Schultz Oliver Tractor Story

Let someone ask a simple question of me and I turn it into a golden opportunity for one of my long winded stories.
Our using 5 1850 Ollie's around here I gave them all names so we'd all know which one was being talked about in use or in need. So, bare with me while I search the cobwebs of my mind, what little of it I still retain. (grin) The first 1850 Ollie , an only gasser, Bro’ had purchased used a many a year ago about the end of the Ollie Corp. No need for this one’s need a sophisticated name.
Along about the yr 2000 the accident which nearly devastated all our lives Bro’ started looking at and buying new machines so that he could better play in his 600 acre Shorthorn country sand box. These machines included a JCB side entry skid-steer so that he may feed his own animals, A Hesston rotary-mower-conditioner eliminating any possibility of hay cutting plugs, and the last two machines to compliment each other a 554 Vermeer silage baler to be used in conjunction with an Anderson hay bale wrapper to preserve 45% moisture contented hay crops. These crops the likes of An alfalfa cut harvested in a two day weather letting window (rainy seasons). Harvesting corn-stover wrapping it immediately (and early) the stalks still containing enough moisture making this crop moist and tender for deeper winter feeds. Aother very important crop preserving is the planting and preserving Sudex. (a combination high bred sudan grass and sorghum plants) All this crop is wrapped regardless the weather for tender fresh like keeping for fresh winter feeding. The stover and sudex wrapped tight air tight go through a 90 day pickling process (fermentation).
About 2001 potential so-in-law Dave came along with his 1850 diesel. What a help it was. One great big colossal difference in this tractor over alll the others was in it’s economy. I carried fuels in five gallon cans in those days. Lawd, it seemed likeall I ever did was carry and tilt on end can after can of gasoline for the 1850 gasser. What a fuel thirsty iron pig engined. It was almost rare the 1850 Oliver ever needed supplemental a-field fuel feeding. I almost insisted we needed another 90 hp tractor. Brother and Dave drove to Indiana to look at one, purchased it and had it delivered home. OUCH! First this it needed (water in the oil/oil in the water) was an engine overhaul. Took near a year before that overhaul was finished right. Good runner now capable starting in any weather. This 1850 was easily named the Indy to differentiate it from the other two.
A couple more years passed. Changing tractor on implements as needed or tractor break downs I suggested we could use another 90 hp tractor. Besides, that year I was fortunate enough to have kept Bro’ and Dave totally busy fixing the tractors I had lined up in front of the shop, five at one time. I was using one odd running 4010 JD on all the implements. My concerned developed over my aging slowen ability to always quickly get out of the way anymore. What if one of those heavy tongued implements should ever fall on me. My mind was bothered. The following Winter a tractor dealer knowing Bro’ called and informed Bro’ he’d just gotten in an 1850, he’d make him a deal on it, needing more fixing than he could afford to ever put into it for a marketable out priced sale. We went and seen it. It was a mess. Whatever we looked at it was seriously flubbed up. Don’t ask me for a descriptive word to make my meaning any clearer! Parts were missing everywhere. It had what looked like a cab on it. Bro’ liked that if we could get all of it. Personally I could do without it. Somewhere deep in the bowels of this tractor the shifting linkage was badly broken. It was a wonder the tractor could be shifted into any gear. The repair shaded me. But, this tractor had threee things going for it. The engine was a runner excellently, It had a hi-low-hydra-drive, and it sported a fine pair of fender fuel tanks. Oh boy, they could be had from almost anywhere for $75.00/pr.
It followed us home. We took it apart over the winter, so far apart if it had had intestines we could have held them in our hands. That tractor that far down we looked at everything: PTO, bull gears, ‘twas time to fix leaks. New seals and gaskets arriving near daily we replaced everything. Of all the missing parts we only additionally got the broken up cab doors. Thus remembering from where it had come in the condition it came home with us we call it the Schultz tractor not necessarily in the fondest memory for what the previous owner had done to it. This 1850 Oliver is perfect operator protected power source for the Hesston 1345 mower-conditioner.
The last two Ollie’s, word had come to us a man named Leland getting out of farming had three Ollie’s two of them he wanted to sell. We went and looked. They were in relatively good shape. Far-far better than the first two. The first one put into use was the farmer’s favorite is still a working Leland project fixen in progress, and was respectfully named Leland. The other one sat around here three winters my starting it occasionally. We finally had gotten to it. This tractor had had the Hydra-drive changed over to a three speed. Needing tires, Bro’ found a pair over sized rice tires in his travels. New rims, wheels, and a bucket of hardware later, the tires so high, this last one is the Tall Ollie. This tractor perfectly goes with the Vermeer 554 baler this tractor’s added skinny tire height has given the 554 wider (up’n’down) crop intake adjustment.
So two of our Ollie’s have their permanent places in front of their respective implements. While Still have to change tractors and implements around on a weekly, monthly, or seasonal basis those fearful change occasions have been cut more than half into.
“Rainbows.”
Fernan
PS: Me thinks this the first installment for two more relative farm tractor stories. The JD’s and then all the rest.