THE OLD IRON DISEASE

There is something endearing, almost comical, about the chugging, spinning, and belching machinations of vintage stationary engines.

These early exemplars of internal combustion technology sit like naked towers of component parts jutting incongruously from oversized flywheels; everything in plain sight. Sometimes fuel tanks, exhausts, filters, and pumps look as if they have been bolted on as an afterthought. While function definitely trumps aesthetics, design wise their rounded lines still have a charm of their own. Far from being relics, in the right hands these low-tech workhorses can still provide reliable and economical power sources for all manner of tasks. There is a global fraternity of enthusiasts devoted to collecting and restoring them for future generations; these fans of forgotten machinery are said to be infected with the ‘old iron disease’.

Neighbours Tom Gregory and Gary Norton are two such afflicted aficionados. While there is a generation between them, their passion is equally contagious.

Dreams about engines

One might be forgiven for thinking that Tom Gregory was born with petrol in the blood. He says he sometimes dreams about motors, particularly ones with provenance; think old-school V8s, early tractors, old Seagull outboards, and his shed full of vintage stationary engines.

Tom reckons he has always been mechanically minded, but he particularly loves “the external stuff, where you can see how everything works”. He believes he contracted the iron disease as a young boy when he figured out how to crank start his dad Jeff’s JAP 500cc, single-cylinder, side-valve, rotary hoe.

“The JAP was a bugger,” says Jeff. “It used to stop a lot; Tom was intrigued. One day, when he was about eight, he got it started by