Kailuna Enterprises

In 1926, when only the best would do, Kansas City ordered a small fleet of Ahrens-Fox fire engines. Fire engines in that era were a source of pride for any city, and these were the finest, most expensive fire engines ever conceived or built, magnificent pieces of functional art, never to be duplicated. At his own fire engine museum in Estes Park Colorado, volunteer fireman Doug Klink and a small group of volunteer experts restore the last Kansas City Ahrens-Fox back to operating, showroom...

At Avalon Rail in Wisconsin, we follow the intricate, multi-million dollar restoration of one of the world's rarest railroad cars. During the Depression of 1911, when the West was expanding at a rapid rate, bringing fingerling fish out West from the East Coast and Midwest to stock lakes and streams as food sources was a huge business. Railroad cars were designed with tanks to carry the small fish, and elegant Victorian accommodations for the crews delivering them to the waterways. The...

In our premier episode, we follow Bob McNeil's four year restoration of the 136' "CANGARDA", the last American steam yacht. Built in 1901, and salvaged 103 years later from a mud flat in Boston Harbor. Few were willing to even conceive of saving her, with pieces scattered up and down the East Coast, Bob McNeil and the colorful and knowledgeable crew of Rutherford's Boat Shop in San Francisco pull off the most important yacht restoration in American history -- so far. Old construction...

Once again, host Bob McNeil joins with yacht restoration expert Jeff Rutherford to tackle a huge project with a colorful past, the 135 foot wooden schooner, quot;Coronet". Built in 1885 for American industrialist Rufus T. Bush, during her first five years CORONET earned fame as a trans-Atlantic race winner and circumnavigated the globe as one of the first U.S.-registered yachts to round Cape Horn. Her design is credited with changing U.S. commercial ship standards forever. All the pieces...

As often happens in large, important restorations, things can take surprising turns. In this fascinating and beautiful-to-watch episode, what begins as the restoration of one carousel, soon becomes the story of 2 painstaking restorations. From the turn-of-the-century until today, there has been one carousel that has stood out from all of the rest--The Ilions Supreme Carousel. It is the ultimate creation of the renowned master carver, Marcus Charles Ilions. But as restoration work began on The...

At the Vintage Wings Museum in Ottawa, Canada, a priceless spy plane from World War II is restored by first-time restorers, young and old. Under the direction of experts, we are with them as they "learn as they go". The Lysander will be one of only 4 remaining in the world, and as with all "ULTIMATE RESTORATIONS", is restored to fly again. For Canada and England, this plane represents the best of their ingenuity and courage: its unique landing and take-off capabilities...

It was 1929 in Atlantic City. Under his expansive reign over the city, gangster "Knucky" Johnson set about construction of one of the largest convention halls in the ountry. But it wasn't the hall itself that was the prize. It was being constructed, literally, around what was to be the world's largest theater pipe organ. Johnson came and went, but construction continued on into the early years of the depression. Boardwalk Hall was completed, and the great Midmer Losh organ, with over 34,000...

The Sierra #3 is possibly the most famous steam locomotive in the world. She has been in continuous service at the Jamestown Railroad in Northern California since 1906, surviving a wreck in the '20s, and the scrap yard during World War II. After the war, and with the advent of diesel locomotives, her fate seemed sealed. But Hollywood came to her rescue, and she was featured in hundreds of films and television shows, with stars such as Gary Cooper in "High Noon", and Clint...