A FATHER and son team plan to restore a vintage tractor, paint it pink, and auction it to raise money for Cancer Research UK.
Tobias Daniels, aged 36, works at Wells Blue School as Deputy Site Manager. He attended the school as a student, growing up in St Thomas Street where his mother, author Juliet Faith, still lives.
He and his son Oscar, aged 16, started their tractor restoration project Father & Son Tractors as a family hobby in 2021. Oscar is studying to be an engineer, and has his heart set on an apprenticeship at Rolls Royce.
Working on the tractors with his father is a good way to gain experience, and learn on the job. Oscar suggested starting a YouTube channel, and Instagram account – and the project has hundreds of subscribers, with the quirky upbeat videos attracting thousands of views.
Father & Son Tractors now has an official sponsor, Agriline, and receives donations from businesses nationwide including Ron Greet, Johnstones Paints and DMH Tractors.
So far, the duo have fixed up a number of vintage Ferguson tractors. A highlight was winning a rosette at last year’s Mid-Somerset Show for fully restoring, to working condition, a grey 1950s Ferguson TED-20, using all original parts, right down to the bolts.
Tobias has lost some family members to cancer, and decided to fundraise the only way he knew how. He said: “I’m not great at running, and didn’t fancy sitting in a tub of baked beans. I do know my tractors though, so I reached out to breakers, and was kindly donated a 1947 TE-20 Continental, for free. Once this beauty is restored to her full glory, and painted a lovely pink, for Cancer Research UK, it’ll be auctioned off, with all the proceeds directly helping the charity and ultimately saving lives.”
Tobias and Oscar are running a ‘Guess the tractor’s name’ competition in partnership with The Art Bank Cafe, in Shepton Mallet, where they live. They are also planning to attend tractor shows, or local events, collecting with a Cancer Research UK bucket.
Donations can be made online at GoFundMe via the link: gofund.me/5cbaa355