[AT] Old Tractors in the News

Tue Nov 8 18:06:25 PST 2005

Below are some antique tractor stories recently in the news from various 
places. Click on the link for the full story.

* Bidders flock to antique tractor auction (Wisconsin)
*

Two Creeks farm estate dispersed

*By Kristopher Wenn*/
Herald Times Reporter/

"TWO CREEKS – On a bold autumn morning, the auction action got off to a 
cool start.

Bidders, as stealthy as hunters, assessed 20 antique tractors and 
hundreds of farm equipment parts from the estate of Tom Ewald, a former 
farmer in Two Creeks.

The parts auction served as their appetizer Saturday for hundreds of 
interested farmers, collectors and spectators.

Auctioneer Kurt Aumann had help from two men who showed the equipment to 
the crowd and even demonstrated how it functions. For the uninitiated, 
all of these parts might have looked like junk, but it takes a skilled 
eye and experience to appreciate the process......"

http://www.wisinfo.com/heraldtimes/news/archive/local_23010854.shtml
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I'm not sure if I like this one: :(

Old tractors gain popularity as lawn decorations (NJ)

By BERNARD VAUGHAN
The Press of Atlantic City

October 30, 2005, 11:28 AM EST

"BARNEGAT, N.J. -- For the last few years, Bonnie and Vincent Lopiccolo 
have stored their two tired, rusty old tractors like an embarrassing 
eyesore behind their home on Collinstown Road.

The couple had started using modern equipment on their 7{-acre farm and 
nursery, but for sentimental reasons, they weren't ready to part with 
the 1951 Oliver Row Crop 77, or Ford 8N, which they estimate to be from 
the early 1950s.

"My husband said, 'You know, I'm starting to see people keep these out 
front,"' as decorations, Bonnie Lopiccolo said. "He said, 'You know 
what? We're a farm and we actually use tractors. We should have them out 
on display, not hidden behind the house."

Call it "tractor chic." Instead of hiding the old machines from the 
neighbors' view, the Lopiccolos moved the tractors to the front yard.

The Lopiccolos aren't the only ones in the area showing more respect for 
old tractors: Vincent Lopiccolo was inspired by an antique tractor on 
display in front of Sweet Jenny's Ice Cream Parlor and Restaurant on 
Route 9.........."
http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/newjersey/ny-bc-nj--businessexchange1030oct30,0,3862199.story?coll=ny-region-apnewjersey
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*Old beet equipment comes to life (Idaho)*

*Dave Wilkins* <mailto:dwilkins at capitalpress.com>
Idaho Staff Writer

"PAUL, Idaho – Some farmers like to golf when they’re not working. Gary 
Fisk likes to restore old farm equipment.

On a recent October afternoon, Fisk brought together a vintage McCormick 
Derring sugar beet digger, a 1949 Farmall M tractor and a fellow 
collector’s 1946 GMC truck for an old-time harvest demonstration.

By the time he was finished digging several rows of sugar beets, about 
27 people had gathered to watch. Most knew in advance what Fish was up 
to, but others just happened by.

Fisk said he salvaged three old beet diggers to build one.

“You can’t go downtown and buy parts for this,” he said of the one-row 
digger that McCormick manufactured from about 1943 until 1958.

Fisk and other members of the Magic Valley Antique Tractor Pullers 
Association not only restore old farm equipment, they like to show 
people how it was actually used when they get a chance......."

http://www.capitalpress.info/main.asp?SectionID=67&SubSectionID=617&ArticleID=20713&TM=31478.44
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The one below is a lady writing about her husband's affinity for old 
tractors. She has an interesting take on old tractors and technology 
change over time:
http://www.townhall.com/opinion/columns/JennniferRobackMorse/2005/10/31/173445.html

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  Tractors take fair-goers down memory lane (Georgia)

*By Ed Grisamore*

*Telegraph Staff Columnist*

*"PERRY - *Jimmy Borders is giving rides at the Georgia National Fair 
this week.

Well, they aren't /really /rides. They don't make your knees wobble, 
your heart race or your head spin.

You don't have to stand in line, either. You don't even have to move.

Climb aboard and stick it in reverse. Ride the waves of nostalgia. Too 
bad there isn't a sign that reads "Time Machine" near the south gate at 
the Georgia National Fairgrounds.

Jimmy's family and close friends call him "Tractorboy."

To Tractorboy, there is no sweeter sound than cranking up a vintage John 
Deere and listening to it run.

Jimmy rebuilds and restores old tractors. He breaks them down and 
anoints them with oil. He has lost count of exactly how many tractors he 
owns. "About 18 or 20," he said.

And what does a 56-year-old man do with that many tractors?

"Play with them," he said.

He paused, then laughed. "And spend money on them."......"

http://www.macon.com/mld/macon/12878185.htm

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Rob Gray
NE PA, USA

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