In our June issue, we showed some pictures of Larry Kasten’s
Rotavator, and since then have heard from another owner, Airl
Coffey of 206 W. Boggstown Rd., Shelbyville, IN 46176, who provided
some additional information and two pictures of his Howard
Rotavator GEM. Here is the story of how he acquired his
machine:
‘It pays to be good to your neighbors. One day my neighbor
asked me if I would give him $5.00 for his GEM–I said I sure
would. The valves were stuck open. Gas tank cracked. But it was the
best five I have ever spent. With hard work it has been a good
machine through the years. It plows and rotavates at the same
time.
‘By using the Internet I have found a dealer in Woodstock,
Illinois. His name is Matt Steffen, Guy Farm Machinery, 14213
Washington St., Woodstock, IL 60098. Phone 815-338-0600.
‘They supplied me with new blades to replace the worn out
one. The odd thing about this machine is to start it, you have a
crank attached to the transmission. You swing it out behind the
right wheel and push it in and turn to the right to start the
engine, then swing it back in the holder place.’