JOHNSTON — Mecca resident Larry Elliott said he has always liked horses and since the 1980s has done various woodworking that has included several carousel horses of various sizes.

Elliott, 76, spoke Wednesday at the woodcarving group of which he is a member that meets each Wednesday morning at the Johnston Senior Center.

He said he has always enjoyed woodcarving and has carved the smaller carousel horses that sit on shelves or tables to larger ones that are used as rocking horses. On a table is the large horse being used for a planned rocking horse, which he said is half the size of a large carousel horse.

“I was originally going to make a miniature carousel with horses. I soon realized I had no room in my house to do this. I look at pictures of carousel horses in books and make templates and begin carving,” Elliott said.

He said he is a self-taught carver beginning in 1983 with his first piece — a carved apple.

Elliott said while working as a stationary engineer at Delphi, his friend, Fred Yeager, got him interested in wood carving.

“It progressed from small items to larger items. For me it came naturally. I always liked horses and have been intrigued by carousels. I remember going to a show in the 1980s which had carousels and thought of one day having one,” Elliott said.

Elliott does all the decorating and painting on each carousel horse.

He uses his garage for working on the large carousel horses and does smaller items at the weekly wood carving group.

Elliott said his friend, Tim Beaumont of Fowler, who is a cabinet maker, was the one who started the large carousel horse he was working on Wednesday.

“He passed that horse on to me for a project. I started on it a couple of months ago. Tim probably put in 300 hours on that horse. To finish it will also take another 300 hours,” Elliott said.

For the program he presented at the senior center, Elliott showed eight carousel horses.

“I display these in the living room of my house,” he said.

Bob Woofter, organizer of the woodcarving group, said years ago the group would meet at Lake Vista and were known as the Mosquito Creek Woodcarvers.

“We have a variety of people who belong to our group who get together for two hours each week. We do woodcarving, chip carving and wood burning,” Woofter said, noting there is no cost to join.

“Larry to me is a master woodcarver. He has done some huge projects,” Woofter said.

Elliott said he does not consider himself a “master carver” but rather a “moderate carver” who does this as a hobby for fun.

“The master carvers do that for a living. I do this for enjoyment,” he said.