RARE 1940s Dealer Service Tags International Harvester Company VTG Lot Cardboard

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RARE 1940s Dealer Service Tags International Harvester Company VTG Lot Cardboard:
$6499.99

It is my pleasure to offer an incredible find of originalInternationalHarvester dealer/service-department items from the 1940s. These are forserious Letter-Series collectors.They are highly sought-after byserious Letter- FARMALL Series collectorsand restorers today.
Note: I am not an expert in this field. Please research for your own conclusions of rarity and value. This isFinal Sale. No Returns. Offered in as Found, original condition.
These could be one of the first trilingual (English/French/Spanish) versions thatInternationalHarvester ever issued. It was created in mid-1946 specifically for the massive 1946–1947 export drive to Canada, Latin America, and Europe after the war. Very few were printed on cardboard (most collectors have only ever seen the later 1950s metal versions).Why this exact set is a unicorn.
- Only produced August 1946 → ~1950 on cardboard
- Trilingual on the same wire = export-factory orinternational-port-dealer issue
- Almost all were thrown away after the first oil change
- Supposedly fewer than 15 confirmed surviving examples are known to the major FARMALL collectors and museums (Wisconsin Historical Society has one, the rest are in private hands)
This could likely be One of theRarest and most valuable post-WWII FARMALL dealership tag sets in existence.Please examine all photos for exact condition and detail. Note: We watermark / logo all our high end ephemera to prohibit unauthorized use.
Here’s exactly what each one is, the era it was used, and why it was hung on tractors at dealerships or during service.These are 1940s dealer-service tags (roughly 1947–1953), printed on card stock instead of metal because of post-WWII metal shortages and cost-cutting.InternationalHarvester switched to cardboard tags for a short window right after the war before going back to metal in 1953–1954.
Why these cardboard ones are actually scarcer than the metal ones?- They were only made for about 5–6 years.
- Most got thrown away or destroyed by weather/oil.
- Collectors strongly prefer the cardboard “post-war transitional” pieces because they are harder to find than the common pre-war or 1954+ metal tags.
The first tag is a "Lubricating Oil Carbureted Engines" Red tagwith black ink (The Error Version) - This tag has the number 7-1-45-50BThis is the early post-war printing of the lubricating-oil tag, issued literally the same month the Japanese surrendered (August 1945).InternationalHarvester had been using white-lettered red metal tags before and during the war. When metal was still rationed in mid-1945, they rushed out this emergency cardboard version — but the printer they used for the very first batch (July–August 1945) mistakenly used **black ink instead of the normal white raised letters. Supposedly,that black-ink mistake only lasted a few weeks. By September–October 1945 they corrected it back to white letters, and all later cardboard (and the 1953+ metal tags) used white. Only a handful are known.Condition:Original Wire present on tag. This tag has spots and creasing, as shown. Measures approx. 7" x 5"
The second is a "Caution Radiator is Drained" tag. It is onbuff/tan cardstock with red lettering. It has printed "InternationalHarvester Company" no logo just lettering. It has "180 North Michigan Ave. Chicago 1, Illinois, U.S.A. Stock/Form Number 1 004 043 R2." Spanish/French language on the back.This is a **bilingual export-market version** of the "CAUTION – RADIATOR IS DRAINED" tag.The "1 004 043 R2" is IH's internal **stock/form number** It breaks down as:
- **1** = Agricultural Division (tractors/Farmalls)
- **004 043** = Specific form series for service/winterization tags (this one is the bilingual variant of Form AD-1082)
- **R2** = Revision 2 (second printing run, updated for minor wording tweaks)This tag was printed in late 1945 to early 1946. The manila/ tan/buff cardstock was a wartime holdover (cheaper than full-color printing), and the red lettering was chosen for high visibility on the radiator cap. was added for export tractors shipped to Mexico, Central/South America, and Spanish-speaking U.S. dealers. IH ramped up exports post-war, so these were hung on new FARMALL H/M exports at the factory or Chicago-area dealerships before ocean shipment.
Why This Variant is Special-
- Bilingual tags like this were low-run (only ~5–10% of total production) because exports were niche until the 1950s boom.
- The red-lettered manila version is scarcer than the standard black-on-yellow U.S.-only ones—most survivors are from humid export climates, so condition is often iffy.Condition:Original Wire present on tag. This tag has spots and creasing, as shown. Measures approx. 6"x3".
The third is a "Important Instructions Cooling System, Lubrication, Pneumatic Tires for All Farmalls and other Wheel-Type Farm Tractors" tag.It is onbuff/tan cardstock with black lettering. It has printed "InternationalHarvester Company" no logo just lettering. It has "180 North Michigan Ave. Chicago 1, Illinois, U.S.A. It is along rectangular shape. This tag has the number 1 004 048 R2 8-16-46-50B
It is an original International Harvester multilingual dealer parts tag. Used when IH started exporting heavily to Canada, Latin America, and Europe after World War II.
Condition:Original Wire present on tag. This tag has spots and creasing, as shown. Measures approx. 10"x5.50"
TheInternationalHarvester Company (IH), a major manufacturer of agricultural and industrial equipment, maintained its corporate headquarters at 180 North Michigan Avenue in Chicago from the building's completion in 1937 until approximately 1965. This 24-story Art Deco structure (now known as the Harvester Building) was purpose-built for IH at the southwest corner of Michigan Avenue and Lake Street, serving as the nerve center for executive operations, sales, and administration during a period of significant growth for the company.

Key Timeline Details
- Pre-1937 Locations: IH's roots trace back to Cyrus McCormick's 1847 reaper factory on the Chicago River's north bank (near modern Michigan Avenue). After the 1902 merger forming IH, early headquarters included 600 South Michigan Avenue (opened 1907) and a brief stint at 7 Monroe Street. By the mid-1920s, IH had moved northward along Michigan Avenue, acquiring and renaming the Lake-Michigan Building around 1926 as a temporary office space amid the Magnificent Mile's development.
-1937–1965 at 180 N. Michigan: The new headquarters opened in 1937, coinciding with IH's expansion into trucks and tractors (e.g., the FARMALL line). It housed key divisions, with ads and manuals from the era (1938–1941) listing this address. The building symbolized IH's prominence, employing thousands regionally.
-Post-1965: IH relocated to the newly completed Equitable Building (now 401 North Michigan Avenue) in 1965, occupying 12 floors as a major anchor tenant. This move "returned" IH to its historic roots near the original McCormick site. The company rebranded as NavistarInternationalin 1986, eventually shifting its headquarters to suburban Warrenville, Illinois, by the late 1990s.

Note: I am not an expert in this field. Please research for your own conclusions of rarity and value. This isFinal Sale. No Returns. Offered in as Found, original condition.
This will be shipped with a signature requirement, tracking and insurance....