TnAndy
Veteran Member
- Joined
- Aug 9, 2013
- Messages
- 1,993
- Location
- East Tennessee
- Tractor
- Yanmar LX410...IHI 35J excavator Woodmizer LT40
Bought this old (mid 50's) Oliver manure spreader for 300 bucks off local Craig's List ad about a year ago, and finally got it in the shop this fall for a restore. Forgot to take pic of the start, but it was a rust bucket. Original sheet metal floor was gone, had been patched with a couple layers of sheet metal over the years. The main cross supports were 'channel' sorta.....Oliver bent sheet metal to form chickenpoop 'channel'...it was rusted out of course....because it wasn't much to start with.
The main wheel/drag chain roller bearings had seized and wallowed out the metal they were mounted in....which I thought was 1/4" plate, but upon closer examination, turned out to be two pieces of 1/8" plate that had been welded on the edges to form 1/4".....you'd think the labor to weld it would have cost more than just buying 1/4" to start with ? I sandwiched two 12" square 1/4" plates back over that area, then drilled and remounted new bearings.
Basically, it was in sad shape !
So, after adding a LOT more metal to the frame, new flange bearings to the main shaft, and one of the 'flipper' shafts, a new floor out of 1" white oak, on REAL channel cross supports, I spent about $800 (including having the whole thing sandblasted), and maybe 75hrs, and this was the result:
(handles that pull the control rods down the side aren't mounted in this pic.....paint still wet)
The main wheel/drag chain roller bearings had seized and wallowed out the metal they were mounted in....which I thought was 1/4" plate, but upon closer examination, turned out to be two pieces of 1/8" plate that had been welded on the edges to form 1/4".....you'd think the labor to weld it would have cost more than just buying 1/4" to start with ? I sandwiched two 12" square 1/4" plates back over that area, then drilled and remounted new bearings.
Basically, it was in sad shape !
So, after adding a LOT more metal to the frame, new flange bearings to the main shaft, and one of the 'flipper' shafts, a new floor out of 1" white oak, on REAL channel cross supports, I spent about $800 (including having the whole thing sandblasted), and maybe 75hrs, and this was the result:
(handles that pull the control rods down the side aren't mounted in this pic.....paint still wet)