One of our esteemed club members was honored by being inducted into the EDGETA Hall of Fame.
Congratulations Bob!
Winfield Courier Article by Gene Blake
Photos by Gene Blake of Bob Sherrard's Collection
Click on "read more" below for a story by Gene Blake about Bob.
RESTORING BY FEEL AND MEMORY
He walks to the wall where tools are hanging and selects the correct wrench. His hands slowly move over a casting, seeking the nuts that fasten it. Fingers check for rust pits on the sheet metal of a vintage farm tractor. Next they feel for the oil and grime that might indicate a leaky seal.
These actions might seem common for anyone restoring old tractors. But what's uncommon is the fact Bob Sherrard is blind—the victim of a degenerative, genetic disease called Retinitis Pigmentosa. Among Bob's early symptoms was night blindness which resulted in his “wearing out a jillion flashlights.” In the first grade he got a pair of glasses but only wore them for a year. By age 18, however, eye wear became necessary. Although his vision slowly deteriorated, for most of his life he was able to function almost normally. He farmed, operated a construction company, fished, and drove a vehicle until 1985. Because unprotected exposure to sunlight accelerates the disease, he has worn dark glasses with side protectors for over 20 years. Today, at age 76, the only thing he can see are the fluorescent lights illuminating his shop.
The shop, located in an 78-year-old stone barn, is so neat and clean it would put most restorers to shame. A blind mechanic can't have tools and old parts lying around to trip over. As nuts, bolts, and small parts are removed, they're placed in cans, his pockets, or shallow cardboard boxes like the ones holding cases of pop. Lines are painted around each tool hanging on the wall over his work bench—not for Bob, but so his grandsons know where to put them back. When he uses tools and sets them aside for a moment, he must remember their location. Memory and feel compensate for the lack of eyesight—finger tips replace eyes. But those trusted fingers are starting to lose their sensitivity.
In recent years he's overhauled the engines of a 1945 John Deere “H” and a 1936 International Harvester “F12.” When I asked, “How can you figure out what needs to be done to a tractor?” he responded, “I know how things are supposed to be.” He adds, “I used to be a fast worker, but I've learned patience.” While he's not afraid to take a carburetor apart, replacing gaskets during an engine overhaul is a struggle. He gets his trusted son-in-law, Alan Brennan, to assist with them and with other tasks requiring vision, such as reading manuals and transporting their latest acquisition to the shop. Although Alan helps a lot, Bob is quick to state, “I don't ask him to do anything I can do.” But when the steel ball from the steering wheel positioner on his “MT” fell out and rolled across the concrete floor, finding it was up to Alan. One of the things Alan really admires about Bob is how he can hear whether an engine is running properly. Some restorers are happy just to get an old tractor started. Bob is more particular than that. Most of his rebuilt tractors are in good running condition.
On his early restorations Bob was assisted by a retired mechanic and friend of mine, Francis Glenn, who marveled at what Bob was able to accomplish. With Francis' declining health and eventual death, Bob became even more self-reliant. When a tractor is nearing completion, Bob prepares the surfaces and entrusts the painting to a helper, Danny Youngers. Bob's grandsons, Andy and Mike, who are handy with a spray can, do the smaller paint jobs. Greg Stephen of The Old Tractor Company, Franktown, Colorado, is a favorite parts supplier. Bob says, “He's a nice guy, fun to talk to, and quite knowledgeable.”
Bob and Alan belong to the Kansas and Oklahoma Steam and Gas Engine Club and take part in its annual show held in August at the fairgrounds in Winfield, Kansas, Bob's home town. The tractors they've restored may not meet the standards held by purists. For instance, stands have been mounted behind the seats so Bob and his grandchildren can ride even though he can't drive.
Bob, like many restorers, grew up on a farm and learned a lot helping his father, Ellis. They had a team made up of a horse and a mule—the source of much frustration and some good stories—but Bob preferred their 1927 John Deere “D.” In 1945 Ellis started doing construction work—lathe and plaster and, later, masonry with stone and cement block. Bob helped his dad with this just as he did with the farm work.
After graduating from high school in 1949, Bob farmed with a favorite 1937 John Deere “B” until 1955. As his father before him, he needed to augment farming income and began laying block. He became accomplished in all the building trades and, eventually, established Bob Sherrard Builders and specialized in constructing residential and small commercial buildings until his retirement in 1988. His wife, Betty, observed, “He would tell his employees exactly what to do and how to do it. And it had better be done that way!”
Bill Drennan, who, until his retirement and recent death, operated D & D Farm Equipment, the Winfield John Deere dealership, has been a friend of Bob's for decades. Not only did Bill sell him tractors, equipment, and parts, but he hired Sherrard Builders to erect several commercial buildings and his present home. He found Bob to be honest, fair, decisive, and easy to work with.
Like most restorers Bob didn't stop after finishing his first tractor. One of his acquisitions was a 1928 John Deere model “D”—like the one he drove when he was growing up. The “D” has no muffler, just a short straight pipe coming out of the exhaust manifold. It leaves your ears ringing for hours. It has two gears forward—slow and slower. The original finish is good enough Bob has no plans to repaint it.
The next older tractor he's restored is a 1937 John Deere model “B” purchased at an auction in Emporia, Kansas, where over 100 antique tractors were sold.
My favorite is his 1945 John Deere “H”. This was one of my preferred models for mowing hay in the Sandhills of Nebraska where I was raised.
Several years ago Bob purchased a 1950 “B” locally. I can still remember my father buying one like it in the early 1960s.
The “before” pictures of his 1945 John Deere “MT” bear little resemblance to the “after” product. Obviously, it takes time, patience, and skill to turn a rusty old piece of junk into what looks and runs like a new tractor. But last summer he did just that with two 1951 model Deeres, an “AR” and an “R” Diesel. However, having not been around a two-cylinder diesel before and thinking it was running rough, it took several of his restoring buddies to assure him, “That's how it's supposed to sound!”
Like many restorers, Bob Sherrard prefers these old two-cylinder tractors, but he's not a John Deere purist. A dedicated John Deere restorer accused him of “mixing colors.” Some of Bob's restorations aren't even tractors. His non-green projects include a 1936 International Harvester “F12,” a 1945 Allis-Chalmers “C,” 1951 Massey-Harris Pony, a 1953 “DC” Case, a 1945 Dodge half-ton pickup, a 1941 Chevrolet two-door sedan, a 1948 Studebaker two-ton truck, and a 1958 International half-ton pickup. As he finished working on a 1947 Ford “2N” and its 3-point implements, he backed a 1935 John Deere “D” into his shop to work on. After searching for a John Deere “LA” for a long time he found something similar, an “LI,” the industrial version of an “LA.” It's yellow, but it's still a John Deere.
Most Sunday mornings one can find Bob, his wife, and daughters, Diana and Cathe, along with their families, at First Presbyterian Church, Winfield, Kansas. Invariably, they're seated in pews the church's farmers have traditionally claimed and call the “north 40.” Since Bob's church attendance is far more regular now than when I was his pastor, I can only assume the restoration of old tractors has had a positive affect on his spiritual life.
It's remarkable to observe how Bob has dealt with his blindness. He's not let it defeat him. Much courage, determination, and perseverance are required to develop touch, hearing, and memory in order to compensate for the loss of sight. Other than his sight, Bob's health appears to be good. But retirement, for whatever reason, leaves one with the question, “What am I going to do with my time?” Bob's answer has been to replace construction with the challenging hobby of restoration. Often I've told him, “With your energetic ability and my eyesight, we could make one good man out of the two of us.”
He just laughs and confesses he's not done restoring. “I'm looking for something else to work on.”
Eugene Blake, retired Presbyterian pastor
Winfield, KS
http://www.kosteamgas.org/article.php?story=hall-of-famer-bob-sherrard