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Home My WebLink AboutThe Huron Expositor, 1990-08-29, Page 44 THE HURON EXPOSITOR AUGUST 29. I WO enter rebuilds the past 11V:ar11 1usesilmcol� .... ltlttlh+lN „. s tram, 6' OATS user Investment & Tact Manning tNe.ir� Inver rwseM Produce, ... IS a1MWs FUMY OM MINK SEAFORTH 96 Win St. 527-0420 AIR CONDITIONERS AND FANS *GREATLY REDUCED* 1/2 PRICE CLEARANCE ITEMS MORE INSTORE SALE ITEMS •Lawn Furniture •Mowers •Bicycles •Barbecues SILLS ---dh Nome MAIN ST., SEAFORTH Hardw 527-1620 i SERVICE SPECIAL OIL CHANGE •Includes up to 5 Litres of Oil •New Filter ALL FOR ONLY CARS AND LIGHT TRUCKS 1995 HART.' :�. �rwr�,o�«IRA ntwxwr jq MERC10,.11r_ BOOK AN APPOINTMENT TODAY FORD HIGHWAY 8 WEST SEAFORTH 827-1010 BY PAULA ELLIOTT Wasp may aaentb and com- puter experts worlung un tech- nology to lake cls IMO the nem c onttry, it's a change to see someone like coach's Lyle Furrey wading lu mime the cen- turies oo-turies gone by. Lyle, a carpenter, has fallen into the positiioa of 'wagon reastNu exmaordinaire' , almost unwittingly. A partnership with a Mood led so a job rumoring a nh>tetleenth-century buckboard -style wagon, and clings have blossomed from there. In a Scaforth garage, Mr. Fumy is hard at work on his latest pet project, a century -old basic buckboard which was delivered to him by a Mend in the Cambridge area. "Lately, I've been pig in my eight hours a day on this," he says, lightly sanding the oak sides that he has reconstructed on the wagon. "I've soon this thing sitting in a patch of weeds for five years. We took it right out of the weed patch. and here it sits." There it sits indeed, in Us renewed glory. Good for little more than parts when it was shipped to Seaforth - "you'd swear it was going to the dump," he laughs - the wagon was totally disassembled in Lyle's workshop. The chassis, he points out, was still in remarkable shape for its age. "I was amazed at how many bolts I took apart that just screwed right out," he says, demonstrating a spring from the harness and traces that hasn't lost any of its sproing since the day it was made, some 100 -plus years ago. "Everything was reusable." Once the painstaking work of sandblasting, repainting and refitting all of the iron chassis components was completed, the real fun began. Faced with a buckboard whose original wooden body was rotted into dust in places, Lyle was pitted with the task of rebuilding the wagon by guess and by golly, for the most part. The side pieces, he points out, were intact but "..other than that, I'm just guessing." , "This is the fust one that I've totally rebuilt," Mr. Furrey says. "I'm just taking a wild guess on how it would look." If it's a wild guess, then it looks like it's pretty much on the mark. A lot of hard work and patience has gone into the buckboard's han- diwork, including the hand -carved and sanded bowed oak sections attached to the chassis. The wheels SATIN FINISH - Lyle Furrey sands down the oak sides of the 19th century buckboard which he been restoring in his Seatorth workshop for the past couple of weeks. Elliott photo nave been finished tor a couple of years now, as the owner always anticipated having the wagon rebuilt and commissioned a Mennonite wheelwright to fashion them. Terry Beavers, a friend of Lyle's from the Hamilton area where he worked as a carpenter for seven years, was apprenticed by a Mennonite wheelwright a number of years ago and has teamed up with Mr. Furrey on two other wagons. The exposure to their time-honoured wagon buil- ding methods was a unique oppor- tunity, Mr. Furrey adds, and a real boon to the business. "It's very rare for a Mennonite to take on an apprentice," he says, adding that they still carry catalogues for ordering the cen- turies-old wagon parts. Masters at bending the steel bands for the wagon wheels by forcing steam into the iron, the Mennonites are a close-knit community who reveal themselves and their methods to few outsiders. Lyle Furrey admits that his work would be going much faster if he knew their own techni- ques. "If you were totally set up with all of the stuff that the old-timers had, you'd cut the time down." But for now, the time that he has CRAFTED TO PERFECTION - Detail of the hand -carved wooden sections and sandblasted iron chassis of Lyle Furrey's restored buckboard show the time and caring craftsmanship that has gone into his work. Elliott photo. spends in the shop lovingly res- toring the ancient wagon is time willingly spent. The buckboard is taking shape, and Mr. Furrey adds that he has found enough paint chips on the wood to indicate that the original wagon was green with a red chassis. Adding the colour will be the fmal step in restoring the wagon to its glory, readied perhaps tor some fall fair exposure behind a smartly turned -out team. And maybe by that time, another wagon will have found its way into Lyle Furrey's capable hands. "Someday I'd like to do more, but for now I'll just do what I can find," he says. "It's amazing what's around the countryside." Four bidding for possession of CN rail line BY NEIL CORBETT The sale of the CN rail line from Goderich to Stratford, which brought inquiries from 40 possible buyers, is down to four bidders who are now being considered by CN. Ken White, CN regional manager of business planning, says the rail- way company is looking for a professional, well-financed manager for the line, which primarily hauls Cook's people have a world of marketing experience to offer you Pan of the Cook's Crop Marketing Team (tirmm lett to right): Dave wheeler - Atwood Branch Manager. Second year with Cook's Pauline Insley Grain Merchandiser, Hensall, 7 years with Cook's Bruce Lamont - Centralia Branch Manager. 16 years with Cook's In today's complex world markets you need a competitive edge. That's where Cook's can help. The marketing experts at Cook's can help you make informed decisions about your crop. We'll keep you in touch with commodity prices and world-wide supply and demand situations so you can make the right cropping choices to get the profits you want. Before you decide, call the people at Cook's. Our experience can give you the edge. Branches: Hensall k5t9) 262-2410 Centralia (519) 225.6661 Kirktaon (519) 229 8986 Nikon (519) 527 1540 ' mherley (519) 395-3601 Atwood (519) 356-2292 iltvtgon renrich ti 14e,mtr. leer I ,mnn1 salt out of Godench, and fertilizer into the Hensall District Co-op. White says the sale is part of CN's plan to condense its overall operation to a high-density mainline system, fed by a small locally - operated short -line system. White says having short -line railroads owned and managed by local operators has made for a more efficient system in the United States, and is a system CN is implementing. The four remaining bidders are Ann Arbor Acquisition Corporation, Essex Morterm Holdings Limited, Huron Transportation Group, and Rail Tex Inc. These companies will be judged on their credibility, how much they will charge to ship cars from Goderich to Stratford and back, and TRIANGLE DISICD U NT.,. SPCIAL1 1111 1h *rem. 41416401011.6. 4,epa. e$rrNMelo Comm 1400111Iiii. EFFECTIVE AUGUST 27 TO SEPTEMBER 9, 1990 MAYBELLINE GREAT LASH MASCARA PERT PLUS 300 ML. SHAMPOO PLUS CONDITIONER IN ONE CLEARASIL 15 G. TUBE ACNE MEDICATION OR 200 ML. BOTTLE DAILY FACE WASH ASSORTED COVER GIRL LIPSTICKS 100 ML. TUBE CREST TOOTHPASTE HILROY 1" VINYL BINDERS RULED OR PLAIN HILROY 200 SHEET REFILLS BEROL SCHOLAR 304 COLOURING MARKERS HILROY 1- NOTE TOTE NOTE ORGANIZER HILROY 2" VINYL BINDERS RFROL PLASTIC ERASERS GARFIELD PACKAGE OF 24 COLOURING PENCILS $3.29 52.99 S2.49 $3.29 $2.99 g1.29 $1.59 $1.49 52.69 54.99 53.29 S39 53.99 the purchase price they offer. Their bids were made Aug. 15, but are not yet a matter of public record. White says a local operator of the line should result in better service for its users, adding "we believe this will be a successful sale." His words offer reassurance to Huron County Council members who have voiced fears that if no buyer is found CN could phase out rail; service. McLaughlin Chev-Olds Ltd. 13 Main St. Seaforth 527-1140 • Service • Selection • Savings • Satisfaction • Leasing • Complete BODY SHOP Service EDUCATION •A lifetime investment •Be involved vote Ask the provincial candidates these questions 1 Will the provincial share of education costs be increased. decreased or remain the same 2 Will the gap between elemen tary and secondary funding be eliminated? 3 What priority will be given education? SUPPORT PUBLIC EDUCATION VOTE SEPTEMBER 6 This ad peld for by.. Ontario Public School Teachers' Federation HURON DISTRICT