Mountbellew Vintage Club’s 18th annual show proves major success

This year the club held the IVETA national vintage rally for the second time in the club’s history.

The event was held across two premises, on the grounds of Mountbellew Co-Op Mart Society and on land owned by local man Tom Carroll.

The club would like to acknowledge their appreciation to both.

Display

Thousands of vintage enthusiasts arrived to a wet day in Mountbellew to witness the event. With over 100 vintage tractors, 200 cars, 40 commercials and trucks, 20 motorbikes and eight steam engines there really was a huge variety of vintage vehicles on display.

Some of the finest and rarest vintage tractors in the country were on display at the show. Massey Ferguson’s 20 and 35 models dominated the display.

One unique tractor was a Cropmaster, which was built in 1950 with one owner from new. This tractor was in storage from 1977 until 2003 and is still in its original working condition.

Ford 5000

Another stand-out tractor with its own unique story was a Ford 5000. This tractor was the largest on display at the Farm Machinery Spring show in Dublin in 1968, where it was purchased on the day by Newbridge man, Jimmy Lyons.

Lyons has worked this tractor ever since then and he had this tractor on display at the show.

Proving popular

Exhibitors travelled from all over the country with a number of men in particular travelling from the UK bringing with them their beloved steam engines.

A display of farm implements also proved to be popular amongst onlookers. The oldest cars on the day included a collection of Ford Model Ts and an American-built Buick, both of which were manufactured in the 1920s.

In the commercial section a 1938 Ford Model B petrol pick-up and a Ford Thames travelling shop built in 1952 were two of the stand-outs.

Transport around the show grounds for spectators was provided by two Clydesdale horses pulling a coach and also by an ass and cart.

This proved to be a very popular attraction especially for the younger generation. There was a huge selection of food and trade stands on the day while entertainment was provided by John Molloy.

Working events

A number of working events were planned to take place on the day including old time haymaking, working horses, old-style corn cutting, thrashing, stone crushing and timber cutting. Adjacent to the main show ground was a working field.

Although there were poor weather conditions, the hay cutting went ahead. The meadow was cut using a Pierce 8 finger-bar mower which was pulled by a team of horses.

However, hay that was previously saved and was in cocks around the field was used for the exhibition. A Shire horse pulling a hay float gathered these cocks.

The operator titled the float using a handle, strapped a rope around the cock and pulled it onto the float via a winch, demonstrating how it was carried out in times gone by.

Poor weather had its impact

The old-style corn cutting didn’t go ahead due to the poor weather conditions. The plan was to have three working combines cut a six acre field of barley.

The combines which were on display consisted of a 1966 Claas Matador, a trailed Active combine which was pulled by a Massey Ferguson 35 and a trailed Ransom combine from the 1960s era which was pulled by a Major tractor.

The stone crushing was carried out using a belt-driven static stone crusher which was built in the 1930s. It was operated by owner Ivan Mullins with his Ferguson 20 with a front-end loader. A very rare sight to say the least.

The trashing display was put on by Gort man Brian Uniack. A team of men helped out to run the 1950’s Garvey built thrasher on a Major tractor. This machine is very special to Brian as he has worked it himself over the past number of decades.

The timber harvesting display was put on by club members David Coffey and Eddie Noone.

The pair demonstrated how logs were once cut using a fully restored Dolmar two-man saw. This was a special occasion for David as his grandfather and great-grandfather worked similar saws together over fifty years ago. They also crafted old-style handles for farm implements.

A Ford Highlander 954 with a built-in winch was on display at this exhibition. This exact tractor was used in the 1960s to pull logs out of nearby forests.

The duo also worked a saw similar to what was used in a local saw mill in the 1960s. This saw was given to the club in bits where it was then restored to working order. Eddie has recently reproduced carbon copies of a number of the old-style timber Irish hay rakes, some of which were on display at the show.

Traditional butter making

The club went as far as putting on a traditional Irish butter-making exhibition.

This proved to be a popular exhibition with many onlookers both of younger and older generations.

A display of unusual static farm implements could also be seen on the day. The most unusual pick of these machines was an implement built in 1954 called the Silverman.

Number 420 on the production line, this hay cropper and loader was never heard of by many vintage enthusiasts. Manufactured by Lambourn Grange in Berkshire, England, the piece of machinery was recently restored by Seamus and Aoife Mounsey over a 15 month period.

The Irish Farmers Journal spoke to club chairman Michael Whelan who explained: “The show was a great success. However, due to the inclement weather conditions and the fact that Galway, Mayo and Roscommon were playing in Croke Park on the same day it did take its toll on our event. In saying this attendance numbers were still very high.”

Club

There are over 110 dedicated members in this close-knit club.

The club are currently working on the restoration of an Aveling and Porter steamed road roller. The machine is currently owned by the Galway County Council where it was in poor condition while on static display outside their office buildings in Prospect Hill from 1954 right up until 2001.

The club have a 100 year lease agreement on the machine including the condition to restore the machine back to its original working order.

The machine

The machine was built in 1924 and has been owned by Galway County Council ever since. Its road registration number is 2070IM. It was used on the construction, upkeep and maintenance of roads all over Galway so it is of great sentimental value.

The project is being co-funded by the Galway Rural Development heritage grant.

Speaking to club members, they explained that this is a major restoration project. The boiler and the engine have been sent to England to be rebuilt.

The club have had the machine in their hands for the past five years. The aim is to have the steamed road roller back in its original condition for the 2019 show.

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