Getting all cranked up

By Monique Ebrington
WHILE petrol-heads were fuming around Albert Park at the Grand Prix on Sunday, another group of enthusiasts were getting all steamed up at Yarra Junction.
The Yarra Valley Machinery Preservation Society had steam machinery of all descriptions cranked up in a spectacular display of old-time power and innovation for the Upper Yarra Historical Museum’s annual fund-raiser.
Revving engines and the clinking of machinery could be heard from all over town, as vintage loyalists dusted off their old engines and got them running again.
Niel Brain has been a member of the Yarra Valley Machinery Preservation Inc. since 1994 and, among many things, demonstrated the Ajax C1 centrifugal water pump over the weekend.
Mr Brain said he was enjoying the weekend and that his interest in engines stemmed back to when he was a child.
“I can remember back to when I was 10 and I visited a dairy farm. They had one of these old engines. Since then I’ve been interested in old engines and now I’m old enough and lucky enough to acquire one myself,” Mr Brain said.
Displays of pioneer crafts, old hand tools, and the museum’s huge collection of artefacts and photos gathered from around the Upper Yarra were also on display.
For more information on the Upper Yarra Historical Museum visit www.upperyarramuseum.org.au .