He Restores Old Gauges

He Restores Old Gauges PICKUPS Accessories 31-4-21 Dick Kunkle of Stuart, Iowa loves repairing and restoring old pressure gauges. They were originally used to monitor air, water or steam pressure. The unusual hobby grew naturally from Kunkle's career. He worked in water treatment plants where he often had to fix or replace the many gauges. "They're the most important part of a plant because of the information they provide. They tell you what's going on everywhere," he explains. When you retire, you don't really retire, according to Kunkle, "you just kind of phase it out." Now, he's interested in selling antique gauges or doing custom gauge restoring for others. He's found that often, the old gauges just need routine maintenance, like anything else. "Sometimes I get gauges that have the glass broke out of them or the faces are almost completely worn off. They can have missing needles or many coats of paint on their base," he says. "I fix or replace all of these things, and re-calibrate them, too, using a master gauge." Kunkle has come across some really old and unusual gauges, and has bought them for the enjoyment he gets from restoring them. The most common size is 4 to 4 1/2-in., but he says they range from 2-in. to 10-in. diameters. "The brass stuff is especially old but sometimes they've been painted over, so I really like returning them to their original brass base. The oldest one I have has a 6-in. face and was made in 1910," he says. "The rewarding part of it is to take something that looks like an absolute bunch of junk, and make it look brand new again. It's painstaking, but it gets in your blood. They just need tender love and care." Antique gauges are of much better quality than today's gauges, according to Kunkle, and they're also more interesting and ornate. Some have delicate "sun and moon-tipped needles" on them or other decorative designs, whereas modern gauges are generally plain. "In some of them, the works inside are like a clock and the manufacture date is stamped on them somewhere," Kunkle says. "Some provide both altitude and pressure (psi) readings, while others give just one or the other type of reading." In addition to antique gauges for sale, Kunkle also has 50 new 4 1/2-in. gauges in stock. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Dick Kunkle, 2936 Walnut Trail, Stuart, Iowa 50250 (ph 515 523-2842; fax 515 523-2825).

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