Oregon boy wows conference with Lego creations

KENNEWICK, Wash. — Fifteen-year-old Warren Seely answers questions about his hobby of building miniature, powered Lego farm equipment with confidence and ease.

A motorized mint root digger and planter, potato harvester and potato trailer constructed from Legos are just a few of Seely’s creations on display at the Washington State Potato Conference in Kennewick Monday.

“I’ve had Legos forever,” he said. He’s been involved with searching for the right parts and building the displayed equipment for about two or three years, he explained.

The homeschooled teen bases his designs from photos, but he said he prefers to see the machinery in person.

He’s working on building a pivot and said he hope it will spray water when it’s done.

Warren estimates it took him three weeks to construct his potato digger by working two hours per night. The planter took about half a week to complete.

He found special parts like a gear chain, motor and u-joints online at the Lego education Web site, legoeducation.com. There are also packages for sale on the Web site, which include different sets.

He said he’s considering patenting his designs, but first needs to see if there’s a market for the items.

Warren is homeschooled, enrolled in community college courses and helps out on his parents’ mint farm about 40 miles from Portland. He plans to attend Washington State University to become an electrical engineer.

He said he considers the Lego creations a hobby.

“If I’m not in college or working on the farm, this is what I’m working on,” Warren noted.

His parents, Mike and Candy Seely, both former electrical engineers, support Warren in his hobby by driving him to the Portland Lego store for parts and they often provide input.

He mostly builds and designs the equipment himself, Warren explained.

Candy said her son got started with the hobby by attending farm shows with his sisters. She said she would put her kids in a wagon and pull them around the shows.

He’s now a regular at the Portland farmer’s market and also showed his equipment at potato and mint conferences in Oregon.

“It’s a blast,” said his dad Mike. “I don’t get involved. He just goes in his room and works on it when he has time.”

At home, Warren has a swather, pump harvester, mint still with a boiler and combine, Mike said.

“He’s a pretty busy kid too,” Mike said.

On the farm, Warren’s taken apart five tractors for repairs and even got GPS fertilizer equipment working, Mike added.

His son’s hobby “gives him a lot of exposure,” Mike explained. Warren wants to farm too, so visiting with area growers ties into his future plans.

“Here, he can talk to others who have different ideas than dad does on how to farm,” Mike said. “It gets him thinking.”