Oliver Restored

Steve Ash

Member
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2,437
Location
Michigan
No...not another Oliver lathe restoration at the Ashman garage...this one is a Oliver 60 Standard tractor we just got moved into the new shop.

Forgot to tighten the oil pressure gauge nut and it leaked a bit on the floor.
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Dad brought it home a couple of years ago in this shape, it ran but needed lots of work.
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This is the worst paint job I have ever done on our restorations, the hood was made out of aluminum and the paint either didn't lay down right or I just plain can't paint on aluminum.

It also should be a deeper shade of red but when dad picked out the paint he went with this shade and he's the boss.

He also won't let me repaint it, says it is good enough. :huh::dunno:
 
Making me 'red' with envy. ;)
Great looking tractor.
BTW, I notice in original condition the wheels are yellow. You restored with red. Wassup? Getting ready to do a Massey-Harris next. :D
 
BTW, I notice in original condition the wheels are yellow. You restored with red. Wassup? Getting ready to do a Massey-Harris next. :D

Ya never know what we'll drag home next. Actually the correct color rims for the Oliver is red, the other rims in the picture were not the originals in size or color.
 
Steve, did you pre-treat the aluminum with a chromium based product (chromiun chromate or chromium phosphate) before priming and painting? I've found that aluminum is just never cooperative without some sort of metal treatment first. We also had success with zinc chromate and zinc phosphate pre-treatments at my dads shops. Just wondering.................

I found a father and son team that have a small mill and when I drove into their yard I saw a good sized (top of hood was approx. 6') John Deere parked off to the side and I immediately thought of you. :D The dad still cuts and bales hay with it they told me and there were fresh bales of hay in the field right behind the mill to prove it. :D

Very nice looking tractors BTW!
 
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No Mark I didn't do any thing different than if it were a regular metal like I've done on the other tractors. I guess that could have been the problem. I'll remember that if I run into an aluminum metal hood again.

Thanks
 
Steve, for future reference when painting aluminum, a very small amount of roughup with an ROS to knock the glaze, and then prime with Zinc Chromate, (which is used extensively on aircraft for standard enamels), or another even better primer made in England, that I just cannot remember the name of, and protects for corrosion even better (and is ALMOST impossible to strip off), Orrrrrrr......if you are going to use one of the high dollar epoxy type paints then their own brand of "Required Primer for aluminum" is an absolute must.

Also, a special etching wash can be used instead of the ROS sanding for really slick finishes.
 
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Steve,

A very nice looking machine. Is your dad still actively restoring? What machine would he like to restore that he hasn't done yet?

Regards,

Randy
 
Steve,

A very nice looking machine. Is your dad still actively restoring? What machine would he like to restore that he hasn't done yet?

Regards,

Randy

Yep at 82 he is still going strong. We just brought this home
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It is a small replica of a Rumley Oil Pull which my grandpas used to use in the '30's to thresh grain and beans with. It is just a bit bigger than a lawn mower and uses a hit and miss engine for power.

The one he wants to do next if we can get it in our greedy little hands is My Grandpas Farmall M. It was sold when grandpa died and we just recently found where it is and trying to buy it from the current owner. It isn't that it is a great collectible it is just that it used to belong to Grandpa.

We do have one of my Grandpas tractors and have restored it twice since 1969 ( yeah I was little but I remember helpin)it is a 1926 Huber.
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I just received confirmation this morning that 2 of our tractors will be featured in a book coming out in 2008. It is a book about rusted neglected farm tractors brought back to new condition. Kind of excited to see our story and tractors in print.

Dad gets most of the credit though, my sons and I help him when we can but he is the one who sticks with it till they are done.
 
Here is one of ours in the "before" condition as we found it. Missing the piston and cylinder head.
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And this is the same tractor finished.

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I will be taking this one in two weeks to a tractor show that is featuring John Deere.
 
Where is the tractor show?

I went to a tractor show up north several years ago put on by a club named the Flywheelers. Great time. My wife thought at first the Tractor Parade was going to be a bore. But the announcer did a great job of discussing the heritige of the machine and the owners effort in restoration.

Where is the one your going to?
 
Where is the one your going to?

Martin, I am going to the Clarksville Steam and Gas Engine show with this one next weekend. The show is in Clarksville, I see you are a Michigander so the best way to tell you would be a little west and south of Ionia, or very close to Lake Odessa.

See ya there? :wave:
 
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