Oct. 3, 2003 (800) 882-6789 www.capitalpress.com Ag Suppliers CAPITAL PRE
Hillsboro, Ore., business supplies rare Suzue tractor parts
By JO McINTYRE
Freelance Writer
HILLSBORO, Ore. — As any antique tractor buff knows, finding parts is tough.
That’s a problem Paul Roberts had to solve for his Suzue tractor, which he bought in 1998. The tractor isn’t actually very old, but the brand disappeared when, in 1986, Mitsubishi bought the company that made them.
After searching high and low for parts, Roberts came upon Max Webster, of Willamette Exporting in Portland, who had tons of parts and manuals not just for Suzue tractors, but also for other brands of Japanese-made tractors with Mitsubishi engines that are no longer manufactured.
And Webster was looking to retire, or at least cut back a bit on the size of his business, which includes selling walk-behind combines for university crop scientists.
It was a perfect opportunity for Roberts and his wife, Anne-Marie, who bought Webster’s tractor parts inventory. They have just opened Small Import Tractor Supply Co. to sell those hard-to-find parts and manuals. The business is based in their home in Hillsboro.
Now they have a garage full of tractor parts and a website, www.smallimporttractor.com, where those parts are listed. Paul said he hopes to turn his experience and aptitude for making engines work into another side business — buying used, broken Suzues to fix and resell.
Roberts has worked at Gray’s Automotive in Tigard, which builds high-performance custom engines for racing motors and hot rods for 22 years. He bought his Suzue to use on their small, rolling country acreage outside of Hillsboro about six years ago.
Anne-Marie, who will handle bookkeeping and inside sales, has experience as a high-tech manufacturer’s representative. Explaining her husband’s affection for his Suzue tractor, she said, "They are a hardy tractor. Paul has loved it. All the other owners love theirs, too. We have three acres. We aren’t growing anything yet — Paul just loves to mow."
Suzue tractors were one of the first mid-size tractors to be imported to the United States from Japan. The small, all-purpose tractors were manufactured in Japan beginning in the late 1970s and were originally brought into the Northwest for clearing brush and saplings for Christmas tree farming.
They are also good for nurseries and vineyards. Eventually, about 7,000 tractors were imported into the U.S. through the Port of Portland, with about half sold in Oregon and Washington and Northern California.
From the Northwest, the tractors soon found their way into the upper Midwest farming communities and, eventually, into the New England states. Then in 1986-87, Suzue was purchased by Mitsubishi, its brand name was dropped and the difficulty in finding replacements parts followed.
Suzue made two models, the 150 and the 170, both diesel-powered and water-cooled. They were narrower than most tractors manufactured at the time, and Christmas tree farmers found them easier to maneuver between rows and aisles of Christmas trees.
Farmers could pick either two-wheel or four-wheel drive tractors. A 15-horsepower model has six forward speeds and two reverse and the 17-horsepower model has nine forward speeds and three reverse. Both types have three-speed power take-off and accept a full line of attachments and implements.
In addition to the Suzue line, Small Import Tractor Supply also stocks the full line of parts for the KE70 and KE75 Mitsubishi engines used in Mitsubishi, Satoh-Beaver and Iseki tractors.
Article in Capital Press Oct 3, 2003
Small Import Tractor Supply
13750 NW Berry Creek Road
McMinnville, OR 97128
503-628-6319
office@smallimporttractor.com
By JO McINTYRE
Freelance Writer
HILLSBORO, Ore. — As any antique tractor buff knows, finding parts is tough.
That’s a problem Paul Roberts had to solve for his Suzue tractor, which he bought in 1998. The tractor isn’t actually very old, but the brand disappeared when, in 1986, Mitsubishi bought the company that made them.
After searching high and low for parts, Roberts came upon Max Webster, of Willamette Exporting in Portland, who had tons of parts and manuals not just for Suzue tractors, but also for other brands of Japanese-made tractors with Mitsubishi engines that are no longer manufactured.
And Webster was looking to retire, or at least cut back a bit on the size of his business, which includes selling walk-behind combines for university crop scientists.
It was a perfect opportunity for Roberts and his wife, Anne-Marie, who bought Webster’s tractor parts inventory. They have just opened Small Import Tractor Supply Co. to sell those hard-to-find parts and manuals. The business is based in their home in Hillsboro.
Now they have a garage full of tractor parts and a website, www.smallimporttractor.com, where those parts are listed. Paul said he hopes to turn his experience and aptitude for making engines work into another side business — buying used, broken Suzues to fix and resell.
Roberts has worked at Gray’s Automotive in Tigard, which builds high-performance custom engines for racing motors and hot rods for 22 years. He bought his Suzue to use on their small, rolling country acreage outside of Hillsboro about six years ago.
Anne-Marie, who will handle bookkeeping and inside sales, has experience as a high-tech manufacturer’s representative. Explaining her husband’s affection for his Suzue tractor, she said, "They are a hardy tractor. Paul has loved it. All the other owners love theirs, too. We have three acres. We aren’t growing anything yet — Paul just loves to mow."
Suzue tractors were one of the first mid-size tractors to be imported to the United States from Japan. The small, all-purpose tractors were manufactured in Japan beginning in the late 1970s and were originally brought into the Northwest for clearing brush and saplings for Christmas tree farming.
They are also good for nurseries and vineyards. Eventually, about 7,000 tractors were imported into the U.S. through the Port of Portland, with about half sold in Oregon and Washington and Northern California.
From the Northwest, the tractors soon found their way into the upper Midwest farming communities and, eventually, into the New England states. Then in 1986-87, Suzue was purchased by Mitsubishi, its brand name was dropped and the difficulty in finding replacements parts followed.
Suzue made two models, the 150 and the 170, both diesel-powered and water-cooled. They were narrower than most tractors manufactured at the time, and Christmas tree farmers found them easier to maneuver between rows and aisles of Christmas trees.
Farmers could pick either two-wheel or four-wheel drive tractors. A 15-horsepower model has six forward speeds and two reverse and the 17-horsepower model has nine forward speeds and three reverse. Both types have three-speed power take-off and accept a full line of attachments and implements.
In addition to the Suzue line, Small Import Tractor Supply also stocks the full line of parts for the KE70 and KE75 Mitsubishi engines used in Mitsubishi, Satoh-Beaver and Iseki tractors.
Article in Capital Press Oct 3, 2003
Small Import Tractor Supply
13750 NW Berry Creek Road
McMinnville, OR 97128
503-628-6319
office@smallimporttractor.com