A farmer in his late 80s has one of Austria’s largest collections of vintage tractors on his farm. Here, classics like the Steyr 15 share the space with vintage tractors such as a 1939 Deutz. The collection has attracted a lot of attention. In addition to visitors from all over the world, entire television crews and a number of journalists have also visited the owner of the vintage tractor museum.
A village on the Pram River. A tranquil setting. Fields and meadows as far as the eye can see. Nestled in the heart of this idyll is Ernst Stelzhamer’s traditional Innviertel farmstead. The old farm is home to more than 30 tractors. That alone is worth a story, but it gets even better: some of the vehicles are a hundred years old. And they all still work!
Stelzhamer smiles as he talks about the first tractor that drove through the farm gate back then. He says he was afraid of that big, black monster that spewed out so much smoke. No wonder—the four-year-old boy had never seen a tractor in his life. Just like everyone else in his community. His father was the first to buy such a machine. And now, more than 80 years later, the former cow barn of the retired farmer houses some of the rarities that collectors covet.
“People laughed at me when I bought my first old tractors in my mid-twenties,” the farmer recalls. Back then, he paid 500 schillings for a pre-war tractor. That was barely enough to cover the cost of the parts. Almost every day, after finishing work in the barn, he would stay in the garage until ten o’clock at night, tinkering with the vintage tractors.
At nearly ninety, he’s still tinkering—and there’s no end in sight.
Every tractor is restored to working order by hand. This takes him an average of one year. The tech-savvy farmer taught himself the necessary skills. Stelzhamer puts his heart and soul into this work and goes to great lengths to restore the old tractors to their former glory. He even drove to Switzerland once to pick up spare parts. “But that didn’t work out. The engineer who had the missing part wanted to buy the tractor from me instead,” he says, shaking his head. Nevertheless, he managed to track down the urgently needed spare part. He finally found it at the American factory in Ohio.
In the former cowshed, many classic tractors are lined up alongside his favorite—a 1941 Lanz Bulldog with a hot-bulb ignition. A 1937 McCormick (Model F-12) shares the space with a Hanomag Type RL 20. The latter was actually designed as a car, the proud owner explains. But the engine was too weak for a passenger car, so they simply cut off the rear section. After that, the power was reduced, and voilà—a somewhat different tractor with a passenger car dashboard was ready.
A visitor from the Emirates was determined to take a tractor home with him.
All these treasures have already attracted visitors from all over the world. The owner’s guestbook contains entries from the U.S., Israel, and even Dubai. “A guest from the United Arab Emirates was determined to buy a tractor from me,” he says. He couldn’t understand why the owner wouldn’t sell it, despite his very generous offer. Some things simply can’t be bought with money.
The enthusiastic collector has a story to tell about every machine. Take, for example, the Fordson Fyp F, which was the first tractor to be manufactured on an assembly line. The model at Stelzhammer doesn’t have rubber wheels yet; its tires are made of steel. At least it already has a crank for starting. This made it easier to handle than the hot-bulb engines commonly found on some other tractors.
Tractors equipped with this technology had to be started using a flame. To start the engine, after lighting the ignition, you had to insert the removable steering wheel into a side recess and turn it quickly. If you missed the right moment to pull it out again, the rapidly spinning wheel could easily cause painful bruises. “That happened to my father several times,” he recalls.
“This machine will be the end of your farm”
Some of his exhibits bring back many memories for the former farmer. Back in the 1940s, when the family got their Lanz tractor, everyone else was still working the fields with horses and oxen. The neighbors were certain that this new machine would spell the farm’s doom. They were convinced that the weight of the massive machine would compact the soil too much. This would harm the crops, and the worms that aerate the soil would be crushed, Stelzhammer recalls of the warnings back then.
Today, this Lanz Bulldog is part of the collection. It is housed in a room alongside a 1939 Deutz with a top speed of a mere 9 km/h. The machine is also equipped with so-called “folding grippers.” These could be folded down when needed, providing better traction in the field. Opposite it stands a fully functional steam engine. “It was this that made tractors and other machines possible in the first place,” he explains with obvious pride.
Stelzhamer takes great care of his classic cars. Every single tractor equipped with rubber tires is jacked up. Otherwise, the tires would eventually burst under the weight if left stationary. This care has led him to another collecting passion. A wall behind the tractors is lined with antique car jacks. Unlike with the tractors, he doesn’t have to worry about a lack of space here. At least for now.
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Sources:
Visit to Mr. Stelzhammer and his wife on April 7, 2026
https://www.oldtimerclub-rottenbach.at/wp/?page_id=625
Photos: Ingrid Müller
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