THE PIG

This pig had an unusually long gestation. All the parts for the pig were piled in front of my shop for the entire four years that I promised friends and neighbors that construction was imminent. As the years flew past, I progressed well into my 60s, and the parts that were almost too heavy to handle started to feel like they were frozen to the ground.

My son rescued the project when he asked what I might like for father's day. I looked him in the eyes and said help me build the pig. His eyes rolled, but he realized that a worse request could have been made. He could help me and get rid of the pile of parts. He would also score big points with Mother, who would be awash with waves of rapture to see the mess disappear.

The body was made from the end castings of two WW2 era generators, bolted together. They make a good approximation of a pig's body shape, and they weigh at least as much. The ears are cultivator sweeps, the eyebrows are hayrake springs, the tail is from a car suspension, and the face is the clutch casting from an old Chris- Craft. The pig stands on a set of clawfoot bathtub legs.


As I mentioned, the gednerators were WW2 era. One of them still retains a brass tag showing that it was overhauled at the Hanau Engineer depot. I googled it, and read that after the end of the war, the Army made a major effort to round up all its "assets" that were lying idle and forgotten accross the continent. The Hanau depot in Germany was one of the locations where this equipment was gathered for disposal, salvage or overhaul to new specifications. The generator was returned to the U.S. and later released to the Dundee airport, which was "sort of" municipal at its outset. For many years, if not decades, it powered the airport when electricity was needed for lights, airplane maintenance, or for pancake breakfasts.

After serving the Dundee airport for so many years, it moved to Larry Huntley's airport on a hilltop near Tyrone for several more years. When it landed in my yard, it was all worn out. Most of it went to the salvage yard, some of it awaits repurposing in my shed, but the cast iron end bell is alive and healthy in my front yard!


A close up of the Hanau overhaul tag.