Guy Bauman found this 2-cylinder, 16 HP 1966 Wisconsin on a
dairy farm where it had been employed to run an elevator.
In January of this year I was helping a friend, Donald Roberts,
from Wales, Wis. His shop is on the family dairy farm, and I
happened to see this engine on an old elevator. I asked him if he
would like to sell it, and he told me I could have it for nothing
as it was going to the scrap yard. It’s a 1966 Wisconsin,
2-cylinder 16 HP.
My dad Al and I loaded up the engine and took it to his house.
We disassembled it and soaked it in Marvel Mystery Oil for about a
week to free up the tight engine. The pistons were in good shape,
as were the cylinders. It needed new rings, the valves cleaned, and
the carburetor rebuilt. The gas tank was in rough shape, so Al had
the gas tank boiled out and lined with a sealer.
The crankshaft and bearing were in good shape, as was the oil
pump. We broke off one head bolt but managed to drill it out and
tap the threads. We checked the starter and magneto, and they
seemed to work alright. Al cleaned and painted the engine green,
the color it was originally painted at the factory.
The engine was then put together, and my brother Glen built us a
frame and cart for the engine to sit on. On March 3, 2001, after
getting the engine out of my dad’s basement workshop, we
prepared to start it for the first time. The engine is quite heavy,
but Glen helped and we used a dolly to get it up to the garage.
Once in the garage we put fuel in it, hooked jumper cables to it,
hit the starter switch, and the engine came to life. It runs
excellently.
My dad was so happy and proud of it that he wants another one!
Now we will be proud to display it this year at engine shows.
Contact engine enthusiast Guy Baumann at 1403 Cherrywood
Dr., Waukesha, WI 53188
