Gunderson's Amazing Do-All Machine

Gunderson s Amazing Do-All Machine FARM HOME Miscellaneous If you were the kind of kid who liked to tear things apart just to see how they worked you ll love Mark Gunderson s Amazing Do-All Machine It s hard not to be awed by the movement the bright colors and the whimsical humor of this complicated machine     Mark Gunderson Charleston W Va is an electrician by day and a tinkerer by night He created the Do-All Machine a decade ago after being inspired by machines he saw at antique engine shows His goal in building it was to entertain while showing off the internal workings of many machines     A 10 hp Witte gas engine is the main power source Gunderson took the engine apart painted the pieces and reassembled it - minus the exterior He did the same with other engines in the piece: a V-8 motor a boat motor a weed eater motor a Wankel rotary engine and Gunderson s personal favorite the engine from a B25 bomber     He got the plane engine after hearing a B25 had crashed With just the name of a town and knowing that the property owner raised pigs he made calls until he located it The owner said he could have it      It looked like a 2 000-lb piece of aluminum foil that had been thrown against the wall Gunderson recalls The engine had two rows of 7 cylinders so he picked out the best ones to make just one row     It s not the only time he s gone out of his way to salvage trash to turn into Do-All Machine treasure     When he heard about a 220-lb tapered roller bearing that had been thrown out he got permission to do a little dumpster diving      I wrestled it out of there and put it on the Do-All It rolls perfect Gunderson says     He s particularly proud of the square gears he made out of a rack gear He had to get the teeth and pitch to line up perfectly á     In addition to intertwining gears pulleys and sprockets recycled from implements and vehicles there are personal touches ûwhirling hand shapes traced from his children s hands a horseshoe one of his children found and his sister s old satellite dish that spins with the sun on one side and the moon on the other     In addition a blacksmith blower blows bubbles from soapy water in an ammo can A squirrel cage off a furnace blows air to wiggle the bright red tongue of the nagging wife A straight gear alligator slides back and forth chasing a chicken     Gunderson bolts everything securely to a 13-ft trailer and has taken it to schools and antique engine and air shows in West Virginia and nearby states     Gunderson continues to tinker and is currently tearing apart a straight 8 Packard engine     As he creates Gunderson notes that he s learned many skills including foundry work blacksmithing how to gear up and gear down and understanding hydraulics He s always looking for an odd gear or mechanical piece to add to his Do-All Machine     Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Mark Gunderson 2292 Four Mile Rd Charleston W Va 25312 ph 304 965-6440; www gundersonsdoallmachine com

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