Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/1545857
In April, Luke Juoni set a goal to finish restoring an Allis- Chalmers "C" in time to showcase it just a couple months later at the Wisconsin State FFA Convention this June. "This was a crazy time period," said his stepdad, David Lutz, as Luke, who will be a senior this fall at Ashland High School, got right down to the business at hand, tearing down the tractor, sandblasting and painting it, then reassembling it -- all in five weeks. Luke completed his goal, proudly displaying the completed "C" last month in Madison, Wis. This wasn't Luke's first A-C restoration project. He received a CA for his 13th birthday. That same year for Christmas, he received the "C" that he restored for this year's FFA convention. This tractor came from Balsam Lake, Wis., and the day they went to get it, the weather was bitterly cold with a windchill of -30. The owner had to hand- crank the tractor to get it running. Luke brought the "C" for antique tractor shows and tractor pulls before deciding last year to restore it as an FFA project. He thought that he had until this fall to get it done but then set a new deadline for himself of June 13. Luke, who lives on a hobby farm near Saxon, Wis., owns several tractors of a variety of brands with his stepdad. Among their A-C's are a couple C's, a CA, a WD and a WD45 that Luke currently is working on in the shop. Lutz said the "C" is the fastest restoration project Luke has undertaken, and he already hunting for his next FFA restoration project -- a "G." He'd also like to get a group restoration project going with his FFA chapter. A member of two antique tractor groups – Northern Aged Iron and Lake Superior Tired Iron – Luke also enjoys tractor-pulling and is interested in trying that with steel wheels. He's exploring career interests in greenhouse management, tissue culturing and diesel mechanics. Quick turnaround Teen completes 'C' restoration in just a few weeks By Old Allis News staff 28 OLD ALLIS NEWS