Tractor
Mon 19 January 2026
The electric tractor is finished! I have been working on this on and off for about 6 months. It is a toy for children (and me) to drive around the garden.
Building the tractor has been fun for both me and Lucy. On many occasions she has asked "can we go and work on the tractor? right now?" and the two of us would go out to the garage and tinker with whatever was in progress at the time. Often she would get bored and go back in the house quite quickly, but that's par for the course for a 3-year-old. With any luck some of the philosophy of creation will rub off.
Specs
The tractor is powered by a 350W brushed DC motor with a 36v Li-ion ebike battery. You may be thinking that 350 watts doesn't sound very powerful, and you're right. It is a toy for children to drive around the garden, being slow is a feature not a bug.
The rear axle is solid, meaning the two rear wheels always turn together.
The front axle pivots around a pin in the centre, which keeps all 4 wheels on the ground when driving over uneven terrain.
It has a cable-operated disc brake on the rear axle which is very ineffective, but slightly better than not having a brake at all.
The seat position is adjustable, so that adults can just about squeeze on to it and toddlers can just about reach the pedals.
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