High-quality black-and-white photographs of large old machines and tools

[cmarlow]

I wonder how many hours it took to grease all those rollers, and how often they had to be greased.

[Frank S]

an industrial supply company's dream come true. 1000s of bearings miles of belting hundreds of gear reduction transmissions equal number of electric motors.
After I returned from the middle East I stopped in at the bearing & chain and supply to meet an old friend of mine who I used to buy those very same items from back when he first started at the company in 1979 a young salesman fresh out of college I may have been one of his first regular customers Back then we bought so much stuff that they would open up at midnight to fill a requests.
When I walked in that day by then he was the branch manager and was telling some of his salesmen some things they needed to do then he saw me and said there is a guy you need to find to really set your careers in motion this is Frank and he bought BEARINGS buy the tons

[Jon]

Lackawanna Iron Ore pier, Buffalo NY c.1900

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[basil3w]

Check out that 'Whaleback' freighter docked up alongside!

[Jon]

Farquhar 15-25 farm tractor c.1918

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[Frank S]

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I'm guessing they left the lugs or cleats off the traction wheels when they restored it to prevent damage tot the driveway surface

[cmarlow]

Somehow I think that is an original condition machine. The lugs, treads, or spades were usually supplied in a case and added later to suit the ground the machine was working on instead of being bolted on at the factory. Any of the old timers I asked about the iron wheel tractors always said how much better the pneumatic tires were and told me even with the big spades on the iron wheels they would still get stuck. Many of these old tractors were used more as an engine to drive other machinery like threshers instead of used for pulling ploughs. The old guys told me they often hitched the horse to the threshing machine to pull it from one farm to the next and thought they were doing good if the traction engine could move itself. Sometimes they had to use horse to move the engines too. The spades did prevent the engines from sliding toward the threshers or mills as they worked so there is that to it too.
Not being old enough to have ran one I have to trust what my Grandfathers told me about them.

[suther51]

My father grew up on several hardscrabble farms. On one they had an old farmall 10-20 with iron wheels. If it hit soft enough ground with heavy enough load he said that it would just start digging with those wheels till the diff hit the ground. If things went well it would slowly chew its way out. If not they went n hitched up the mule to help pull it out.
Eric

[Jon]

Crane used for moving gun barrels at the U.S. Naval Gun Factory, Washington Navy Yard, Washington D.C., c.1909

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[Pa1963]

I'm guessing they left the lugs or cleats off the traction wheels when they restored it to prevent damage tot the driveway surface

Early Hoyt-Clagwell prototype?