The Nuts and Bolts of His Passion: Restoring a John Deere 435

By Sara Jordan-Heintz
Published on January 11, 2019
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courtesy of Ricky Shilling
The national champion and his finished project. “This is my first year and I was not expecting this,” Ricky Shilling says. “I was just expecting to come up here and do my best.”

Inside a barn in Fayetteville, Texas, a small town halfway between Austin and Houston, Ricky Shilling spends his free time restoring antique tractors. At 16, he’s already accomplished at his craft.

In October 2018, Ricky was named grand champion of the Chevron-sponsored Delo Tractor Restoration Competition in Indianapolis, Indiana. He bested 11 of the country’s top high school-age tractor restoration enthusiasts competing for the title in Indianapolis as part of the annual national Future Farmers of America (FFA) convention.

The competition is open to high school students from all over the U.S. Entries were narrowed to 12 finalists who presented their projects to a panel of four tractor restoration experts. Each project was graded on the restoration process, safety precautions, results, documentation and oral presentation.

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