The shop

Currently at Aldrich we concentrate on antique engines. Our projects arrive from Connecticut, New England, New York, New Jersey and even further away. We work on automotive, light industrial, truck, heavy equipment (bulldozers, etc.), tractors, marine, and motorcycle engines — bulb head, over head, flat head, “T” head, and “F” head.

Our workshop is 1,700 square feet over two floors, allowing us to do the work under one roof. That’s important because once your engine has been broken down and the more those individual parts travel the higher the likelihood of something becoming lost. It is my personal policy to do as much work in house as possible and to send out only when necessary.

Every machine but one in the shop is American‑made, most of them from within 50 or 100 miles of the shop in the old machinery centers of Springfield, Massachusetts, and Hartford, Connecticut. Little of the equipment dates to later than the Sixties; a few pieces are 1940s or 1930s. He’d much rather restore a quality old piece of machinery than find a new one, and he’s proud to be able to tell people that he uses the same equipment on their cars that would have been used when they were repaired in the day.

“Many people will tell you babbitt is a science. I will tell you it’s an art.”