MORVEN, GA (WALB) - Some folks like to collect coins, others play sports, but 74-year old Billy Willeby's hobby is inventing.
The Coolidge man is now producing a piece of cotton picking equipment he invented 16 years ago.
And he says this invention could net farmers thousands of dollars.
Willeby has patented an astounding 59 different inventions, but now he is reintroducing his NuWay Cotton Saver. "You don't waste cotton, as long as you can save it."
Willeby first came up with the idea while he was driving a tractor 16 years ago.
The Saver creates a cushion of air under the cotton that lifts the crop into the picker and also separates "pepper trash," which is dried debris that drives down the grade of cotton at the gin.
"There are just so many good features and ideas that can be done to a machine to make things better. I mean I can look at a machine and pretty well tell you how to do a better job," said Willeby.
The original manufacturer died so production was halted for several years.
That was until Willeby approached Lawson Peach Shed owner Irvin Lawson.
"He wanted to remanufacture this and we got to talking and it got to be a slack time in the year. So we started to put together some things and we went by his idea. We started about a few weeks ago," said Lawson.
With the Cotton Saver farmers can gain a bale, for every 30 acres.
And Lawson says Willeby comes up with new ideas every day. "He's already found some improvements I can make at the packing shed. He's already come up with a box machine that will make boxes without using hand labor."
Willeby has also created a device that can help pickers fight fires while waiting for help.
Lawson says once they have a handle on the Cotton Saver, they will begin manufacturing on that as well.
The Cotton Saver now costs $144 per row.
That cost is down $200 from 16 years ago with the only design change being a switch from metal to polymer parts.
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Billy Willeby
Irvin Lawson
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