- Related Articles
- Building a Collection from the Ground Up
- BETWEEN THE BOOKENDS
- IRON AGE ADS
While the mechanical restoration was a challenge, the real horror came during the final stages of restoration. Dan spent an entire day painting, quitting only when he ran out of daylight.
"When I got up the next morning, and saw it in daylight, it was AC orange," he said. "I was just sick. But it darkened up."
And tucked away in a corner, waiting for a 'rainy day', Dan also has the 29th (of 29 produced) conversion kit made by Delbert Huesinkveld.
"Anything from the thirties is considered pretty old down here," he said. "The heavy agricultural development was just slower here."
He also has a John Deere D, a BF Avery '47 Model B, and three Allis Chalmers G tractors (one for parts).
Vintage tractors get most of the collector's attention in the southwest. "They're easier to find than engines, and it's easier to get parts," he said.
Engines that turn up were likely used as pump jacks on ranches. "When the wind didn't blow, they needed engines to pump water," he said.
But engines are harder to find.
"A lot went to Mexico, and some are still running there," he said. "Or they were shot back at Japan in the war."