eter Watkin comes from near Aberystwyth and was born to a farming family; his interest in steam and old machinery stems from his father, who farmed at Henllys Farm, Dolybont, Borth. Amongst other things his grandfather managed a well-built 1918 Ruston, Proctor Co Ltd 3hp portable which came with a 3ft Ruston, Proctor threshing drum; the portable had a screw hand brake with blocks both sides of each rear wheel at an extra cost of £2. It was owned by the Henllys Threshing Committee, a consortium of nine farms all in the same area, in fact, Peter still lives around this area today, with his wife Bethan.
