Now, If We Just Had The Cow...

It's been a fast week or two around here!

We ended up going on a "day trip" to Deb's mom and dad's to pick up her dad, then a trip to Omaha the next day, an actual slow day, then Deb took him home last Friday.

Deb has more about her trip and the separator HERE.

She ended up staying the weekend and coming home this past Monday.

I ended up going to an auction on Saturday, and a tractor show on Sunday.....

I ended up spending about $15 at the auction, so it wasn't TOO bad. I came home with the pickup bed half covered with nuts, bolts, washers, etc, and a few other odds and ends. It was 100°, but it was fun.

While her dad was here, we talked about getting a bigger cream separator to use when we can get a cow. Our little foreign job works well, but is not very big. Her dad mentioned that he had two, one was on his place when he bought it, and the other was his mother's.

When Deb took him home, he had her brother, Mark, crawl back to the corner of the shed and haul it out. They put it in the trunk of Deb's Taurus, and she brought it home.

I have seen a few old separators come out of sheds before. They are usually all rusted and the Stainless Steel parts are pitted and corroded (yes, even some stainless steels will rust...). This one has rust on the foot, and a few other places, but nothing major. Even the bucket, spouts, and bowl assembly are in great shape. The O-ring for the bowl is even still good.

This is how it looked after they got it out and cleaned it up a bit:



It is a McCormick-Deering model number 2s. I have figured out that it is a "mid" model (they made an early, mid, and late in the series. They were essentially the same, just "updated"). The handle is one of those which has a marble in it to let you know when you are going the right speed. When it stops falling (centrifugal force holds it to the handle), then you know you are going fast enough.

My Mom and Dad had one like it, although I THINK it was a larger model. I remember the marble in the handle, though.

Here is a photo of the bowl assembly taken apart. There isn't a bit of corrosion on any of it.



And the bucket:



We both are grateful to Deb's parents for giving us this (and much more). Thanks a bunch!

It will need some more cleaning, and has an oil leak, but it doesn't need much work. I'm hoping to get a manual soon to help me determine what it needs in the way of gaskets. HOPEFULLY we will have a cow next year sometime (Have a cow, man....).

Rascal can't wait. He is addicted to the fresh goat milk we have now. He came out while I was taking photos, and circled the separator 3-4 times, then stopped and looked up at me as if to say "Got milk?".



He can't wait to get a cow, either.

The bad part is - we "have a cow" when we look at the PRICE of cows....