Raymond man's wooden models are getting worldwide attention

RAYMOND, Minn. -- They are works of art made in a small town, held together by simple wood glue. Yet, they're starting to get worldwide attention.

Raymond is known as a close-knit community.

"People here are nice and friendly, so I enjoy this area," said Aaron Zenner.

It's a mostly quiet town. But you will hear the sound of semi trucks. And then you'll hear the sound of wood being turned into semi truck.

Zenner was raised on a dairy farm. As a kid, in between chores, he began building crude, tiny models just for fun. But as the years went by, his talent really started to come out of the woodwork.

"I had a friend ask me to build him a model of his semi, and that was my first, actual customer," said Zenner.

That was seven years ago. After that, word spread like a prairie fire. Pretty soon, Zenner was getting recognized for his pain-staking attention to detail.

Most of what he makes out of his garage is miniature farm machinery. Trucks, tractors, and silage choppers. But he's also made an ambulance. And once - just because he likes the challenge - Zenner built a construction crane. It took him 6,200 wood pieces to finish. It was almost 20 feet tall.

On average, it takes him about 32 hours to build one model. He often starts with a toy to help calculate the dimensions. Then he draws up blueprints and goes to work with his table saw, his scroll saw and his drill press.

Most of what he uses is heartwood that he gets from an Amish lumberyard in Ohio.

"I can do red, purple, yellow and orange woods, and then various shades of brown," said Zenner.

Instead of using stains or dyes, he'll use Mother Nature. When he finishes an Allis Chalmers tractor, he'll leave it in the sun, which will turn the color of the wood from red to orange.

It's a different kind of farm work. Which makes sense because his biggest fans are farmers.

"Breathtaking. I never expected it to be what it was. His work is just, words can't explain it," said Dean Kunstleben,.

"It's incredible. Living down the street, you see the lights on in his house any time of the day, making each one of these individual pieces," said neighbor Caleb Hanson.

Recently, a machinery manufacturer in Germany even asked for some of his work. But as good as Zenner is, he does have his limits. He wouldn't, for example, build a replica of the U.S. Bank Stadium.

So he sticks with what he knows best. It's not exactly the farm career he envisioned, but it might be even better.

"People are just amazed," said Zenner. "It's all over the world, so it's pretty crazy."

On average, Zenner works about 11 hours a day building farm models. You can find his work on his Facebook page called Wooden Wheels.