Road Trip

Mrs. Paladin and I hopped over the Terrell, Texas Saturday and spent some time wandering around an antique tractor and engine show. Lots of cool stuff to see, if you're into that sort of thing.

I don't have any need for a tractor, and absolutely no room for one, but I'm sure tempted from time to time to pick up and old rusty Farmall and bring it back to life. I've thought off and on about picking up a smaller stationary engine instead, but some of these things go for upwards of a thousand dollars if you can find them at all. Highly sought after by collectors.

More in my price range are the smaller gas engines of the sort built by Briggs and Stratton, Lauson, or Maytag - like this one used to run a washing machine before electricity made it out to most rural areas.

I'd never seen a meat grinder run off of a Maytag washer motor, but they had one at the show. Pretty cool...

Also spotted this old girl in the parking area nearby...

That's a 1955 Dodge Royal Lancer. Damned cool looking car. And check this out:

How's that for a child safety seat? Looks pretty safe to me :)  Its a wonder we all survived childhood considering we aren't buckled into hamster balls like kids nowadays.