Arland Lepper and his Allis Chalmers Collection

I learned so many fun things from Arland Lepper during our visit last week. Arland, who told me that he is 88 and a half came out to the farm to speak with me and share his Allis Chalmers (AC) story. He said except for a few items, most of his collection, and museum will be auctioned Saturday May 30th, 2026, at 9:00 a.m. There is a preview day on the 29th. It will be a combined live and online auction. by Bid-N-Buy Auctioneering. This is a rarity these days, but that is the way Arland wanted it. “It’s quite a collection we’ve put together,” Arland said, and after seeing it, I have to say I agree!

How it all began

“Dad (Erwin Lepper) bought our first Allis Chalmers in 1940,” Arland said. “He had AC, but then he fell in love with Harry Ferguson’s tractor and got a T0-20. It was a good little tractor. The Ferguson was better than the Ford 8N. Besides, the tractor, Harry Ferguson also developed a rake,” he said pointing to the attachment on his TO-20. “It was the first attempt at a parallel bar rake, and it does such a good job.

As Arland shared, he moved us through the collection as we rode in his golf cart. His son Bob, and my husband Keith had their own conversation going on as Arland reveled me with Allis Chalmers stories.

The Allis Chalmers Model G Test Tractor

Arland said many collectors have a soft spot for the Allis G, and his personal favorite, a 1948 Model G Test Tractor Serial No. 34 is going to auction. He said the first 100 units of the Model G were built in Milwaukee. Then production moved to Gadsen Alabama. “They hauled them (the extra tractors) to Gadsen, then they got thinking only 600 sold. They were making the G like kernels on a corncob.” Brass didn’t think they were selling well.

The overproduction prompted the brass out of Milwaukee, Wisconsin to head the LaPorte, Indiana factory. “That is where they made combines, balers, choppers, corn pickers and tractor cabs. They came to talk to the Chief Engineer, and get equipment developed to go on the G.”

The thought was more AC G attachments would mean more sales. First, they developed a 5′ tandem hydraulic disk. “But Milwaukee didn’t like it, it was the only one ever built,” Arland said. He has this extremely rare prototype that was purchased from the Paul Harren, the Chief Engineer in 2000 “Paul graduated in 1938, ” Arland explained, “then got a job at AC in LaPorte. He told me tales of AC.”

Arland lamented, “He should have written them down.”

The disk was never put into production.

More G details

This little G stayed at the plant for Paul Herrin to experiment with. The Milwaukee brass brought the G in as a test tractor in 1947 Arland said. “The big shots came and dreamt up a swather and hay rake to mount on the front of the G.”

Working with the G on his farm, in 1949, the engineering department was working with the G and the mounted swather, and it literally broke the G right in the center. “They got it loaded up and dumped it at Paul’s acreage. He could tell something was wrong, they said the idea to put an implement on the front won’t work.”

Paul took the G, had the housing welded and straightened, and it worked just fine. Arland had the amazing opportunity to buy this rare tractor from him.

Wagons in the 1960’s

“There was lots of interest in wagons in the 1960’s Allis Chalmers, International Harvester, Oliver they all wanted the wagon business. They picked the Electric Wheel Company in Quincy,” Arland said pointing to a wagon that he said was unusual because it had an AC running gear, Hoist and box. “Dealers usually had a Midwest hoist, so this is hard to find, it is all AC.”

One wagon they decided to keep has a bit of a story. “In 1928, dad and his dad bought a running gear wagon and put it behind a Model T Ford. Dad was already driving and turned too short and busted a corner post. My great Uncle built wagon boxes, so he built the box, it was a shovel board, and they shoveled into the bin. You didn’t have to have an elevator. We decided we were going to keep this.”

Star of the Show

At the upcoming auction, the true star of the show is a 1926 Allis Chalmers Model 20-35. It is the only documented authentic 20-35. It also has special extension wheel rings.

“This is our pride and joy,” Arland said. Found in an ad in Gas Engine Magazine in 1992, this beauty was in Salina, Kansas. “It was rusty and had been stuck. It was on the home farm. The heads were off, and the piston stuck. I bought it over the phone after he sent me pictures. My wife Carol and I got the tandem axle 10′ trailer and drove it down after we winched it on.”

Arland was shocked when the owner went into the house and brought out the manual, bill of sale, and a box built by the original farmer that owned it. The seller was the 2nd owner. The original owner had built a toolbox out of steel, and he had wheel bearings, a full set of valves and more. “It was unbelievable,” Arland added.

Then to add to his amazement, the owner also came out of a shed with a canopy. The 20-35 was a Special Run that could be owned for an extra $200. “I didn’t even know of the special,” Arland shared. “It sold for $1825 new. They were too high priced; they couldn’t sell them. This was the last year they were built; it was a 1700 lb. tractor. It was a good machine, it could thresh all day long, they only built 300 20-35’s, and we don’t know how many specials.”

Back to the drawing board

After 1926 Arland said at Allis Chalmers that, “Harry Merritt took over. He said there was too much weight on the 20-35 and that they needed to cut expenses. He studied the parts, and took 400 lbs. out, and sold the machine for $1685.”

“This is our big draw,” Arland said. “After we got it home in 1993, Bob and I worked on it.” They took it to several shows, and got a new trailer, and Chevy Silverado to haul it. “We hauled it all over the United States. It is the only verifiable 20-35 left in existence.”

More….

The best part of the day was hearing Arland’s stories about the machines. He is a fount of information, and while the collection will disperse, the true story is the knowledge that this AC collector has gathered and shared over the years. In his collection they also have a 1935 Rumley 22-36 Threshing Machine. “It is 91 years old and we bought in in Minnesota in 1997. It took two years to buy it, it is in good condition. I took it to all the AC shows like the one in Hutchinson, Kansas.

For 26 years, I worked with shows in Pennsylvania and did seminars on combines.”

Bob had several combines including a few an All-Crop Harvester (Big Bin) and more on the auction and a story about each one. Arland said he even has a patent that helped reels on the hydraulic cylinder.

Arland enjoys his little AC IB, and also his lighted signs four which were for sale. His Thomas Implement Co. sign he shared some history with me. “It has three decals, a 190 tractor,” which he shared represented the dealerships tractor and implement franchise, a combine decal representing the combine franchise, and a lawn and garden tractor representing the lawn and garden franchise. Most AC dealers he said sold Gleaner combines. “At that time, Upton Thomas from Benson, Iowa was an up and comer.”

“Another shop down the road had less franchises, and another had New Idea,” Arland said. “Ninety-nine percent of Allis Chalmers dealerships also sold New Idea.”

AC and Arland

Arland had several AC’s from an early serial # WD 45, to a manure spreader that AC had the idea to unload sideways. The early WD 45 was used for the development work, and Allis Chalmers modified it a bit with a larger steering wheel off a combine, and more. They have an Allis Chalmers RC like the one that Erwin Lepper started this whole ball of wax with! I learned from Arland that there are two paint colors on Allis Chalmers equipment, Persian Orange, and Persian II used on later models. It is a bit deeper than the original, and Arland liked it the best.

There have been several videos made of the collection, catching this moment in time before equipment is dispersed. While we didn’t get a chance to peruse it, Bob said there is also an extensive memorabilia collection as well.

Thank you Arland and Bob for taking the time to spend your afternoon with us. You are an Allis Chalmer’s icon, and we appreciated sharing your story!