Collection of creepy looking farm equipment.

Our pal Iowahawk took a bunch of photos of his father's collection of scary-looking old farming implements. (Above: "Pity the poor apple skinned alive by the fiendish cast iron Kleen Kutter.")

After 42 years farming a handsome little square mile of western Iowa, my old man hung up his clodhoppers a few years ago for a well-deserved rest. Like a lot of retirees, Hawkdad decided to take up collecting, with a focus on primative farm equipment and toys. Since then he has amassed an impressive collection of unique agricultural objects; unusual hand tools, planter lids and tractor seats, turn-of-the-century advertising signage, antique toy tractors and horses. It's all interesting, but some of it is "interesting" in the same way an H.R. Giger painting is interesting: cool, mechanical, but indescribably creepy. Hooterville steampunk meets the Tower of London. Rather than try to describe it, here are some pictures I took during a recent visit.

Link

[#1 posted by Parq , August 30, 2007 5:45 PM]

Where's Gary Larsen's "Cow Tools" when we need it?

[#2 posted by NickP , August 30, 2007 6:40 PM]

I'd guess the "couple of devices you don't even want to know about" are bloodless castraters. Ewww.

[#3 posted by Anonymous , August 30, 2007 7:12 PM]

but not as hr giger creepy as the tools from the movie 'dead ringers'
http://arteyliteratura.blogia.com/upload/20060122150056-dead-ringers1.jpg

linuggz

[#4 posted by Anonymous , August 30, 2007 9:34 PM]

The item in the picture is for skinning fruit. We've stopped in the last couple years, but my parents would take us apple picking at an orchard. We'd get home and use exactly the same device to skin apples for making pie. Stick an apple on the 3 pronged horizontal holder and turn the crank. The apple spins around while the blade moves side to side. As long as you have a sharp blade, it does a pretty good job and leaves tasty apple skins to nibble on while cooking.

[#5 posted by Anonymous , August 31, 2007 5:48 AM]

What, no Burdizzo Emasculator*?

*An actual gadget referenced in "Raising Sheep the Modern Way." Ouch.

[#6 posted by Anonymous , August 31, 2007 9:52 AM]

In Hadley, MA there is (or used to be, haven't been back in a while) a free farm museum that has loads of these creepy devices. I once played with an apple peeler just like the one in the picture.

[#7 posted by Anonymous , August 31, 2007 10:41 AM]

my neighbor collects them... apple peelers. he has 85 different models, some worth $300 or more. they're on e-bay. go figure.