A Ferguson Tractor 150 ft up! The organisers of the 2003 Dromara Vintage show cleverly arranged to make it easy for visitors to find the show arena by slinging a "Grey Fergie" (Ferguson Tractor) 150 feet up in the air. Coming in from north, south, east or west all you had to do was head for the Fergie. The fact that the event was held on what was probably the hottest day of the year so far made it a perfect family day out. The show was bigger than ever before with many more types of exhibits, from a double decker London Bus to the beautiful E-Type Jaguar seen here below.

A miniature Showman's Engine, as beautiful in detail as the real thing

When it comes down to talking about the sort of folk who collect vintage machinery you soon realise they're from all walks of life - from architects and bakers to vicars and vets they all love getting their hands on the oily bits and have their pockets stuffed with cotton waste. We all benefit from their enthusiasm because they're prepared to turn out in all sorts of places - in weather usually much worse than this - to show off their treasures both full sized and, as in our picture above, the miniature versions too.

A superb example of an early E-Type Jaguar

The legendary Jaguar E-Type was an instant classic from the day in 1961 it was launched at the Geneva Motor Show. In 1950 Jaguar launched first the C-Type (C=competition) and four years later emerged the D-Type, exclusively a racing car.which was a success. The E-type was built on that success. It is reputed to be the first production road car to pass the 150mph mark and featured disc brakes on all four wheels, an exotic touch then only found on Formula 1 race cars. Production lasted until 1975 with orders outpacing production but few people minded waiting! In all about 74,000 cars were sold with a basic price of £1830 (the equivalent of @£65,000 today). Many enthusiasts believe it was the best 'Jag' ever made. Some even hold the opinion that it's still the best sports car ever!