I recently became infatuated with a machine displayed in a jigsaw puzzle picture and decided to see if I could reproduce it in an operating miniature. I installed a small crank on the drive roller of the treadmill in order to drive the gear train (three sets of gears that make an 8:1 ratio) and it pulls the barn quite easily. I call it a pre-steam or diesel heavy puller. I asked one Amish elder what it is called and he didn’t know. He asserted that he had seen various treadmill power units but had never seen anything like this.
When I was a child, my dad and some neighbors moved a barn and pulled some Osage orange stumps with a capstan that was nothing more than a heavy square platform with a cable drum, mounted in a vertical position, around which a cable was wound.
They would haul the capstan out to the end of the cable, the other end of which was attached to the barn and then anchor the capstan firmly to the ground. A long, boom pole was fastened to the top of the cable drum, and a horse, Old Molly, was hitched to the pole. Molly walked around and around the thing, winding up the cable and quite easily moving the barn. It took about eight hitches to move the barn a quarter of a mile.
If anyone knows what my miniature horse power is actually called, I would really like to know.
-Jack Woolard, 1009 Morningside Dr., Blmmfield, IA 52537
1934 egg grader information sought
This is a picture of a 1934 Philadelphia egg grader. It is missing the trays that collect the different-sized eggs after they trip the scales. I am looking for someone with a similar grader with trays, a photograph or picture, or a copy of an owner’s manual, as I want to restore mine to its original condition. Thank you.
– Paul Gerst, 17110 White Oak Ave., Lowell, IN 46356; e-mail: PRGerst39@aol.com
How did they do that?
Last June, I was in Lebanon, Tenn., at the Wilson Co. fairgrounds and saw five left-hand plows, four of which were Olivers and one a Vulcan. Two of the Olivers were sulkys. What was the purpose of these? Is it possible that the right-hand plow would plow across the field and then the left-hand plow would plow back down the same furrow, allowing the horses to be rested at each end?
– Mel Larson, 23460 Rum River Blvd., St. Francis, MN 55070; e-mail: meljo@pro-ns.net
Thanks to readers
I would like to thank Farm Collector and all who wrote or called to tell me what I had was a harness horse. I got 44 letters and 8 telephone calls! It was quite interesting.
– Robert Miller, 409 S. Center St., Delta, IA 52550
Slipping ‘n’ sliding
After reading the Slipping ‘n Sliding article (Farm Collector, May ’02) I handed it to my wife to enjoy. She was raised on a farm in Indiana and it brought back memories, which prompted her to sing the following to me: ‘I don’t love you anymore. You can’t slide down my cellar door. You can’t holler down my rain barrel – ’cause I don’t love you anymore.’ Thought you’d enjoy ‘hearing’ her little song too.
– Don Green, P.O. Box 618, Allyn, WA 98524
Looking for true colors of Deering sulky plow
I am restoring a Deering sulky plow. It is complete but rusty. What were the original colors of this plow? Thanks.
– Chris Christensen, 30560 County Road 7, Morgan, MN 56266
Implement needs a name
Can anyone identify this piece of equipment? Notice the strange spokes on the wheels and the seat letters.
– Bill Castellon, 2720 Old Bethlehem Pike, Quakertown, PA 18951
Stumped on stacker
This is a picture of a hay stacker identical to one we owned in the 1930s on our farm near Stockton, in northwest Kansas. The stacker was pulled alongside a header until it was full, and then pulled to the stack. A short distance from the stack, as the stacker was moving, a clutch was engaged, which turned a spool that wound cable, pulling the load of wheat up above the stack. As the load raised, a rope and pulley allowed the side of the barge to tilt outward, and when the load was over the desired portion of the stack, a trip rope was pulled that released the barge, which tilted over, dumping the load onto the stack. A brake controlled the rate of descent after unloading. When the barge was down, it reset the trip, and the stacker was pulled back to the header for another load.
The stacker was designed to be pulled by horses, but ours had a short tongue and was pulled by an uncle’s 1935 John Deere B. I would like to know if anyone has seen or owned this type of machine. I want to know who, where and when this machine was produced. Any information will be appreciated.
– Ralph R. Look, 8006 Watson Lane, Wichita, KS 67207
In the family 56 years
I had this bike when I was little, and I was wondering if anyone knows who made it or anything else about it. It is belt driven and both front tires move at the same time. Everything is original and the only things missing are the hub caps and the little plate on the front that tells who made it. The bar in the old picture does not belong on it, so when I restored it, I put it original. I’ve had it about 56 years. Thank you.
– Betty Hamer, 78 Corwin St., Norwalk, OH 44857
Couple puzzled by inherited farm machinery
We inherited a farm and found these items:
The wagon hoist is a Stan Hoist, serial no. 10431; it has a hydraulic cylinder and was manufactured by the Standard Engineering Co., Ft. Dodge, Iowa.
The horse-drawn corn wagon has wood-spoke wheels, a 1908 patent date on the axle and Oct. 1-18 and Oct. 16-18 patent dates on the frame irons.
The only number found on the manure spreader was ‘6325.’ Do these items have any value?
– Doug and Diana Bacon, 2353 Yankee Ave., Duncombe, IA 50532; (515) 832-5101 e-mail: ddbacon@netins.net
Ladder-style chain for grinders sought
We are restoring some old farm grinders and need what is called a ladder chain. Does anyone have any for sale or know where to buy one, perhaps some old new stock? Or, is this product still manufactured? Any help will be appreciated.
Robert Rauhauser, P.O. Box 324, Thomasville, PA 17364
Not how I remember it…
Mr. Trew’s experiences with milk cows (Farm Collector, May ’02) are completely different from mine. I have never heard of a ‘blab.’ In my 72 years, these ‘blabs’ were always called ‘calf weaners,’ and we had more cow-weaning than calf-weaning problems, as we never allowed the newborns to nurse after their first couple of feedings.
During the Depression, we wanted to sell every bit of cream we could for income, so the calves were quickly weaned to separated milk, fed to them from buckets. Some persistent cows would go through fences to get to their young calves or would get up close enough to the fence for the calf to stick its nose through the wire to reach the udder.
I never saw a barb-wire yoke, either, and I would consider such a thing rather inhumane because the barbs would be a continual irritation to the cow whether it was going through a fence or not.
As for the ‘no nurse,’ I only can remember one instance of this on our farm; a halter on the cow with a stick or tree limb attached to each side that was long enough to drag on the ground solved the problem. Self-sucking usually was a bad habit developed by the cow that was best solved by just selling her.
– Ivan L. P falser, RR1 Box 162, Caney, KS 67333; (620) 879-2938
Seeking information on Emerson plow
I am looking for information on an Emerson horse-drawn, one-bottom plow. I purchased one in very good condition and am interested in learning more about its history.
-Terry Skoczen, (320) 393-3498; 140 S. Division St., Rice, MN 56367; e-mail: atskoczen@cs.com
Reader looking for seed drill specifics
I am trying to locate a drive gear for an old Ferguson seed drill. Does anyone have information? –
Michael Schnipper, 716 A Daniel Dr., Oxford, OH 45056; (513) 523-1994
