Knocker Harris with his interactable wooden toy digger Photo: RNZ/Leah Tebbutt
On a small quiet street in Te Puke a sign on the curb and again on the driveway will lead you to Knocker's basement.
Inside lies a treasure trove of wooden toys, timber and tools.
You'll also find Knocker Harris in there most mornings sanding or sawing a new creation to add to his extensive catalogue of interactive toys for children.
The 76-year-old can't think of a better way to spend his time.
"The whole idea of doing it is to keep your mind ticking over. I don't want to sit up there watching TV all day, that would drive me crazy.
"I just enjoy doing it."
The retired electrical inspector had no experience working with timber. However, when his grandchildren were born he decided to make a fire engine.
The only tools he had were a hand plane, a skill saw and a jigsaw.
That was 12 years ago now.
"Other people saw it and said 'Could you make me one'. I ended up very luckily getting a lot more machinery from a builder who couldn't work any more.
"It gave me things a lot squarer when I was cutting. I've probably made over 1000 [toys] now."
Knockers' most recent commission of a sailboat. Photo: RNZ/Leah Tebbutt
Knocker only sells the toys for the value of the materials used.
"I don't do it for money, just as a hobby. Any money I might get goes into buying more material or putting it into the community somehow."
He doesn't follow any plans but guesses the length and width each toy should have.
And the list of his creations is extensive. There are lawnmowers, sewing machines, pull-toys, sailboats, diggers and racing kiwis.
The kiwis run on a downward slope working without springs or batteries. A fixed foot at the front and a moving foot at the back edges the kiwi forward with gravity.
Wooden kiwi racers, and various other animals, are made with the help of gravity. Photo: RNZ/Leah Tebbutt
People are fascinated by them, he says.
"I might come home and still play with them myself," he says, proving that toys have no age limit.
The toy he is most proud of is the log truck. The two-trailer unit swivels on a dime. Logs can be loaded and unloaded and when the last supply has reached the port, the trailer hooks onto the back of the truck.
He's made about 40 trucks in the past decade.
Knockers' log trucks are one of the toys he is most proud of. Photo: RNZ/Leah Tebbutt
Knocker says he is always grateful for donations of materials including old doors and bits of scrap timber.
"I never turn them down, even if I can't use them. I stack it away and one day I will use it."
As for the ideas, Knocker says his best thinking is done at three in the morning.
"I'll make a cup of tea, go back to bed and think 'now what can I do today?' I'll run through my mind about toys and things kids love and come down that day and make a jigsaw.
"Then something else crops up or someone comes into my basement and asks if I could make something."
Knocker has kept a catalogue of his creations estimated to be in the thousands. Photo: RNZ/Leah Tebbutt
Asked why he is happy to do all the work for the value of materials, Knocker repeats that the work is about keeping the mind active.
"What would I be doing? Sitting on a seat downtown watching people walk by ... I just couldn't do it.
"But it doesn't matter, it's all just fun."
- If you would like to purchase a toy, Knocker would love to hear from you on 0210523553. Calling is best.
