Farmall Serial Number Checker

The tables, in the open

These are the exact tables the decoder reads from — every one assembled from two independent published sources. Check our work.

Farmall H

Where the number is: On the aluminum serial plate riveted to the left side of the clutch (bell) housing. The same number is stamped on a flat pad on the engine. Very early 1939 tractors may have the number stamped on the frame rail instead of a plate.

Model year	First serial	Last serial
1939	501	10,652
1940	10,653	52,386
1941	52,387	93,236
1942	93,237	122,589
1943	122,590	150,250
1944	150,251	186,122
1945	186,123	214,819
1946	214,820	241,142
1947	241,143	268,990
1948	268,991	300,875
1949	300,876	327,974
1950	327,975	351,922
1951	351,923	375,860
1952	375,861	390,499
1953	390,500	391,730

Farmall H traps

Letters after the number are factory option codes, not part of the serial: X1 = gasoline, X3 = kerosene, X17 = distillate, and gear/altitude codes follow the same pattern.
IH casting date codes (like 1·29·J) date the casting, not the tractor — J is 1940 in IH's letter cycle. A casting a few months older than the tractor is normal.
The engine serial and chassis serial started out the same number, but 70 years of engine swaps mean they often no longer match. The plate on the clutch housing is the tractor's number.

Sources: Yesterday's Tractors serial lists (IH records / Guy Fay data-book lineage); Tractor & Construction Plant Wiki Farmall H table (Wisconsin Historical Society records) — identical.

Farmall Super H

Where the number is: Aluminum plate on the left side of the clutch housing, prefix SH. Engine number stamped on the block pad; a Super H engine carries the C-164 marking.

Model year	First serial	Last serial
1953	501	22,201
1954	22,202	29,285

Farmall Super H traps

Sellers pass off late Hs as Super Hs. The SH prefix and disc brakes are the tells — the last 1953 Hs also got disc brakes, so the prefix is the decider.
Stage I and Stage II Super Hs differ (hydraulics and battery location) inside the same serial run — the serial gives the year, not the stage.

Sources: Yesterday's Tractors serial lists and Super H production figures (21,916 built 1953; 10,052 built 1954).

Farmall M

Where the number is: Aluminum plate on the left side of the clutch housing, prefix FBK. Engine serial stamped on the flat pad on the engine block near the No. 1 spark plug.

Model year	First serial	Last serial
1939	501	7,239
1940	7,240	25,370
1941	25,371	50,987
1942	50,988	60,010
1943	60,011	67,423
1944	67,424	88,084
1945	88,085	105,563
1946	105,564	122,822
1947	122,823	151,707
1948	151,708	180,513
1949	180,514	213,578
1950	213,579	247,517
1951	247,518	290,922
1952	290,923	298,218

Farmall M traps

The M, MD (diesel), MV and MDV all share this one number series — the table dates the tractor, the prefix letters and engine tell you which fuel and frame you have.
An L stamped alone on a casting means the part was cast at Louisville — it is not a date code and not part of the serial.
Casting date letters cycle: W is 1953 in the cycle that starts at I = 1939. Cross-check castings against the serial year, allowing a few months.

Sources: Tractor & Construction Plant Wiki Farmall M table (Wisconsin Historical Society records); Yesterday's Tractors serial list — identical.

Farmall Super M

Where the number is: Plate on the left side of the clutch housing. The first letter is the plant: F for the Farmall Works, L for Louisville — the two plants ran separate number series, so the plant letter decides which table your number belongs to.

Farmall Works (F)

Model year	First serial	Last serial
1952	501	12,515
1953	12,516	51,976
1954	51,977	59,947

Louisville Works (L)

Model year	First serial	Last serial
1952	500,001	501,905
1953	501,906	600,000
1954	600,001	65,415

Farmall Super M traps

Same model, two factories, two number series. A Louisville number read against the Farmall Works table lands in the wrong year.
Super M-TA tractors share these series — the Torque Amplifier is an option, not a separate serial run.

Sources: Yesterday's Tractors Super M serial list (both plant series), forum-verified against IH production figures.

Farmall C

Where the number is: Plate on the seat support (toolbox), prefix FC. All C serials are five digits; six digits means Super C.

Model year	First serial	Last serial
1948	501	22,623
1949	22,624	47,009
1950	47,010	71,879
1951	71,880	80,432

Farmall C traps

The C and Super C share the FC prefix. The split is the number: up to 80432 is a C; 100001 and up are a Super C.
Straight brake and clutch pedals = C; curved pedals = Super C. Sheet metal and pedals swap, so trust the number first.
A run of white demonstrator Cs sits inside the 1950 numbers (roughly 47010–54411) — original white paint in that range is a value point, not a repaint.

Sources: Yesterday's Tractors Farmall C serial list; production records (last C = 80432).

Farmall Super C

Where the number is: Plate riveted to the seat support / battery box side, prefix FC. Six-digit number — that alone separates it from the C.

Model year	First serial	Last serial
1951	100,001	131,156
1952	131,157	159,129
1953	159,130	187,787
1954	187,788	198,310

Farmall Super C traps

A serial tag on the seat support can be swapped with the seat. Cross-check with the casting date letters on the major castings (letter cycle I = 1939 … Z = 1956).
Fast-Hitch arrived during 1953 production — a 1953 without it is not automatically misdated.

Sources: Tractor & Construction Plant Wiki Farmall Super C table; Yesterday's Tractors production figures (last Super C = 198310) — identical.

Farmall A / B (incl. AV / BN)

Where the number is: Serial plate on the left side of the seat support. A tractors use the FAA prefix family; B tractors share the same number series.

Model year	First serial	Last serial
1939	501	6,743
1940	6,744	41,499
1941	41,500	80,738
1942	80,739	96,389
1944	96,390	113,217
1945	113,218	146,699
1946	146,700	182,963
1947	182,964	198,298

Farmall A / B (incl. AV / BN) traps

There is no 1943 row — wartime production of the A/B was suspended, so the table steps from 1942 to 1944. A number in that stretch is a 1944 tractor, not a missing year.
A and B share one series: the number gives the year, the tractor's offset (A) or centered (B) driver's position gives the model.

Sources: Yesterday's Tractors Farmall A/B serial list (IH records lineage).

The built-in second check: IH casting dates

Every major IH casting carries a date code like 1·29·J — month, day, and a year letter (I = 1939, J = 1940, and so on). If the castings cluster a few months before your serial's year, the tractor hangs together. If they are years apart, parts have been swapped. Read the IH casting date code.

The $39 Buyer's Check Kit

The decoder gives you the year. The kit gives you the rest of the check before money changes hands: serial-verification worksheets, the two-numbers check that catches swapped engines, year-split parts traps, and an inspection checklist for each family.

Included in the $39 Buyer's Check Kit

See what's inside