Everywhere in the world there’s one topic of conversation that never grows old – the weather. From my homeland of the Canadian prairies, to the rolling hills of Northern Ireland, the weather is a common discussion for the young and old and everyone in between. We’ve been studying the weather since September and learning more about it. We’ve recently been learning about the wind, and our new John Deere Style Weathervane is proving itself to be both decorative and practical. We have received a tractor weathervane in exchange for our honest opinions.
It took a little while for this product to reach us, but it was understandable as the order was placed just before the Christmas Holidays and it was custom-made for us, as all Cuckooland weathervanes are. It arrived to our delight one dreary morning in a plain white box. The packaging was sturdy and resulted in conversation even before we fully opened it. Under the plain white sleeve was the box which had a cut-out piece shaped like a cloud. The children loved this, and before we knew it Tristan had poked it through, revealing his design of choice; a tractor.
Even the box is useful. We’ll be using it for a project in the future, though it’s yet to be determined. Watch this space for developments!
What’s included in the tractor weathervane package?
The weathervane is delivered in 3 pieces, plus a handy allen key. You’ll need a spirit level, a compass, some grease, a screwdriver and 4 screws to complete the assembly. I do think that it would be a nice gesture if the company provided the screws as well. We didn’t have any of the right size in our toolboxes so we had to drive to the next town to purchase some. But that’s a minor thing.
The wind vane is very sturdy and made of quality materials, as well as being coated in High Density Polyethylene for extra protection from the elements.
We had to be patient after the delivery. We’ve had such bad weather recently with gale-force winds and driving rain it was too windy to put up the weathervane to find out which direction the wind was coming from! Coincidental, but that’s the way it goes sometimes.
The first sunny and calm day in two weeks and Phil was out setting it up. The day before had been Tristan’s birthday so it was like the celebrations were being continued. 
We had to choose carefully where we wanted to place it. We decided on this corner of the back fence so that it can be seen from the kitchen window. There’s also an open space there without trees or bushes to shelter the wind too much.
How did we install our Tractor Weathervane?
All you need to do is find a spot to securely attach the main post in a level position, screw in 4 screws, find North, add the directional bit, then add a little grease and set the tractor on top. Easy Peasy.
It took Phil about 10-15 minutes to install our weathervane, but that was taking his time, being interrupted by questions from the children, and finding his equipment. So all in all it went up very quickly and easily. I won’t quite say painlessly Phil’s hand slipped while using his screwdriver and he scraped a knuckle. But that was just his own clumsiness and no fault of the product. It didn’t even require a band-aid, just a kiss from his children and he was good to go.
As we’re home educating our children, this weathervane isn’t just something cool to look at. It’s also practical and will be incorporated into school lessons. We’ll be using this weathervane to track the wind trends. First we’ll start with a little fun and casual use to used to it, then we’ll chart it to see if we can spot any trends.
After the one lovely day that we set up the weathervane, the weather again made a turn for the worse so I don’t have a photo of the children watching the weathervane from the kitchen as you wouldn’t see it through the pouring rain. But you can take my word for it that they have been enjoying it. As strange as it may seem, they’ve been asking for a weathervane since last spring!
Our new weathervane in Tractor Design by Cuckooland.com helps us to feel closer to nature, like we’re a little further out in the country. Maybe it’s the prairie girl in me? And with the tractor design that Tristan chose, it reminds me of my uncle back on the Canadian prairies every time I see it.
There are a very large number of varieties available, and it comes in 2 sizes. The cottage size is just right for our back garden at 51cm x 51cm. There is also a Traditional 78cm x 68cm size available if you really do live on a farm or have a larger garden to show it off.
We’ll come back and update this post in a couple of months to let you know how it’s standing up…and what’s become of the box!
If you’d like more information about this product, you can find this Tractor weathervane (as well as all of the other designs) at Cuckooland.com, by visiting their Facebook page, or connecting with them through Twitter.
Do you have a weathervane? How do use it?
If you’ve liked this post, why not see our pages on nature activities for kids, as well as our reviews page.
Mary @over40andamumtoone says
Looks great, something we’d love here too.
Crystal McClean says
The kids (and us) are having lots of fun watching it twirl around in the recent storms! But it’s been secure and steady, unlike some of our garden furniture!