By the busload: 'chug, chugs' sparked collector's fondness for engines.

Farm Collector, September, 2002 by Vossler, Bill

Bob Ludolph of Pipestone, Minn., started collecting gas engines as a teen-ager, drawn to them in part by their sounds. Today, he is 67 and has amassed more than 200 farm engines of different brands out of about 1,400 different brands ever made.

"That covers everything - Maytag, Briggs & Stratton, Economy, Hercules, Jaeger, Nelson Bros. - I could just go on and on," he says. "I started collecting in the 1950s. I picked them up here and there, wherever a guy could get a good buy. I got a few for $10, $15, $25 - you'll never be able to do that again - because I was interested in hearing the noise they made, and in getting the old engines running and back into their original shape. You know, spending time and money on them. It kind of got out of hand."

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