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"I think a big mistake a lot of people make is not reading the owner's manual," he says. "A lot of problems could be solved, or greatly reduced, if they would just read it. I'm surprised and amazed at people who buy new machinery and never use the owner's manual. It refreshes your mind on how the engineers intended for the thing to be used, and avoids a lot of headaches and problems if you familiarize yourself with owner's manuals."
He keeps old manuals when he junks a piece of equipment, hoping to pass on the manual to someone who might need it. He's even been known to keep a few for himself. He also collects literature, parts manuals, and every issue of several farm-related magazines.
Other red machinery in his collection includes three four-bar rakes, some dating to the 1930s, and five model 60 and model 70 plows. He also has intimate knowledge of the IH baler, since his uncle used to do custom hay baling.
Duane is a sort of one-man registry system.
"For the last 21 years, I've been writing down the serial numbers of every Farmall H and M I've seen, or when people write into Red Power with their serial number, I'll get it and put it down in my records," he says. "The last time I counted, I had just over a thousand serial numbers."
People who know Duane help out by "collecting" serial numbers for him when they go to shows.
"It's an interesting hobby," he says.
"I grew up with IH equipment, farming with my grandfather for many years, and he was the type that if you buy something, you take care of it and make it last," he says. "I grew up with that old stuff, and I liked it because it's a lot simpler, easier to repair, and, in a lot of cases, more reliable because it's simpler."
The demise of the company was more than a news item to him. Duane found out about IH selling out from an implement dealer salesman.