Clarinda, IA 82º
      

After returning yesterday I mowed the lawn, but most of it didn't need it.  Areas in the shade of building or trees has a little growth but majority of the lawn is in bad shape.  The new sod laid last year after our new street appears to be dead.  Hope it is just dormant, but sure doesn't look good.  Guess this is August so maybe it is just normal.  Did get several tomatoes from our 6 tomato plants, but not too many that will be ready before we leave this weekend for another 16 days.  Maybe neighbor will get some good out of them.

 Last week, during the rally, we did two different tours of factories.  We went to the John Deere Plant in Ankeny, IA.  They make several different sizes of high-boy field sprayers there and also Cotton Pickers.  The guide, at right, is standing by one unit that is for just one row of the cotton picker.  There are literally hundreds of spinning cones on rotating cylinders.  These pluck the cotton balls off the plant and move it to area where blower blows the cotton up into holding tank.  When there is a certain weight accumulated, the tank is dumped into a huge round baler that is at the rear of the machine.  It takes 5

 dumps to accumulate 5,000 to make the bale and then it is dumped without the combine ever stopping.  These cotton pickers cost only $780,000 each and they are all sold and prepaid before construction even begins.  They are about one year behind on orders, exporting the machines all over the world as well as selling in the US.                      We weren't allowed to take any photos inside the plant, but took several outside and a few while we were shown movies of the history of the plant.

 These machines are shown in their "lowered" position.  They stand around 17 feet tall when running, but are only able to be 14 feet tall on low-boy trailers in order to go down the highways.  The tank that catches the cotton direct from the rows is the part that is lowered while transporting.

This shows the bale portion tipped back like when dumping the bale.









One day we toured the Emerson Valve Plant in Marshalltown, IA.  They do make huge valves for anything liquid.  They showed us all the manufacturing aspect of several different size of valves.  Some have 60" openings.  They quoted a one million dollar price on several valves that were sent to the near east.  We weren't allowed any photos inside the plant.  Fisher plant (Emerson) in Marshalltown, IA
Never saw such huge milling machines.  One casting they were working on, which was only a few feet by one foot, would take two days to machine down to the flanges, openings, etc.  Denny Arment, with our group, had retired several years ago from working in this plant 30 some years.

On Sunday, before the rally officially began, Phyllis & I rode our recumbent trikes some 6.5 miles (up and down some pretty steep hills) to an antique power show.  The hills were just as steep returning to State Center.





Old ear-corn sheller at left powered by belt driven tractor.

 John Deere 60 tractor similar to one my Dad bought in about 1954 back in Custer County, Nebraska.

This team of horses were pulling a potato digger.  Lots of kids (and older people) were picking up the potatoes behind the digger.

 Dirt, and potatoes, really flying as the team moved down the potato field.

 This guy had a Cub Cadet running a PTO on an old ear corn sheller, putting in one ear at a time.

On Saturday, after going to our son's place in Marengo, IA, we rode with him to Belle Plaine, IA and spent a short time at an auction of things out of an old oil station.  There were two rings running and I am sure it must have taken all day to sell all the items.

Mike and Frank from American Pickers should have been on hand for this auction.

We spent the weekend at our son's and Saturday evening had supper, then played some Pegs & Jokers with them, their daughter and husband and other daughter and boy-friend.

Check my pictures from the Kenwood Summer Rally at  Kenwood Summer 2012 Rally Photos

Till next time, Lynn