The September/October 2024 issue of Antique Power magazine is available in our gift shop and will be available in subscriber mailboxes and on newsstands soon. Featured on the cover is Rick Leeder’s 1981 Steiger Cougar.

ONE BIG CAT!

This 1981 Steiger Cougar was a real project tractor for Ontario collector Rick Leeder.

text by Madison Nickel • photos by Carrie Nickerson (unless noted)

Throughout history, farmers have been known for their inventiveness and ingenuity. This is likely due to a need for frugality. Farming often consists of successful harvests, but some years result in near or total failures. Farmers, from years gone by, became well-versed in stretching the value of a dollar. When World War II forced manufacturers to limit production, and obtaining a tractor became cost-prohibitive, some farmers opted to try their hand at building their own machines. Many of these tractors used parts from Ford Motor Co. Model T cars and whatever else was lying around the farm. Often called doodlebugs, these barn-built machines filled a niche in the market. While none of these tractors achieved commercial success, they proved that many farmers, when faced with an issue, proved inventive enough to solve it.

Built From Necessity

When Steiger family members needed a high-horsepower tractor to work on their farm near Thief River Falls, Minnesota, they figured out the best way to get one. In the late 1950s, four-wheel-drive tractors were relatively recent additions to model lineups. The only real option was one from the Wagner Tractor Co. in Portland, Oregon. Any excitement around purchasing a new tractor soon dissipated when the cost was found to be too severe.

Being inventive, capable farmers, the Steigers did not give up on the idea of a large, four-wheel-drive tractor for long. Over the winter of 1957–1958, brothers Douglas and Maurice Steiger, along with their father, John, decided to build a tractor. Living on a former dairy farm, they had access to a large hip-roof barn they had turned into a small, well-equipped shop. It featured hand tools, grinders, a cutting torch, welders, a small lathe, and a pillar drill. The family was no stranger to building machinery. In 1956, they had built two self-propelled swathers.

To read the full story, pick up a copy of the September/October 2024 issue of Antique Power magazine!

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September/October 2024 Antique Power

ONE BIG CAT!

This 1981 Steiger Cougar was a real project tractor for Ontario collector Rick Leeder.

text by Madison Nickel • photos by Carrie Nickerson (unless noted)

Built From Necessity

Other articles in this issue include:

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