While cruising around the 2011 Rough and Tumble Thresherman’s Reunion, BangShifter Gene and I saw the below pictured tractor and stopped dead in our tracks. Built by a couple local young dudes, it is essentially an ATV front end, angle iron, a 1500cc VW motor and manual transmission, a locked Wheel Horse rear end, and a bunch of chains and sprockets.
We were informed that the tractor used to have a two cylinder snow machine engine on it and would pull virtually limitless wheelies. With the increased power (and how often to we talk about increasing power by adding a VW engine?) of the Beetle motor, this weird bastard is all kinds of nuts. The guys buit this with junk, scrap metal, a welder, and a VW they found in the woods.
That got us to feeling like big slackers because we’ve never built anything as nutty as this with assorted parts and pieces. Are we the only ones? Have the rest of you been home brewing lunatic fringe mechanical mayhem? We gotta know!
Question of the day: Have You Ever Built Something Wild and Crazy Out of Scrap Parts and Pieces?
I made a V8 powered snowmobile one from the remains of some old skidoo, a buick 215 V8, and a random 90 degree box of some kind. It had no clutch, so as soon as you started it – hang on!
It was darwin award worthy…
years ago when I was a student I bought a `vehicle’ that was basically a chassis with a seat, front homemade sheetmetal, a canvas back, a wheelbase shorter than a mini, and a holden 6 cylinder – cost $350 and was registered and could wheelstand!! Was built in the 70’s to cart a boat to the water, had been registered ever since. I removed the existing `body’ and built a 32 highboy type body for it, from scratch, out of tubing and sheet aluminium and drove it around for a year or so – it was a hoot! used to freak the cops out who thought they’d busted some idiot in an unregistered buggy only to be shown the rego papers…
Me my brother and our mate shitgoose made a crane out our old bodged go cart to lift a bin bag full of water,we had no welding gear so everything was always nut and bolted,the bolt holding the sproket snapped when the load got too heavy and sent it flying,it nearly took off shitgoose’s head,he only had a cut on his neck but it could of been a lot worse!..oh being young and dumb!
my grand father and my dad and uncle built their own little tow truck thing. of course it sat for a long time and needs a rebuld.
Lots of bicycles, but nothing with an engine…yet.