Maintain The Implements 

Grandpa Brown had a detached garage that was open on one end.  It was only large enough to store either his 1948 Plymouth or the tractor, depending on which needed shelter most.  He kept all his tools and maintenance equipment in that garage.  He would even sheer the sheep in there.  It had a unique odor to it, a combination of dust, grease, gasoline, old burlap and dog.  I spent a lot of time there learning to use tools and how to keep things in proper running condition.  It was there I first became acquainted with the anvil and vice.  He spent a large portion of his time keeping the farm equipment in good condition.  Inspecting, sharpening, tightening, lubricating, and replacing were all things that demanded his time.  If an essential piece of equipment broke down it could threaten a crop.  It wasn’t just that something broke, it was when it broke.  Things never broke during the off season when there was time to fix them.  They broke during the growing season when they were in use and even then, it seemed as if they broke at the worst possible time.  We lived an inconvenient distance from the nearest large city.  This made locating and getting replacement parts more challenging.  When an important  piece of equipment broke it was all downtime.  There wasn’t any mowing or baling or planting when the machinery was broken.  Time is critically important to a farmer.   Because downtime could mean success or failure for the year, breakdowns often required improvising a solution and taking shortcuts in order to finish the job at hand.  Because of this, caution was sometimes ignored and that created the potential for accidents which led to even more down time.  The mower we used to cut the alfalfa was attached to the back of the tractor and required regular inspection, maintenance and repair because of its many moving parts.  When the mower blades became dull the cutting bar would become clogged, slowing and even sometimes stopping the mowing.  Sharpening the cutting blades was time consuming.  Despite the time it took, it was still advantageous in the long run to keep them sharp.  Keeping the equipment lubricated was very important.  If something was properly greased it would last longer and run better.  The grease gun was as familiar to me as a shovel.  In my younger years the grease came in a large can and had to be daubed into the grease gun with a stick.  I can remember how excited we were when the little tubes of pre-filled grease became available and we could just insert them into the grease gun without so much mess.  Farm machinery requires a lot of nuts and bolts.  If a nut became loose and we noticed in time, we could easily tighten it and all was well.  If we didn’t notice one becoming loose it could come off the bolt and jeopardize the operation.  I spent a lot of time on my hands and knees looking for a nut that had come undone and was lost.  Grandpa kept a large metal can full of various nuts and bolts we might need.  The need for maintenance was very important and it never ended.  It was an ongoing process that required our constant attention and commitment but it was well worth it.  I also know that maintenance doesn’t just apply to farm equipment.  It applies to many things in everyday life; automobiles, appliances, workplace equipment, etc.  It’s a practical application that saves time and money for anyone.