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Man rescues antique farm equipmentDEAVER, Wyo. (AP)--It's not old junk sitting fallow in fields or farm yards. Robin Murdock, 61, of Deaver has rescued forgotten farm equipment and put it back to work. A 1900s-vintage hay loader, possibly a John Deere, waits in Murdock's hay field while a dozen or so black Angus cattle eye the hay wistfully from behind a fence. The machine is beautiful in its simplicity. Hay is fed up the sloped bed that has teeth to hurry the material to a trailer. Iron wheels, like those on an old freight wagon, stand ready to roll, just as they have for more than 100 years. Murdock paid a Lovell-area farmer $50 for the hay loader, greased the wheels and replaced a few teeth on the ramp, and the machine was ripe to harvest. Horses or a tractor can pull a trailer attached to the hay loader. It scoops the hay up quickly. "It will work you to death up on the wagon," Murdock said. Indeed, the trailer is heaping with 3 or 4 tons of hay. Murdock has owned the hay machine for five years and used it the last three. In his shop, Murdock shows a 1953 Farmall H tractor. A fork lift in front comes in handy, and the rear can be mounted with a saw to cut firewood. A 1952 International Cub tractor can hay. "It cuts like a champion," Murdock said. Every piece of equipment is clean as a whistle, from the grease-free engines to batteries with immaculate leads and shiny posts. A 1951 mustard-yellow International pickup waits to scamper from the shed. Round, red lights poke from the cab roof like ears, and two round rear windows, like polished oval glasses, survey the bed. Murdock fires up his old truck, and it purrs like a contented kitten. "A little monkeying around" was all it took to get the International running. It had a mere 51,000 miles, he said. Despite their age, Murdock said spare parts usually are easy enough to come by. Old machines are simpler to repair than modern devices. Murdock may enjoy tinkering around with the vintage equipment, but the machines keep the 1,000 acre, 60-70 cow operation running. The shed housing tractors and pickups may be a shade-tree mechanic's dream shop, but the barn and tack room truly captivate the senses. Stout salvaged timbers and steady floor boards complete the barn. Hand tools stand neatly against walls. A tack room/bunkhouse looks inviting with a rich scent of leather, saddle soap and hay. A parlor stove is the centerpiece of the room and is ideal on chill spring nights when Murdock waits to deliver calves. Tack sits on shelves and a Natural Vacuum Washing Machine, circa 1920, stands in the corner. A hand crank spins wheels and yes, it still works. Circular stairs wind up to a hay loft with hay and a row of 1950s-era cars powered pedals. Murdock's place is like a performing museum with old tractors, cars and appliances. Every item, neat as a pin, is in its place, ready to spring into action. It is the classic barnyard scene on a verandah outside the loft. Below, cows moo in a corral of precisely hewed fence posts and rails and a train can be heard in the distance chattering over a track. "Bad habit, I think," said Murdock of his inclination toward antiquated, but perfectly-functional equipment. Murdock isn't the only one. His wife, Carol, collects butter churns and antique furniture, he said. "She's about as bad as I am." "Bad" does not seem a fitting description. Murdock is proud of his rural artifacts, and he puts them to good use. Perhaps Murdock deserves credit for revitalizing once vital items. "I don't know why I like it, but I do," Murdock said. 12/15/08 Date: 12/11/08
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