It's a love/fate thing

[RPJ]

There's little as pleasurable as a working tractor out on the farm, especially on a nice day... unless (or until) fate, metal fatigue or stupidity steps in to ruin it. And then you turn to the forum for help. And while there it is almost impossible to avoid going down the rabbit-hole and getting intrigued by other peoples issues. With luck you can even help with an answer ot link to something useful. I used to run a site for vintage Gutbrod tractors after I stumbled across 1) a Gutbrod 1030, 2) the domain Gutbrod.co.uk, and 3) a massive collection of Gutbrod technical manuals. Manuals usually sell for stupid money, like tens of £/$/€. I sold these for a pittance to cover the cost of the site. This was partly because I'm a good person, but mostly because when you find a niche - like and obscure tractor brand - it is very satisfying to unite others with a similar interest. Again sometimes this is because it's good not to feel alone at those times where the thing is not working, and sometimes to finds parts, but always to know that someone may have the answer to the question that has kept you awake at night. When I started working on a farm I sold the Gutbrod because it was too small, too difficult to keep going, and did I say it was too small? Really they are tiny, immensely powerful and great for a smallholding, but not anything that is measured in acres. Anyway, if you stumble upon this and need a manual I moved the manual part of the website to a blog. Gutbrod has been swept up into the all-consuming garden tractor conglomerate MTD, but they did not want the domain name so I kept it I still sell the odd manual. Last year I sold none, the year before that two... one thing's for sure, it's not going to make my fortune. At this rate it's not even covering the cost of the domain registration. But, what the hell, we don't own tractors to make money... So, respect to the founders and moderators of TBN, it's not easy, but it is appreciated.

 

[Mrsig]

and enjoy the forum!