Yeah, that's a pretty cool setup. We used to run a 2 stand shearing shed powered by an old diesel hit and miss (think it was a Cooper engine, but they're probably fairly specific to Australia). Then engine was outside in an awning and ran a long leather belt up to the line shaft that the shearing stands ran off. Now, each stand has it's own electric motor so those sort of things aren't used anymore... and that shearing shed has since collapsed into a pile of timber and bent corrugated iron.
The wooden pullies would be possible to make yourself, but you'd need to keep an eye out for old cast iron pulleys. People use them as garden ornaments now and most of them probably have no idea what they were used for. I've got an old leather belt driven forge blower in the shed, but I haven't needed to use it yet as I mostly use the gas forge and have an old electric blower for my very agricultural coke forge. Pretty hard to get leather belts these days though, I think there's an old belt joining tool in a shed on my dad's farm still... somewhere.
Sweet. That’s cool. Yeah I love that old stuff. Those ol’ boys actually put out some damn nice work with what would be considered substandard equipment today. Over here we have lots of tractor/hit & miss clubs. Especially in the Midwest. So finding pulleys, belts and machinery isn’t too hard, but the price you’ll pay is. Unless they don’t know what they have of course. Thank God farmers and ranchers never throw anything away!
Lately because of the RA I’m suddenly cursed with I’ve turned to my induction forge. Small deco work is about all I can muster nowadays. They are pretty nice, but you are limited with what you can make. It’ll heat up 1/2” round stock to forging heat in less than a minute. A lot cheaper and less time consuming than coke, charcoal or propane. Cooler temps to be around as well and no oder. But like I say, they have their limits.
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