The (Christmas) Eve of Destruction

We have two small bins on the farm that Dad bought as government surplus back in the early 1960’s. I think he paid $300 each for them. We got about 40 years of good use out of them but they hold barely 2000 bushels each and we harvest that much corn in less than 2 hours now. So we’ve really outgrown them and they’ve just been rusting for the last 10 years or so.

We have an abundance of labor right now with my favorite nephew Joe home from Purdue for the holidays [1]. The weather’s stayed mild, that made it a good time to take these bins down.

We borrowed a demolition saw from our neighbor. We’re using it to cut the bin in half from top to bottom.

High Cut
High Cut
All photos Zumbrun,D., 2014

Tom’s in the loader and Joe’s driving the tractor. It’s the first time Joe’s driven that tractor, no better time to learn than with your brother in the bucket 10 feet off the ground with a running saw [2].

Everyone felt better making a low cut on the bin.

Low Cut
Low Cut

Owen, however, was still skeptical. As are Red and Blackie, our cows watching from the left.

Skeptical Owen
Skeptical Owen

I have the oxy-acetylene torches there, finishing the last couple of inches that the demolition saw can’t reach.

Blackie
Blackie
Red
Red

Blackie and Red have a date with destiny January 2nd. We try not to think about it too much.

That demolition saw is a miracle tool.

Smooth Cut
Smooth Cut

It only took a minute or two to slice the bin from top to bottom.

We [3] then tied a log chain to the top of the bin and to the tractor and started pulling.

Ready to Pull
Ready to Pull

Owen is wisely heading in the other direction.

Pulling
Pulling

And the bin very smoothly came down.

Pulling
Pulling
Pulling
Pulling
Pulling
Pulling
Pulled
Pulled

The bin looks huge lying flat! Now what to do?

Mash It!
Mash It!
Mash It Good!
Mash It Good!

We’ll [4] take the demolition saw and cut it into small enough pieces to load on our trailer [5] and haul into town to sell for scrap.


1. or Christmas if you prefer. I don’t want to offend anyone by referring to Christmas as a holiday.

2. As always, safety first is our motto.

3. As always, when I say “we” I mean “not me.”

4. Not me.

5. The trailer’s 32 feet x 8 feet. So the pieces don’t have to be too small.

9 thoughts on “The (Christmas) Eve of Destruction

  1. Nice use of a song title in your post. Did you guys draw straws to see who road in the loader and who drove? Or did you just assume that Tom, the beaver, wanted to be the one in danger?

    1. You surely caught the “mash it. mash it good” reference too?

      Tom just hopped right up in the loader bucket. He always takes the point.

  2. Let’s just say that the demolition tutors forgot to come, and thus began a trial and error demolition. I’m just amazed that the ladder that the chain was attached to didn’t come off the bin and slingshot back at Owen and I. When the bin came down the cows started to run and we saw the finest example of Corgi cow herding possible!

  3. I remember your father buying the bins. Paul Pence got one also, I think. Are Pences still using it?
    Bon put them at the Harrold Place first, I believe. We had electricity in the middle of that farm at the south end of the lane where a house once stood. Junior Dafforn moved them to the home farm. Why the move? I don’t know.

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