Steam & Excursion > Tractor girl brightens the morning at Strasburg w/#611

A young lady drove her antique tractor through the overpass near Leaman Place and through a field during several runbys during Pete Lerro's morning photo charter.
She even stuck it out during the 1 rain shower and intermittent drips that plagued our last 90 minutes out on the line.

With low clouds, some vigorous chilly breezes, and eventually some heavy showers, it was a tough  photography day for Pete's charters today.

Pete Lerro chats up our heroine before runbys start
A grab shot with #611
Out from under the overpass with #611

 

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Fantastic!  I have a friend that collects Oliver tractors.

Hand-held vid of #382 and train passing over the young lady and her antique tractor
1 more of #611 and the tractor heading for the back 40

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Nice shots.  I like the J, but it just seems out of character with the vintage train.

Tominde Wrote:
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> Nice shots.  I like the J, but it just seems out
> of character with the vintage train.
I would have preferred the steel freight cars up front for a better look behind #611, there was about 4 there, or I would have put the wooden cars behind #382 to make a longer mixed train, but what do I know?

Um, she can drive my vintage tractor any day.......

Yes the 611 is out of place here, but where are they ever going to let her run, at speed? 

We did the same thing on a Dave Rodger's PM 1225 charter in Michigan a few years back. A young woman with a vintage tractor turned up. She loved tractors the way we love trains. So she was eager to participate. Only problem. She was wearing a modern sweat shirt. So one of the Britt's' yelled "take off your top." She quickly obliged. Of course with today's over the top PC culture, someone might take offence and shame the person who suggested the clothing change.

andersonb109 Wrote:
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> We did the same thing on a Dave Rodger's PM 1225
> charter in Michigan a few years back. A young
> woman with a vintage tractor turned up. She loved
> tractors the way we love trains. So she was eager
> to participate. Only problem. She was wearing a
> modern sweat shirt. So one of the Britt's' yelled
> "take off your top." She quickly obliged. Of
> course with today's over the top PC culture,
> someone might take offence and shame the person
> who suggested the clothing change.

Kind of makes you nostalgic for the 1970.s.

Pete sure knows how to add "human interest" to his photo shoots.

Martin

That's as purdy as a redhead on a green tractor.

Tominde Wrote:
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> Nice shots.  I like the J, but it just seems out
> of character with the vintage train.

Hopefully she didn't pull out her smart phone to check emails or messages during the photo shoot.

never saw that brand of tractor  before

dan Wrote:
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> never saw that brand of tractor  before
Neither did I, but after some very basic research, these tractors are considered quite collectable and seem to have a fan base comparable to Alco diesels or Shay locos.
This model is a Model 60 Rowcrop, a medium-duty tractor of almost 20hp. They were built from 1940-48, and the streamlined front end was introduced in 1937 on a previous model. Technologically, this is the same era as the 611.
Oliver Tractors were started in 1930 with a merger of 4 smaller farm equipment companies, the biggest plants were in South Bend,Ind.,and Charles City,IA.
Became part of White Motor Co. in 1960, by the mid-70s the Oliver name was phased out, and White gave up farm tractors by 1985.
The pic shows a 1944 Model 60 Rowcrop.

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Cumbresfan Wrote:
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> Tominde Wrote:
> -------------------------------------------------------
> > Nice shots.  I like the J, but it just seems out of character with the vintage train.
> Hopefully she didn't pull out her smart phone to check emails or messages during the photo shoot.
If she did, it was out of our view.  In my second pic, she appears to be checking her nails...
Nope, many of the tractors, as well as the autos and trucks of this era before power steering, had a knob on the steering wheel ring to aid in making large (multiple revolutions of the steering wheel) steering inputs.  In the second photo she clearly has her left hand wrapped around that knob.

Tractor?? I never even met her!!
...But seriously folks...
A Tractorgirl Tuesday tradition on TO would be a welcome thing.

lnrr1066 Wrote:
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> Nope, many of the tractors, as well as the autos
> and trucks of this era before power steering, had
> a knob on the steering wheel ring to aid in making
> large (multiple revolutions of the steering wheel)
> steering inputs.  In the second photo she clearly
> has her left hand wrapped around that knob.

I always heard them referred to as "suicide knobs".  When I worked on a golf course in high school we had them on the tractors and Cushmans.

We called 'em necker knobs, came on real handy on dates.

 

warren1977 Wrote:
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> dan Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > never saw that brand of tractor  before
> Neither did I, but after some very basic research,
> these tractors are considered quite collectable
> and seem to have a fan base comparable to Alco
> diesels or Shay locos.
> This model is a Model 60 Rowcrop, a medium-duty
> tractor of almost 20hp. They were built from
> 1940-48, and the streamlined front end was
> introduced in 1937 on a previous model.
> Technologically, this is the same era as the 611.
> Oliver Tractors were started in 1930 with a merger
> of 4 smaller farm equipment companies, the biggest
> plants were in South Bend,Ind.,and Charles
> City,IA.
> Became part of White Motor Co. in 1960, by the
> mid-70s the Oliver name was phased out, and White
> gave up farm tractors by 1985.
> The pic shows a 1944 Model 60 Rowcrop.

Oliver tractors are STILL hugely popular in Indiana, with many farmers claiming they were the best tractors ever built, and still using them in secondary roles.  I have a first cousin that gave his first born son the middle name of Oliver for the tractors, and when his younger brother got married a couple of years ago, the wedding party rode from the church to the reception in a farm wagon pulled by a restored Oliver.  Here are a few of the later models they made that I have photographed at local tractor shows.  The site of the Oliver plant in South Bend has been memorialized, (major rail customer) and the Beautiful Oliver Mansion has been preserved and is open to tours.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/07/19 18:54 by junctiontower.

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Fascinating about the Oliver tractors---did they build their own engines, or use another builder's (Deere, IH, Case, etc.)?

Cole42 Wrote:
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> I always heard them referred to as "suicide
> knobs".  When I worked on a golf course in high
> school we had them on the tractors and Cushmans.

When I was in high school, I worked at a place that had a WWII era forklift ... with one of these knobs clamped onto the wheel. I was going so fast, and spun that wheel so quickly with the knob ... that I rolled the forklift onto its side. If I wasn't able to jump clear ... then maybe, yea, "suicide knob."  lol

Anyway, really like those photos! Trains and tractors.

Jim Lee
Lake Hopatcong, NJ



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 10/08/19 11:07 by Bucyrus-Erie.