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I
have restored a wide variety of antique farm equipment
in the last few years, and each project has given me
the satisfaction of seeing a proud and sturdy piece
of machinery put back to shape performing its original
function. Except for one item: A 1948 Case SI tractor.
It's
not that the restoration didn't go well, because it
did. After a lot of cleaning, fabrication of missing
parts, painting and carburetor and clutch work, the
tractor looks and runs just fine. The problem is I can't
figure out what it was used for, and I'm hoping an alert
Gas Engine Magazine reader will be able to fill me in
on the details. But first, some background.
The
Case SI
I
found this tractor in the vicinity of Mt. Rainier in
Washington. The seller had bought it from someone who
had tried to use it as a garden tractor, with understandably
poor results. After getting it home and cleaning it
up, I found that it was a1948 Case SI, serial number
5212750. It sits on spoked steel wheels, the rears wearing
extension rims fastened with cleats, and it doesn't
have a three-point hitch or a PTO - and it doesn't have
a belt pulley, either. Instead, at the pulley location
there is a two-speed gear box, which has this imprint:
&n.. end up in Washington state? I still don't know.
The
Rest of the Story
I
couldn't stand to see the winch attachment go unused,
so I added a sprocket to the winch gearbox and built
a shaft support on the front of the tractor. The shaft
has a sprocket at one end to carry the chain from the
gearbox, and a nice, wide belt pulley at the other end
so I can run any belt-powered implements I have. By
coincidence, the belt pulley is an original Case unit
with the "Old Abe" emblem cast in the spokes.
I also built up a safety guard and fabricated another
Case logo and eagle emblem from steel to give it an
authentic look.
Now
that it's finished, my Case SI is capable of doing some
useful work again, but I am looking forward to hearing
from anyone who knows the original purpose of the Evans
winch attachment.
Kirk
Unzelman has been, at various times, a cowboy, rancher,
farmer, army medic, truck driver and mechanic. Contact
him at: 4635 130th Ave. S.E., Bellevue, WA 98006
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