Q. How long have you been collecting gas engines?
A. I’ve been collecting since I was 10, so about six years.
Q. What attracted you to the hobby?
A. I went to shows with my dad as a little kid. As I got older, Dad got into the hobby, and shortly thereafter I got into the hobby. Now we collect engines together.
Q. What engines do you have in your collection?
A. We have nine engines in our collection: a 1-1/2 HP Fairbanks, a 1-1/2 HP Economy, two 1-1/2 HP Herculeses (one of them is hooked up to a 5 gallon ice cream freezer), a 3 HP Hercules in original condition, a 5 HP Hercules, a 7 HP Hercules in original condition hooked up to a saw rig, a 9 HP Hercules and a 12 HP Hercules on the original cart.
All of the Hercules engines are hit-and-miss; the 3 HP engine to the 12 HP engine all have clutch pulleys on them so they can run a variety of machines and are in the Model E series. The other Hercules engines are on original carts with the exception of the 1-1/2 HP that is hooked up to the ice cream maker. The 12 HP Hercules is the most uncommon in our collection.
Q. What projects are you currently working on?
A. I’m helping Dad restore our 12 HP Hercules. At this point we have most of the sandblasting and priming done.
Q. Which shows do you normally attend each year?
A. Dad and I go to the Pageant of Steam in Berryville, Va., the Smithsburg Steam Engine show in Washington County, Md., Twin Bridges show in Chambersburg, Pa., the spring and fall festivals at the Frederick County Farm Museum in Maryland, and we have been to the Chemung Valley Old Timers show in Horseheads, N.Y.
Q. What show haven’t you been to yet that you’d like to see one day?
A. I’d really like to go to the Hercules Reunion show (Southern Indiana’s Antique and Machinery Club Classic Iron Show) in Evansville, Ind. 2014 will be the 100th anniversary show. Hopefully by then the 12 HP engine will be fully restored.
Q. What are some of the biggest obstacles you’ve come across in the hobby?
A. I find that time, money and space are large issues when it comes to collecting engines, especially the larger engines because they take up most of the space in a garage.
Q. What are your favorite engines and why?
A. I personally like hit-and-miss engines. Sometimes while watching my engines run I nod off to sleep. Also, each engine has its own unique sound.
Q. If money weren’t an issue, what is your dream engine to own?
A. If money wasn’t an issue my dream engine would be a screen-cooled International Famous. It’s more of an uncommon engine, and I suppose that girls are a bit of a rarity in engine collecting, especially at my age.
For more information, email Emily Kline at rk4guns@aol.com.
Young Iron is looking for gas engine collectors, age 35 and younger. If you or someone you know would like to be profiled, please contact Associate Editor Beth Beavers: (800) 682-4704 orbbeavers@gasenginemagazine.com.
