WATERLOO — Forgive Tom O’Connor if he’s a bit
obsessed.

The Swartz Creek, Michigan, corn and bean farmer
was on the main Expo floor of McElroy Auditorium at
the National Cattle Congress grounds, fastidiously
spraying and polishing the tires on his fully restored
1959 John Deere Model “630” Tractor in anticipation of
the Two-Cylinder Club’s 23rd Annual Vintage Deere
Tractor Expo.

Organizers of the event, which continues today and
Saturday at the Cattle Congress, expect as many as 245
John Deere machines no newer than 1983 models to be
on display.

This is O’Connor’s seventh trip to the Waterloo
event, which originated in 1987 at Waterloo Regional
Airport. It has been staged annually since 1994 and
moved to the Cattle Congress in 2007.
“This is the epitome of a gathering of the finest John

Deere restoration people in the country,” said O’Connor,
who also brought a 1960-vintage pull-type combine and
a 1960 grain cart to the show. “It doesn’t get any better.”
As for being obsessed, O’Connor said he and his fellow
Two-Cylinder Club members have heard that and
numerous other descriptions of their love of old Deere
machinery.

“I’ve heard it called a hobby. I’ve heard it called a
weakness. I’ve heard it called a disease. I’ve heard it
called a cult,” he said.

Every edition of the Expo seems to establish a character
all its own, and this year is no exception, said
Grundy Center resident Jack Cherry, organizer of the
event and editor of the Two-Cylinder Club’s magazine.

This year’s show may be notable for its collection of
unique — and non-green — Deere machines.

“We’re seeing tractors now that we’ve never seen
before,” he said.