The South Canterbury Traction Engine Club has been steaming along for 60 years.
The club’s original shed is now surrounded by five more, and club members are hoping to add a seventh.
Club member Jeremy Talbot said one of the new additions to the museum — which members were refurbishing at present — was a 1912 sprayer from an orchard in Kurow.
Mr Talbot said the dry climate had kept the sprayer ‘‘in such good nick’’.
He said as the land was not as easy to work as Mid Canterbury, a wider range of machines could be found here.
Its diverse agricultural sector, which included wheat, wool, meat and dairy, had allowed the museum to acquire a trove of vintage machines.
As well as a tractor shed and truck shed, there was also a shed housing emergency vehicles from over the years.
One of the fire trucks — a 1951 Commer/Merryweather TTL — was first used to fight a fire at the CML building in Stafford St in April 1951, before the vehicle had been officially commissioned.
Firefighters had extended the ladder to fight the fire, but legend has it the vehicle had been left stuck overnight with its ladder extended as no-one had known how to get it down.
To add insult to injury it had received a ticket for not being registered to drive on the road.
Keeping the vehicles in good condition was not a cheap exercise.
The club was fundraising to fix two of its engines, which both required major work.
Mr Talbot said they would cost ‘‘a few bob’’ to fix.
‘‘We’re talking thousands.’’
He said corroded pipes were to blame for the expense.
Boiler tubes had a 60-year lifespan, and as both machines were over 100 years old — and the steel came from Germany — there was no cheap fix.
Once the steel arrived arrived, pulling the engines apart to replace the boiler tubes was ‘‘a bit of a job’’.
Two open days will be held this weekend, from 10am to 4pm at the Kyle Park Transport Museum.
A bouncy castle, children’s rides, food and coffee will be available.
A chaff cutter will be running at the open days to provide feed for horses, and pea straw will be available.
