Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/1547091
A-C fleet isn't getting any smaller I've added an Allis-Chalmers 170 gasser, B and a G to the fleet this year. The three tractors were from neighboring farms; my dad and brother joked that I had to buy them all to keep the "family" together. I guess that brings my total to five A-C tractors, one Gleaner and a variety of attachments and implements that I've lost count of. That doesn't even include all of the toys, sales literature, memorabilia and a couple of tractors in shades of red. My wife has said I have a problem. I remind her there are worse addictions, er, hobbies. The 170 and B were from Don Hoffer's estate, one of my dad's former landlords. I remember Don using the 170 to pull racks up to the barn after we cut his wheat and baled the straw. He was quite particular about things, and his place was always immaculate. He'd walk the field with a leaf rake to clean up any straw we missed on the end rows and make me come back around for it with the baler. He was just as particular when he plowed snow, never pushed a pebble into the grass. The bucket cutting edge is missing paint but otherwise looks brand-new. We were all sad to see the day when he could no longer run his equipment and maintain his place. The B came with a mounted cultivator, one- bottom plow and an assortment of parts. I don't really know its history, but I assume Don farmed with it long before my time. It's been repainted, but it's not cherry so I'm not afraid to use it. My plan is to tune it up and put it to use cultivating tomatoes and peppers as my little produce farm grows. The G came from Schaer's produce farm, across the section from Don's. I worked for Schaer's in high school, but I've never seen the G running. The last time it ran was '98, when Walt finished using it and parked it in the machine shed, and the tractor sat there ever since. Walt passed away a while later. His older son, Gary, was hoping to restore it. but he's getting up in years now and said he has "too many projects to finish in this lifetime." The price was right, and it came with the one-row cultivator, a Woods belly mower and a custom snow blade and rakes that they used to clean up raspberry canes after pruning. Larry and Gary both said they were glad to see it go to someone who appreciates it, so now I guess it will be one of my winter projects (hopefully in this lifetime). My brother has been helping me load everything for the migration from my folks' home farm to my place 70 miles away. OK, so he actually just really By Randy Noe, Rio, Ill. 18 OLD ALLIS NEWS