Core77

The Model A made its debut in 1949. The rest of the fleet was numbered, in order. Sonja Henie took Nos. 2 and 3 for her ice show. No. 9,056, almost complete, is headed to a rink in Monterrey, Mexico.

"It's a small, family-owned business," Mr. Zamboni said. "It's got a name, but it's sure got a small niche in a small industry when you get down to it."

The Zamboni ON THE COVER of today's nytimes. Image above is the original contraption from the Times' nice slideshow.