Fields & Fenders | Issue 06
Welcome to the August Edition of Fields & Fenders!
August is officially here, and with it come the true "dog days" of summer. Between the heat, early morning departures, and long road trips, we know many of you are spending your weekends doing what we all love most—heading out to truck and tractor shows, catching up with old friends, and admiring some of the finest iron around.
While those weekend excursions are a blast, they can definitely take it out of you! Once the trailers are loaded back up, the dust settles, and you’re ready to cool off, there’s no better way to unwind than with a good read. In this month’s update, we’re excited to share our latest magazine features alongside a great gift shop deal!
If those weekend show grounds have you itching for a new build, you can now search the classified ads from both magazines right on our website to hunt down your next project vehicle, rare part, or piece of equipment.
Subscriber Pro-Tip: Print magazine subscribers get exclusive first access to the classifieds two full weeks before they are posted online! If you want a 14-day head start on the best deals, there's never been a better time to subscribe.
Grab a cold drink, put your feet up, and enjoy this month’s edition!
— The Fields & Fenders Team
Our featured tractor advertises the messages “Parity lowest since 1933,” “Washington, D.C. or bust,” and “Support the Farmer.”
The Magazine Brief
Always Learning Something Old
Forty-two years ago, I was four semesters into a journalism degree at the University of Alabama when my creative writing teacher shared why he had steered away from a newspaper career early in his undergrad education.
“I realized that when you’re a reporter, you’ll always be a student,” John Tibbetts said.
I knew what he meant. No one ever accused me of being a strong or dedicated student, and the idea of writing a newspaper article by first climbing a mountain of research and conducting interviews intimidated my 20-year-old self.
Those dozen words made me reevaluate the half-baked career path that had been formulated during freshman orientation. My dream job of writing for car magazines had always hinged on starting as a newspaper reporter after college and … well, that was as far as my plan had evolved. With each passing semester, I imagined myself stuck at a local paper, forever reporting on town council meetings, never making that move to the auto field. Things were looking grim.
Long story short, I graduated after switching to an advertising/public relations major; however, before I could even apply for a first PR job, I stumbled into some writing assignments for vintage Mustang magazines (that marque being my primary auto interest in the mid-1980s) and immediately fell in love with the research and the interviews.
Seemingly overnight, being a student had become the most exciting part of my career. Reading an entire book and chatting with an engine builder just to put together a few paragraphs about exhaust valves for a how-to article became a joy. It was much more fun than writing a term paper. No one was more shocked than I that dusty, first-source material, patent office filings, and research papers from obscure government bureaus could hold my attention far longer than any movie or TV show. Whether the assignment is a 3,000-word article for a magazine or an 80,000-word manuscript for a book, the research, fact-checking, and discoveries made along the way have entertained and rewarded me for four decades in a way I never could have imagined when pondering my future in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
I mention all of this because the very issue you hold briefly covers a fascinating time in American history that distracted me for a solid week, and I hope you spend some time with “A Protest for Parity” that starts on page 42.
Because I was an oblivious 15-year-old when the 1979 American Agriculture Movement (AAM) Tractorcade to Washington, D.C., took place, I went into Jim Volgarino’s excellent article knowing only the basics about that event and its myriad causes and consequences.
I don’t have to tell readers of Antique Power magazine that farm commodity values have long been adjusted and subsidized by government agencies to stabilize the country’s food prices or that agricultural exports and imports are carefully monitored and controlled by many of those same agencies. Attempts to reach “price parity” are seldom successful, though, and no one suffers more from their failure than non-corporate family farms. In the mid- to late 1970s, when mounting debt, market prices below production costs, inflation, and unfavorable agreements on grain exports to the Soviet Union pushed American farmers too far, they organized the AAM and staged state and national protests.
My high school civics class discussed the Tractorcade as it was happening, but what escaped teenage Brad’s notice was the sometimes-brutal resistance the protesting farmers encountered. Newspaper accounts about the March 1978 confrontation between 250 farmers and a reported five divisions of police officers in McAllen, Texas, for instance, were shocking in their descriptions of the tear gas and other riot gear brought to bear on the farmers. Similar encounters took place throughout the farming states, but the American public just was not ready to understand that its food supply chain was economically unviable for so many of its producers.
Even after moving Jim’s article into layout, I was hungry for more details. I jumped back into my newspapers.com account and have now read many more published stories about that first round of AAM protests and the forces that led to them. It was far more than what was needed to fact-check the article about Freddie Neely’s 1973 Allis-Chalmers 200—one of the thousands of tractors that descended on Washington in 1979—but the subject makes for a compelling history of the first national-scale, grass-roots political activism that gave American farmers a voice loud enough to be heard all the way to the White House.
Where was this enthusiasm for homework and research when I was paying out-of-state tuition?
A follow-up note: Research for this “From the Editor” installment led me to find Mr. Tibbetts on social media so I could fact-check his quote. It seems he and I had reached similar conclusions about the role of the writer/reporter never being the expert. “I came to understand the pleasures of knowing less and always learning from my subjects and being their student,” he said. “It’s humbling and rewarding in the best way.”
Tell us what you remember! In the “Your Voice” section below, tell us your recollection of the 1970s Tractorcade to Washington D.C.
Bring Our Pages to Your Screen!
Ever look at a gorgeous feature photo in Antique Power or Vintage Truck and wish you could frame it? Now you can carry it with you everywhere. We are thrilled to launch our brand-new collection of high-resolution digital wallpapers! Curated by our team, these packs feature stunning, fan-favorite photography captured right from the field by our Editor and Photographer, Brad Bowling.
We will be rolling out fresh digital wallpaper packs every single month, and they are completely free to download! Head over to www.ertelgiftshop.com/digital-wallpapers to grab your favorite truck or tractor shot and give your phone or desktop a vintage upgrade.
📰 A Note to Our Readers: Our heart and soul will always belong to ink and paper. The magazines you love aren't going anywhere—they will always be a premium print product arriving in your mailbox.
We simply want to offer a few extra digital options for those looking to enjoy our community in new ways—whether that’s showing off classic iron on your devices with these new wallpapers, or browsing our digital PDF archives to catch up on long-sold-out back issues.
Visit the gift shop today to see what the team has lined up for your screen this month! Once you've taken a look, scroll down to the survey at the bottom of this newsletter and leave us a comment letting us know which truck or tractor feature you want to see as a digital wallpaper next!
Is your magazine subscription up to date? Don't miss an issue—renew today! Call the fine folks in our Circulation Department at 888-760-8108. Outside the U.S. call 937-610-0229
Vintage Truck Feature Spotlight: The “Other” Fisher Body
Mention the name Fisher, and most enthusiasts immediately picture the iconic "Body by Fisher" emblem found on generations of General Motors vehicles. But before nephews Fred and Charles built an empire, their uncle Albert Fisher—the man who built Ford’s very first body in 1903—struck out on his own in Detroit to create the Standard Motor Truck Co.
For two decades, Albert Fisher applied his uncompromising craftsmanship to heavy-duty haulers and fast "speed trucks." One of his finest creations was the 1927 Fisher Junior Express—a 1-ton, 6-cylinder workhorse loaded with premium period components like a Continental engine, Racine radiator, and distinctive orange-and-black styling.
photo Brad Bowling
While the Great Depression brought an end to Fisher-Standard production in 1933, this rare piece of automotive history lives on. Rescued from the famous Harrah collection and meticulously restored by the Iowa 80 Trucking Museum, this stunning Junior Express is featured in the September/October 2026 issue of Vintage Truck magazine!
Be sure to check out the full article in the upcoming issue, or see the truck in person at the Iowa 80 Trucking Museum in Walcott, Iowa.
Upgrade Your Collection & Score a Free Pocket Knife!
Whether you're looking for your next deep-dive read, filling gaps in your back issue collection, or picking out a detailed diecast model for your display shelf, now is the perfect time to explore everything our store has to offer. Use code KNIFE at checkout
This month, we’re featuring our full lineup of gift shop merchandise—from our extensive book collection covering rail, buses, wildland fire apparatus, and classic machinery, to rare back issues and diecast models in our collectibles section. Whatever you need for your workbench, display shelf, or coffee table, there's plenty to choose from.
Special Fields & Fenders Offer: To thank our readers, we’re including a FREE pocket knife with any gift shop order over $50 (before shipping)! It’s a handy, reliable tool to keep in your pocket, shop, or glovebox—and it will be added to your order at no extra cost when you reach $50. Use code KNIFE at checkout.
Head over to our GIFT SHOP today to explore the selection and claim your free gift while supplies last!
Note: Offer applies to all gift shop merchandise (books, back issues, diecast models, and calendar) on orders over $50 before shipping. Magazine subscriptions are excluded from this promotion.
Your Voice
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