Dempster Windmill Conversion

By Jim Lacey
Published on November 5, 2019
article image
courtesy of Farm Collector Staff

Salvaging a damaged mill for an upgraded classic

Sometimes, accidents are a good thing.

I bought a standing windmill, a 6-foot No. 12 Dempster, for fair money. Then, before I retrieved it, a farmer hooked the tower with his corn planter, causing rapid depreciation! I paid $40 for the fan, motor, and tail, and then helped him cut up the rest for scrap.

Later, last winter, a teacher brought me a Dempster Annu-Oiled direct-stroke No. 15 that he wanted rebuilt. This would cost way more and he still would have nothing.

A bit about self-oiling direct-stroke mills. Early mills required your presence up high to grease them on a regular basis; self-oiling eliminated that chore. So, No. 1 son Matt and I took the damaged one apart, straightened the fan blades, and mounted his tail on the “new” mill, rebuilt the swivel and tower bearing, making it substantially better.

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