Circus Train Built With 30 Gal Barrels

Circus Train built with 30 gal barrels AG WORLD Ag World 12-5-17 Thirty gallon herbicide barrels equipped with wheels and hitched together end to end make a great "circus train" when pulled by a 3-wheeler or garden tractor, says Kelly Dawson, Almont, N. Dak. Dawson, who takes his 22-ft. long "circus train" to parades, family reunions and neighborhood picnics, has built six kiddy-sized barrel cars, painting each one a different color - red, orange, blue, metallic purple, green and yellow. He decorates each barrel with signs, tinsel and balloons. "Each barrel holds one child weighing up to 75 lbs., or two smaller children," says Dawson, who has won prizes in local parades for his entry. Before working on each barrel, Dawson triple rinses it to eliminate chemical residue. Then, using an air chisel, he cuts out a 16-in. wide hole that extends from the bottom to the top rib. He covers the sharp edges of the hole with lengths of split garden hose, and welds a bracket for sign poles to the front of each barrel. To build the seat, Dawson bolts 2 by 4's to each side of the barrel and runs a 1 by 8 across them. A 1 by 12 is used for the backrest. He made a moveable steering wheel by heating a length of pipe and bending it into a circle. He welded a 1-in. wide flat iron with a small hole in its middle across the wheel. It fits over a bolt welded to the barrel. The next step is to fit each barrel with a hitch pole - running from front to back - made from 1-in. sq. tubing. He equips both ends of the pole with hitches. Short stub axle shafts extend out either side and are fitted with 7-in. tires with steel hubs. For more information, contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Kelly Dawson, RR 1 Box 14, Almont, N. Dak. 58520 (ph 701 622-3592).

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