Making a McCormick MTX
By Dave Tallon, Tallon Custom Collectibles

McCormick MTX 175
One of the names associated with the proud history of International Harvester is McCormick.  In 2000, as part of the Case and New Holland merger, CNH Global sold their Doncaster, England plant that produced their MX “Maxxum” tractors.  In addition to the plant, they also sold the rights to the name McCormick.  McCormick Tractors International Ltd. began marketing the former CIH models as McCormick’s.  The new McCormick tractors are essentially the same as the old CIH models in appearance, except for the colors and markings.  Because of this, McCormick tractor models can be easily made by modifying the CIH models with a little paint and some decals.  Toy manufacturers have already done this with several models, but so far, if you want a 1/64 scale McCormick MTX, you have to buy a custom or do it yourself.  (For more information about McCormick tractors and toys, see the TTS McCormick page.)

Ertl CaseIH MX120  Maxxum
Ertl has produced the MX Maxxum tractors for several years, so they are readily available for customizing.  There are MX100, 120 and 135 models in 2WD, FWA, single rear wheel, dual rear wheel and loader configurations, so you have a great deal of flexibility in what model you can make.  To keep things simple, I used a MX120 single rear wheel version for this example, although these steps could apply to almost any version you might want to make. 

  As with most of my projects, the first step is to strip the tractor down for filling the center seam and painting.  To do this, you will need to remove at least the decals, and may want to remove the wheels as well.  As you are removing the decals, be careful not to damage the headlight decal.  Since the McCormick headlights are virtually identical to the CaseIH ones, I usually trim off the part that says “Maxxum” and reuse the decal on the customized tractor.  By sliding an exacto knife under the decal you should be able to remove it fairly easy.  If you do not plan on painting the cab top, the light decals can be left on.  Because the cab tops are unpainted plastic, they often fade if they have been sitting exposed to sunlight.  Even if they haven’t faded, they may not match the paint on the rest of the tractor when you are done, so painting them is a good idea.  Again, be careful and save the decals from the cab so they can be reused.  Removing the wheels will make it easier to fill and sand the center seam if you plan to do so, and give you better access for painting.  However, these tasks can also be accomplished with the wheels on, so unless you have other modifications planned that require the wheels to be removed, or feel comfortable removing the wheels, I would suggest you leave them on. If this is the case, I recommend you at least remove the tires since the come off relatively easily.  If you happen to be using a tractor with a loader, I recommend that you remove it at this time as well.  Carefully remove the loader mounting pin that goes through the tractor, and the two upper-most linkage pins on the loader mounting bracket.  This will allow you to split the loader linkage from the mounting bracket and remove the loader with the tractor intact.  If the pins are salvageable, save them so you can reuse them to reattach the loader when you are done.  Otherwise, some round steel stock or nails can be cut to length to make new pins. 
 
With your tractor satisfactorily stripped down, you are ready to begin your modifications.  If filling the center seam is part of your plans, now is a good time to do that.  Use some body filler to fill the seam and, while you are at it, fill the rivet holes on the right hand side of the grill and the hood.  If you are building a loader tractor, make sure the leave the loader mounting hole open.  When the filler has hardened, sand it smooth.  If you have removed the tires and wheels, you are going to need a new rear axle.  Depending on what rear axle you are planning on using, you may want to enlarge the axle hole.  It is best to do that now, prior to painting.  I typically use a 1/8” rod cut to 1 3/8” long for my axles on single rear wheel McCormick’s.  Carefully drill the wheel holes with a 1/8” bit to allow for a snug fit on the axle.  A 9/64” drill bit works well for enlarging the axle hole on the tractor. 


Since the McCormick and Maxxum’s exterior appearance are essentially the same except for color and markings, the biggest change for your model is paint and decals.  After making sure your tractor is free of any dust or glue residue from the old decals, you are ready for some paint.  For my models I have used small bottles of Testor’s model paints and painted it on with a brush.  Paint the front frame, axle and hood (essentially everything in front of the cab and fuel tanks) red.  Since the Maxxum’s frame is black, you may want to brush on some primer first or it may take two or three coats of paint to get a uniform finish.  The rear frame, hitch and axle should also be painted red.  Once the red paint has dried, you can start with the secondary colors.  Here again, I typically use Testors model paint.  For the grill, I use gloss gray, mixed with a little white to lighten it slightly.  For the wheels, I use metallic silver.  If you are using the original wheels and have not done so already, you may want to remove the tires prior to painting.     

Once the paint has dried, you can begin to reassemble your tractor.  If you removed the cab top, wheels and tires for painting, reinstall them now.  For my rear tires, I like to replace the original tires with some from a Tonka tractors to give it a little “tougher” look.  After your rear tires and wheels are installed, paint the ends of your rear axle red.  You can also reinstall any decals you are planning on reusing.  The cab lights and SMV decals can be reused as is.  The headlights can also be reused, but you will want to trim off the “maxxum” logo as well as the black parts on the ends.  Of course you can’t have a McCormick tractor without some McCormick decals for the sides of the hood and the cab top.  For this you will have to make some yourself using the steps found in the May Issue, or find someone to do them for you.  For those do-it-yourselfers, you can download decal graphics here.  Depending on your printer, you may have to adjust the shade of red to match the paint on your tractor.  You can also change the numbers if you want to make a different model MTX.  For a finishing touch, use a toothpick to add a small drop of red paint for the McCormick logo on the grill. 
Custom Parts - Tonka Tractors
For years Ertl was the pretty much the only supplier of farm toys that could be commonly found in most discount stores.  A few years ago, Maisto entered the farm toy market under the Tonka brand.  The Tonka farm toys are generally much less expensive than their Ertl counterparts, but as with most things, you get what you pay for.  While their construction and detail may leave something to be desired, they are a great resource for customizing.  One of their offerings that I have found useful is their tractors.  The tractors are very similar to the Ertl Ford 5640/7840.  They can be found in various colors, with and without cabs and with a loader.  The rear tires on these tractors are made of soft rubber and can easily be installed in place of many of the standard ertl tires, often on the original ertl rims.  The tires are slightly larger and have deeper lugs than most of the standard Ertl tires, so they can give a tractor a more aggressive look.  I have also found the driver seats, steering wheels, front tires, and loaders useful in some of my custom projects.  The tractors can typically be found at discount retailers for around $1.50.  

Your custom tractor should now be complete.  Your new McCormick will add a unique touch to your collection or farm display.  Like any custom project, your process may vary depending on which features you choose to incorporate, however, I hope this guide will serve you well with this and other custom projects.




TTT August 2003 Page 7

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