By Lexi MooreBill De Yager sold his Antique John Deere tractor collection at auction in Steen Wednesday.The collection, which began as a hobby for the farmer, consisted of 105 mostly-restored tractors.Wednesday’s auctioneer, Dennis Polk, welcomed a large crowd of national tractor collectors and local on-lookers to the sale on Wednesday morning."Top to bottom, this is probably the nicest group I’ve ever sold," Polk’s auctioneer’s note said.The tractor auction has attracted national attention because of its size and the large number of rare items on the auction block ,including a high crop, a styled BWH, a 430 T – single and a JD 730 LP.In addition to the tractors, Polk auctioned off miscellaneous John Deere parts and equipment.De Yager would purchase tractors through magazines, tractor shows and word of mouth. Many needed engine and bodywork.Refinishing the green and yellow tractors kept De Yager busy during the winter. At his peak, he was able to refinish six John Deeres."I do pretty much all of my own work," he said in a Star Herald article from 1991.Not long after beginning his collection, he started restoring tractors; De Yager realized his hobby was also an investment in his future.He said one tractor that he purchased for $100 had the potential to sell for over $3,000. He believes the value of all of his tractors has gone up since he started collecting. In November of 1987, De Yager opened his collection to the public. He welcomed visitors to his farm south of Steen to see inside the large buildings that hold his collection.A running guest book boasts comments from Germany, Holland and New Zealand.