Antique Cement Block Maker Attracts Crowds At Shows

Antique Cement Block Maker Attracts Crowds At Shows AG WORLD “My wife and I demonstrate this antique cement block making machine at some local antique tractor shows People enjoy watching how it works ” says Bill Olson Roosevelt Minn The Block Maker was sold by Montgomery Ward and is designed to make 8 by 8 by 16 cement blocks from a mixture of damp sand concrete and gravel A pair of bars on both sides of the machine are used to lock everything together “It was used back in the 1940’s and even before that when there were few local cement block factories Many people had to make their own blocks ” says Olson “I remember as a young child watching someone use this same machine to make cement blocks for friends who were building the basement for a new house ” The operator shovels the damp sand-cement mix into the Block Maker’s mold and tamps it down then uses a lever to move the core in place He then shovels more sand into the mold and tamps it down “Once the mold is full the operator pulls back on the lever to retract the core He tilts the block out and picks it up with a board and sets it aside to cure ” says Olson “Then a new board is put in the Block Maker and the process is repeated until all the blocks have been made ” Contact: FARM SHOW Followup William and Arlene Olson 4628 Rocky Point Rd N W Roosevelt Minn 56673 ph 218 442-6381; weolson@wiktel com

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