Oliver 500's done

rrlund

Well-known Member
As done as it's gonna get anyway. I'm not proud of that grill at all. I sure wish somebody who had the skills to do it right would have straightened it,but I did what I could. The drawbar's home made,and so are the seat cushions. I'll get the right cushions when I find a set and keep looking for a drawbar. It's been a long haul getting that thing resurrected from the dead.
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(quoted from post at 23:02:50 07/23/17) As done as it's gonna get anyway. I'm not proud of that grill at all. I sure wish somebody who had the skills to do it right would have straightened it,but I did what I could. The drawbar's home made,and so are the seat cushions. I'll get the right cushions when I find a set and keep looking for a drawbar. It's been a long haul getting that thing resurrected from the dead.
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Looks great...a lot of hard work and time to get it like that

We had an Oliver 1250 for awhile in the late 70's...that was when they were Fiat - Oliver
 
The seat looks really close to the one on an early Massey 50 & 65. Cushions are available for the Massey seats on YT, but might not be the right color.
 
Ya,the ones for the Masseys are gray. These were black originally. Jim Irwin restored one. He bought the wrong color cushions and took them to an upholstery shop and had them recovered with green with white piping. That one looks fantastic.
 
Looks doubtful. I don't think we'll be around that weekend. It's going to McBride along with the Super 55 for comparison July 28 and 29,then we plan to have both at the Blanchard Show the weekend after Oakley.
 
Ya,these predate the Fiat builts. These were made in England. There were only 2000 built total,gas and diesel combined. They were sold from late 60 to May of 63. That's when they went to Fiat for their imported utilities.
 
Looks great! I wouldn't worry about that grill, it should be proud that it worked for a living.
 
Google Speer Cushions, they will make you some nice cushions, in an assortment of colors.
They have done very well by me. I'm expecting a delivery from them this coming week for the Case dozer that I am bringing back to life after a fire.
Loren
 
Here's what I had to work with when I found it out behind a mobile home in the middle of nowhere.
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I'll have to do that. A local parts jockey that goes to the shows said he can order one for me,but the price will be extra for a special order. Best I do an end run around him.
 
Nice! That will be a tractor where people will say "I've never seen one of those before."
 
Looks good. Even if it is not perfect, you did it yourself. I have seen tractors with $5000 paint jobs that did not impress me as they hired it all done. Tom
 
I can see why my brother stopped restoring cars and trucks. He said he'll only buy ones that are already done so he doesn't know where the flaws are. When you do one yourself you know every nut and bolt that's not right.
 
Randy,that looks good.I dislike paint and body work,so I respect those who can do it well.Are you going to use,or just show it?Mark.
 
Show it and pamper it. All of the bolts in it are British standard fine. They aren't standard coarse thread,standard fine thread or metric. If you loose one,you're dead in the water. You don't just run down to the hardware store and buy those.
 
Dang! ...And I thought Dick L's little foal took a good photo!! :shock:

Randy, AWESOME job!! You've certainly earned all the attention and atta-boy's that this little gem is gonna bring you in the years to come!! Too bad we can't hear it run from just a photo.
 
That Tractor never looked that nice even when new! Great job. Now, I got this old Massey that needs restoring;when could you fit it in..... Ben
 
I'm trying to get the wife busy with the sandblaster and sander so I can get her Super 55 done now. She's been wanting me to get it done. I thought this would motivate her,but maybe she did too much work on this one to want to get right after another one. There's a 70 that's been sitting in the corner of the toolshed for 15 years or so that needs to be finished too,but I'm about as tired of working them as the wife is. lol
 
If I said it was ugly would you sell it to me cheap? LOL

I'm sure you know I'm kidding. You and Kim did a great job!
Maybe we'll see you at Blanchard.
 
Nice! Looking forward to seeing it at McBride.

Going to start working with Duane's binder tomorrow. Got it off the trailer and assembled today. All I have to do tomorrow is put on canvasses, and twine. Ready to go.
 
Looks good to me from Northwest PA. Them little dings and scrapes are what make it yours they give a little character. It is and old machine it's no kt exactly right off the showroom floor.
 
That is on a level with the show tractors at the National Oliver Summer Show last month, completely restored. It looks absolutely great!
 
Don't fret about the grille to bad. DB tractors seem to be prone to having crooked noses.
 
Looks pretty nice. Those color Olivers look really slick to me. My Brother owned a Body Shop and he could really pound dents out. The trick is to not try to go too fast, but to just tap away in little increments. I don't have the patience. Maybe you will run across a better grill one of these days, but it seems like that tractor might not be too common, if I remember correctly. Nice job
 
I think it looks great, the grill just shows a little patina, It has not been a shed queen, it has worked for a living. Great to see it restored.
 
Thanks everybody. I guess I'll get used to the flaws. Especially after it sits in the tool shed and collects a little dust.

One thing I want to clarify on it,although the 500 diesel was for all intent and purposes a David Brown 850 with green paint,a grill insert and an Oliver serial number,the gas version was unique to Oliver. There were no DB 850 gassers built.
 
I would absolutely love to own one!
I'll have to stop up so you can show me a comparison between it and a S-55.
I'm still looking for a S-55 too, but not at current asking prices.
 
Looks Great Randy!!!!
Prolly look pretty good at the Half Century of Progress show at Rantoul, IL towards the end of August.
Yer phreind,
Jim
 
We'll have them side by side up to McBride this coming Friday and Saturday,at the park right in beautiful downtown. July 28 and 29.

Stop at the house anyway if you can't make it to the show.
 
The David Brown 850 was fitted with DB 4 cylinder diesel engines as standard. DB exported some to Oliver who sold it as the Oliver 500. But DB 850's & Oliver 500's were also available with the gasoline engine which had originally been fitted in the earlier model David Brown Cropmaster.

This article is about a guy in the US who bought a gasoline engined Oliver 500 new.

http://www.farmcollector.com/tractors/reviving-an-oliver-500
 
Ya,I've had that article saved to favorites for quite a while. Thanks for reposting it.
 

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