The line of ancient Massey Harris combines steadily chews its way through a golden field of CDC Teal in the warm glow of a late afternoon mid-September sun, moving without any of the signs of mechanical arthritis that beset and eventually kill most old farm equipment.
But then the sixth of the six 1950s-era combines harvesting this crop stalls and falls behind the rest of the stately procession. The driver climbs out, and Art Flath, watching from 45 metres away, knows something has gone kaput.
“That one just blew up,” quipped Flath.
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A combine breaking down at harvest isn’t the kind of thing that bothers Flath.
“It don’t scare me one bit.”
This year he has all six of his working Massey Harris 90s on the go. Most years he uses only three or four. Either way, the rest of the combines can keep going while Flath monkeys around with the broken machine.
“If you have only one combine, it’s different.”
This is no hobby event. Flath combines 500 acres of wheat with these machines every year, the oldest of which his father and uncle bought new in 1953.
They can’t handle the annual 200 acres of canola because the crop is too thick, but they work well for straight cutting wheat. He has 28 of the machines altogether, but most are just carcasses he strips parts from to keep these six going.
Flath figures he’s making more money by keeping the old machines and paying family members to run them than he would by buying bigger equipment.
“These are paid for. They do the job.”
