Wisconsin Family Made Colorful Snow Tractor

Wisconsin Family made Colorful Snow Tractor FARM HOME Novelty Items 17-2-20 People can't believe their eyes when they see this colorful "snow tractor" made by Wisconsin farmer Joe Tiry and his family. They used a chain saw and spray paint to complete the icy sculpture together last December in their front yard. The snow tractor is built in perfect scale to an old 1942 Case VAC tractor and painted black and orange just like the real thing. It's "driven" by a large cow with one foot on the clutch pedal and another up in the air to wave to passersby. "We just did it to have fun," says Tiry, a dairyman and former shop teacher. "After we finished it, we had a steady stream of people driving in, especially at night when we put a spotlight on the tractor. The tractor is complete with a starter motor, carburetor, exhaust manifold, and air cleaner. It looks so real that we even overheard one couple arguing whether or not it was real. The Case VAC was the tractor I learned to drive on. I wanted to build it as close to scale as possible. I went to an implement dealer three Sundays in a row after church to take measurements. It's built exactly to scale except that the hood is about 3/4 in. too low." Snow sculptures have become a family tradition on the Tiry farm. They started with simple snowmen a couple years ago, then built a cow with an oversize nose standing by a large milk carton. He uses a front-end loader to pile up snow which his children help wet down with a hose to give the snow a harder surface that can be more easily carved with intricate details. It also lengthens the life of the sculpture. The children also help with the finishing touches and with painting. He used a chain saw to cut the snow into a rectangular block with flat walls, then used a corn knife to carve a pattern of the tractor onto the block before using the chain saw to finish the job. He and his children used oil-based spray paint to color the tractor. They painted the tires and steering wheel black, as well as the starter motor, carburetor, exhaust manifold, and air cleaner. The engine is shaded brown to help make the carburetor stand out. "All together we used three cans of black paint, five cans of orange paint, and one can of blue paint for the cow's eyes," says Tiry." Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Joe Tiry, Rt. 1, Stanley, Wis. 54768 (ph 715 644-2538).

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