HAVRE — Overcast skies and scattered rain didn’t stop people from coming to see the world’s largest farm tractor in Havre this weekend.
For the last 15 years there has been a North Central Montana Everything Antique Show, displaying old engines, vehicles, and farm equipment. This year, the Hi Line got a visit from Big Bud, the world’s largest farm tractor.
Wally Duchscher is part of the Montana Antique Enthusiasts, and the tractor has a special place in his heart as he was there when the tractor was built.
“The engine in the tractor is a Detroit engine, 16 valve. It was built in the late 70’s. The engine was originally built for submarines. It means a lot to me. I worked at Big Bud and I was there when they built this tractor watched it being built from ground up. They got a lot of people that stopped by, traveling on the highway, see this and never seen the tractor. Gives them a little bit of perspective.”
The show has gotten bigger over the years, and they always want to make it free to the public to show them a little bit of history.
Mark Weston is another enthusiast who helps put the show on and says this year was special not only because of the much-needed rain, but the exhibits that were able to make it.
“At first we had a bunch of furniture and stuff that came up for show and we had an antique store come up and bring some stuff. And the indoor stuff kind of faded away and now it’s farm machinery, and tractors and antique engines and we get a lot of nicely restored vehicles up here. It’s really heartwarming to see a lot of history stay alive,” Weston said.
This is the first year people got to see a complete set of history that’s been over two decades in the making. Charlie Inman restores old equipment and has spent 22 years collecting eight different-sized Stickney engines. He is the only known person to have all eight and finished his collection this year.
“That’s what I do. I restore stuff. Ever since I was a kid, that’s what I do, I restore stuff. And I started out with that 20-horse,” Inman said. “It was really a challenge. It was buried in the river for 48 years. And that got me going on the Stickney engines and I kept finding them where I could find them and buying them where I could buy them. There’s a lot of interest in them, there really is.”
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