2707 Highland Lane Wausau, Wisconsin 54401
Well, it’s winter time in Wisconsin and I’m in between
projects, and it’s below zero outside, so I thought I would
write and tell you about some of the collection of engines and
tractors.
Our family has been collecting for about twenty years. It
started with an old 10-20 McCormick-Deering and going to a show in
Baraboo, Wisconsin. We were all hooked then, looking for engines
and tractors almost every weekend.
At times, we had 40-plus tractors and well over a hundred
engines. But after trading and selling some to get bigger and
better things, our collection is about a dozen tractors and twenty
or so engines.
Most of them are kept around because they came from the local
area and someone we know, so they have sentimental value, too.
Some of my favorites are a 12 HP Economy that I earned by
working the whole summer (and then some) for a fella who owned it,
when I was 14. Also, I have a real nice 6 HP I.H.C. that an old man
wanted us to have, in the worst way. After the engine sat around
the place for 15 years or so, my dad and I started restoring the
old girl. Shortly after we started, my dad passed away. So, I
restored it by myself, remembering Dad and the years we spent
together playing around with this stuff.
Now, my wife Janice, son Jason, and daughter Jenny enjoy going
to shows and toying with old stuff. I try to go to as many shows as
I can, to show off my toys.
Last summer, the 1918 Titan and 12 HP Eagle got out of the shed
to a few shows. The 16-30 Oil Pull got to the Labor Day Parade, and
at Christmas, at night, it sure looked nice with Christmas lights
all over it. And to top it off, we had a neon light on the front of
the chimney.
Another nice thing about collecting is the people you meet. For
example, I asked my friend Ellis to help me haul an engine I bought
1400 miles from home. He said: ‘Sure,’ took off work a
couple of days, helped me drive, all day and half the night for
four days on terrible roads. And when we got home he asked me what
he owed me for letting him come along! Need I say more!
I enjoy Gas Engine Magazine every month. I got some things by
advertising in the want ads that I thought I would never get, like
the auto sparker for my 6 HP I.H.C.
