The Big Sandy Homecoming 2020 was postponed until next year due to Covid, but this year we will be celebrating a different sort of homecoming. This September the world's largest tractor will be returning to the Williams' Farm after spending 10 years on the road.
The Big Bud 747 first left Big Sandy to attend a farm show in Illinois. The Williams Brothers, who own the Big Bud 747, had initially intended to bring the tractor to a few more farm shows around the country, but the demands of running the farm prevented them from doing it. While at the farm show in Illinois, a museum in Independence, Iowa approached Randy and Robert about putting the world's largest tractor on display in exchange for a share of the gate. The tractor spent several years on display in Independence before moving to the Heartland Museum in Clarion, Iowa where it has been on display since. The brothers had always intended to bring the tractor home eventually. The pair acknowledged that they were getting older and that they shouldn't wait too much longer to pull the trigger on making the decision. The excitement surrounding the tire replacement this July seemed like the perfect occasion to finally bring the Big Bud home.
After bringing the 747 homes, the brothers plan to show it in a few places, shoot some video of the tractor at work, and finally to put it on display in an area where the tourist traffic is significant, potentially near Kalispell. Randy explained that when the Big Bud was still at their farm, they usually hosted a couple hundred guests a year, who heard about the tractor and planned their vacations around visiting it. The hope is that the 747 will draw even larger crowds in an area that sees some of the largest tourist traffic in the state. The brothers are excited about getting the Big Bud back home, but not nearly as excited as their neighbors, who are already asking for their turn at driving the 747.
Transporting the machine home will be an undertaking nearly as large as the tractor itself. It will be shipped in three loads. With the tires, the Big Bud is 26 feet wide, entirely too large to ship as a unit. The brand-new Titan LSW 1400 Tires (the world's largest Ag tires) will need to be removed for shipping. Weighing in at 24,000 pounds and measuring 55 inches wide, the removal of the tires lightens and narrows the load significantly. In addition, the cab itself will be removed for separate shipping. With the cab, the Big Bud is too tall to ship without filing special paperwork. Finally, the rest of the tractor will be shipped in the third load.
The decision to bring the Big Bud home comes on the heels of the decision to issue new Big Bud toys, which have been modified to reflect the larger size with the new tires. Of the initial 1000 available, 500 sold in preorder.
