Oliver 1855 update

This winter has not been a good one for working on old tractors.  Cliff's been itching to start painting some of the parts of his Ollie ever since he bought her, but it was not to be; we just couldn't get a break from the cold, rain, and humidity.  Today, finally, he got a perfect day for painting.  It started out cool, but warmed up rapidly.  The wind wasn't a problem, for once.  

This is the gas tank, which did not get painted today; once Cliff got it sand-blasted, he found a couple of tiny leaks that will need to be fixed.  

The parts were hung with care in front of the shop. 

Cliff once had a scary incident as the result of breathing paint fumes, so he's careful now to keep his home-made breathing device in place.  

Here he's moving a big ole tire back inside, after painting the wheel.  The whole thing outweighs him by a lot, and it makes me nervous to watch him moving it around.  
I convinced Cliff to take a vacation day today so he wouldn't be crowded for time.  He only works until midnight each night this week, since everybody has Good Friday off.  We might even get a motorcycle ride in before the big winds come in Wednesday.