Equipment World Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/885126
EquipmentWorld.com | October 2017 9 S even antique Cat machines from one construction firm's premier 125-plus-piece collection are on display at the Caterpillar Visitors Center in Peoria, Illinois. Doug and Matt Veerkamp, the father and son who head the 200-em- ployee Doug Veerkamp General Engineering in Placerville, Califor- nia, have been collecting for years, specializing in antique Cat machines, in addition to the machines made by Holt Manufacturing and C.L. Best, the two companies that merged in 1925 to become Caterpillar. "I've always been kind of a trac- tor kid," says Matt, now 35. Although Doug, 61, started the collection, when Matt got involved, "it kind of took off," Matt says. The stories behind two machines in the visitor center display detail Matt's passion for the rare find. Seeking parts for a Best Sixty that was already in the family collection, Matt struck gold, finding the 1926 EXP 0000-L Experimental Twenty, since verified to be the first machine produced by the newly formed Caterpillar. Originally painted white and trimmed in black, Caterpillar used the EXP 0000-L as a demonstration reporter | staff report Discovered at a California ranch owned by a descendant of Caterpillar co-founder C.L. Best, the 1926 Caterpillar Expo Twenty is the first machine made by the then-fledgling Caterpillar Tractor Company. Contractor's antique machine collection on display at Caterpillar Visitors Center machine at state fairs. "This tractor was like nothing I'd seen before," Matt says. Caterpillar first displayed the EXP 0000-L in its 2011 Con- Expo booth. When it comes to the Veerkamp's 1919 Best 25 on display at the visi- tor center, however, the story is less about the discovery and more about the delivery. It was spotted on a gov- ernment-owned abandoned mine site in the Simi Valley hills of southern California, and getting the machine off a mountaintop was a challenge. In gaining governmental permission, Matt promised not to disturb the land during the extraction. "Using a helicopter was the only way to get it out," he says. Since the helicopter pilot felt he could only comfortably carry 4,000 pounds, two lifts were required for the 5,200-pound ma- chine: one for the engine and one for the chassis. To prep for the task of separating the engine from the chas- sis, Matt thoroughly examined a Best 25 on display at a nearby museum. Both lifts went off without any major hitches, and the Best 25 was down the mountain and into the shop. Matt worked with former Veerkamp employee Jim Chapman to restore the Best 25 to working condi- tion and decided not to paint the tractor. "You can't buy that patina," Matt says. The Veerkamp collection will be on display at the center through June 20, 2018. If you miss the display, you might be able to wrangle an invitation to view the entire Veerkamp collection firsthand. Every two years, Doug and Matt open their Placerville, California, warehouse and host an antique ma- chinery parade. "Six hundred people showed up to the last event," Matt says. "We've held it three times now, and it keeps getting bigger." Editor's note: Go to equipmentworld. com for a detailed account of this story, including photos of each Veerkamp machine on display. – Marcia Gruver Doyle