Sandstone Heritage Trust - News
HTN 82 - Oliver Kragkop - DEMING “OIL-RITE” DEEP-WELL PUMP
| "Interesting dialogue regarding an old plough lying at Sandstone Estates. Herewith the full story." | |
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Some time ago, a request was sent out from Sandstone Heritage Trust to Peter Love, Editor of Tractor & Machinery Magazine: From: Joanne West Sent: 28 February 2006 15:59 To: Peter Love Subject: 2-FURROW OLIVER PLOUGH Dear Peter, Your knowledge knows no bounds in the vintage agricultural field. However, here is a puzzle for you. Attached is a 2-furrow plough manufactured by Oliver. The reference in the picture Tugela is obviously South African because we have a Tugela River in Natal. GA Fichardt & Co. is obviously somebody who manufactured under licence. Anyway, the question here is what is the contraption on the top of the 2-furrow Oliver plough? There is a motion that when you turn the wheel lifts a bar in front with the same type of motion as a steam engine. This is not for publication, I just wondered if it rang a bell with you? Best regards, Wilfred E. Mole |
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I then wrote in and said: Hello Wilf, Did Peter Love ever come back to you about the contraption on the Oliver Plough? The penny dropped when I noticed the second hole on the bull gear under Baas' hand. That's an alternate stroke setting for a different pump cylinder. Pump cylinder? Yes, as in borehole pump! It's an open gear Kragkop, which I presume has been put there to weigh the plough down! Here is a pic of my (almost unused) Malcomess kragkop: |
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You unfortunately can't see but this can be set to 4 (3?) different strokes, as the contemporary advertisement says: |
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| I've seen all kinds of scrap used here in our gravelly soils (?) OK, ground (!), to help penetration. In fact my restored Deming Oil-Rite kragkop was found wired onto a Ghrop (cultivator) on a farm near here. I gave the farmer some tractor wheel weights in exchange! Regards Andy This pump (right) features the patented “Oil-Rite” system of lubrication, where oil is trapped between the teeth of the pinion and main gear, and is forced up to the top of the pump, where it lubricates the small-end bearing, and slide. It is shown operating a dummy-pump, which would have been positioned at the bottom of the borehole, connected by a series of rods. The pump did service for many years as a weight on a spring tine cultivator (ghrop), on the farm Weltevreden, Elgin, by Mr Patrick Murray, until swopped for more suitable weights. Restored by Andy Selfe. Restoration consisted only of freeing off seized shafts, a good clean, paint, the making up of the dummy pump, and mounting over a suitable tank for display purposes. |
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Then I noticed something else: The picture isn't clear as to what the con-rods are doing towards the front of the plough. But as I said it was that extra hole in the bullgear that did it. Now looking a bit closer that angled-up bar below Arno's left hand clinches it. That is the bracket that the diagonal stay-rod passes through. |
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| The angled-up bracket on my Malcomess Kragkop, which in this case is cast, the one on the Oliver plough is a bent-up steel plate. I have turned the bullgear so that the holes are visible for alternate pump strokes: | |
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| Now the fun will be to identify the kragkop on the Oliver plough, for instance Dusty Erickson found this one in Old Mexico recently (minus conrods), and it is of a different make: In this case, the angled-up bracket is part of the casting. Clearly visible are three holes for different strokes. Are there any casting marks of other identifying marks of the one at Sandstone? Regards Andy |
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