Sculptor Finds Healthy Market For Farm Art

Sculptor Finds Healthy Market For Farm Art FARM HOME Miscellaneous Dick Cooley makes one-of-a-kind tractors combines and other farm equipment with raw materials he finds at flea markets salvage yards and auto repair dumpsters among other places I recently had a guy give me some old shut-off valves for faucets says Cooley They make great rear tractor wheels Where most of us see junk Cooley sees a use Old sprockets make great rear wheels; a small gas tank from an old lawn mower becomes a perfect combine body; an oil can spout becomes a grain auger; cheese grating cylinders from a food processor become wheels; sickle guards become corn heads; and a pliers with a soup spoon welded to one arm and the other arm welded to the back of a tractor becomes a backhoe One of Cooley s favorite parts to work with is old spark plugs He uses as many as 5 000 a year on his creations They show up in almost every tractor or combine cab and on horses and motorcycles To the viewer s eye they re instantly transformed into an operator or rider often sitting in an electrical outlet box that serves as a cab Sometimes I ll put a small one in front of a larger one like a child sitting in a lap says Cooley The glass portion also makes great cylinders on an engine Cooley s creations range in price from $45 to $90 He notes that customers often want either red or green equipment to match their favorite brand He keeps cans of spray paint handy to fill that need If someone has a favorite piece of equipment they would like me to make they can send a picture says Cooley If they aren t satisfied just mail it back Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Dick Cooley 5637 Peters Drive West Bend Wis 53095 ph 262 338-1618; sparkplugguy@yahoo com; www sparkplugguy com

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