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Chevy V-8 Powers Oliver Tractor
"Oliver is tradition in my family and was the tractor of choice for my father, grandfather, uncles and cousins. We worked on our own equipment," says Steve Laue. "I always dreamed of putting more horespower into an Oliver tractor so, years later, when I found an Oliver 1950T with a blown engine, I knew it was the perfe
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Chevy V-8 Powers Oliver Tractor REPOWERED EQUIPMENT Repowered Equipment 27-6-37 "Oliver is tradition in my family and was the tractor of choice for my father, grandfather, uncles and cousins. We worked on our own equipment," says Steve Laue. "I always dreamed of putting more horespower into an Oliver tractor so, years later, when I found an Oliver 1950T with a blown engine, I knew it was the perfect candidate for a transplant."
Dropping a 454 cu. in. Chevy engine into an old tractor took a lot of modification. "The first step was trading the long axles and housings out of the 1950T for those out of an Oliver 1755, which narrowed the tractor by 18 in. A 6 1/2 by 19-in. section was removed from the frame, reversed and welded back into place, making room for the starter and oil filter," says Laue.
"A new center plate was fabricated to mate the new engine to the Oliver bell housing and the over-under drive. The flywheel was also machined for the Chevy crankshaft. The hydrostatic steering mechanism was taken from an 1855 Oliver and the new grill belonged to a 1955. I also custom built the radiator and set it back 5 1/4 in. from the previous location," notes Laue. The headers on the engine were built from a Speedway Motors kit.
Laue had help and encouragement from his wife as well. "The 23.1 by 34-in. tires for the rear and the 11L-15s on the front were a gift from my wife Chris on my 50th birthday," he says. In order to make the tires fit, the rear rims had to be split and have a 4-in. spacer welded in.
"The final touch was updating the lettering to read æ1950 L/E.' The æL/E' stands for Limited Edition," Laue notes.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Steve Laue, 10965 Lookout Drive, Burlington, Iowa 52601 (ph 319 754-8430).
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