Newly restored NGG16A number 155 made its debut today at Sandstone hauling the Cherry Festival train with her older sister, NGG16 number 88, “Joanne”. Our gallery shows number 155 posing for a beauty shot and then with 88 on her first train since the early 2000s.

Although we completed the moves of the Sandstone assets from Bloemfontein a few weeks ago, one item remained there, steam crane 187. This was blocked in by some scrap material on  the tracks which was cleared and Mercor Transport brought through the crane  on Monday 8 November. Our gallery shows Crane 187 on arrival and ready for unloading.

The press in the Germiston area, courtesy of the Caxton Group and their reporter Charmaine Slater, has given us good coverage of our locomotive moves from Germiston and will be following up with further stories of the locomotive arrivals at Sandstone.
Click here to view the Bedfordview and Edenvale News and the Germiston City News in PDF format or click on the links below for the on line editions.

https://kemptonexpress.co.za/321774/final-goodbye-to-the-ladies/

https://bedfordviewedenvalenews.co.za/481385/locos-make-final-journey/

https://germistoncitynews.co.za/282126/all-aboard-one-final-time/

Sandstone has just completed a restoration of the Oliver 1950 tractor. Oliver Tractors came about from a merger of four companies in 1929 and continued to manufacture tractors until acquisition by the White Motor Company in 1960. The new company continued to manufacture tractors up to 1974 when the Oliver name was dropped. Interestingly we have a White M5 military vehicle from WW2 in the Sandstone collection.

FIAT tractors were also marketed under the Oliver name in North America during the mid-1970s, such as the Oliver 1465 tractor.

This model was designed as an agricultural tractor and mostly marketed as such in Oliver’s green and white colours. The industrial version was a wholly Oliver designed alternative, and contemporary photos show it in yellow with a heavy duty drawbar and no 3 point hitch, exactly as Sandstone’s example.

Interestingly for a model launched in 1964 it was available as a two and four wheel drive. The four wheel drive appears to be mechanical, although there are fleeting references to a hydrostatic front wheel assist option, much more common in the ‘60’s.

Our tractor expert, Chris Wilson, has examined a lot of photos and thinks Sandstone’s version was originally four wheel drive, but has been converted to two wheel drive, presumably due to a failure in the 4wd drive train.

Technical Data:

Manufactured in Charles City, Iowa, from 1964 t0 1967.  According to the serial number, 295-9203, Sandstone’s was manufactured in 1965.

Powered by a GM 3.5litre 4cyl 4-53 engine, giving 105Hp through the PTO.

The wheelbase of the 4wd, at 85”, is short for a tractor of this power, which probably reduced its traction and explains the massive ballasting on the rear wheels.   The weight, un-ballasted, was approximately 6 tons.

The transmission was 6 speed, with a partial power shift option, Hydra-Power, on each gear giving 12 speeds in total. In service many of the Hydra Power boxes were “locked up”, due to un-reliability.

Our photo gallery shows the Oliver as restored and on its first drive at Sandstone with a compaction roller.