passion of keeping the stories and histories alive, Hook has worked diligently on sharing the stories.

Fred owns SunShower Acres, Ltd. of Bucyrus, Ohio, a dairy cattle consulting business. Mr. Hendricks is also a freelance writer on subjects related to agriculture. He may be contacted at email: fwhendricks@gmail.com.

Tyler is a fourth generation tri-axle truck driver at his family's 102-year-old transportation business, W.L Hall Lime and Coal Inc. in Central Pennsylvania. With farming in the bloodlines on both sides of the family, he grew up in the heart of dairy country surrounded by the rolling hills and fertile fields. His love for operating and repairing all types of machinery was further refined through employment on a local family-owned dairy farm, and he has logged many hours in the cabs of tractors, trucks, large combines, and forage harvesters through the years.

He enjoys studying and researching the machinery that was produced in the heart of the heritage era for the agricultural and trucking industries, and his special interest is researching the short-line manufacturers and lesser-known companies. 

Tyler also authored the book,  PERFORMANCE/ENDURANCE: The Machines and Men of Field Queen Incorporated, which is the only written history of the Field Queen forage harvester line. He resides in Loysburg with his wife Brittany, young son Dolan, and a collection of tractors that includes a Minneapolis-Moline G-1000 diesel, Ford 801 diesel, and three Caterpillar D-2s.