The improvements that had been made in the 1940s and ‘50s in farming practices, seed and chemicals had led to better yields and lower prices. This was certainly a respectable number, especially considering that the average farmer owned more land and needed more power in his tractor than he did even just five years prior to the model 50’s release. In four years of production, the model 50 sold nearly 33,000 tractors. Several versions were released and model 50 tractors for contingents of farmers with various and specific needs were engineered and sold. The model 50 followed the “B” and brought many improvements, including a number of options that made the tractor more capable than its predecessor and others that simply made it more comfortable. After nearly 18 years on the assembly line, the “B” was, and still is, the best selling John Deere tractor of all time. To tell the story of the John Deere 520, one really has to start at Deere’s first tractor aimed at that particular power range, the model “B.” Deere’s entry into the two-bottom plow row crop field first began with production of the model “B” in 1934.
