How to Draw a Pumpjack (Easy Step by Step)
Learn to draw a pumpjack, the nodding oil pump, using simple shapes like rectangles, ovals, circles, and triangles. You'll find it surprisingly easy if you can draw a box and a circle.
- You can draw a pumpjack using simple shapes.
- Start your drawing with a long rectangle and a big circle.
- Add a pointy oval and a tall triangle for the legs.
- You only need basic box and circle drawing skills.
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A pumpjack is the nodding oil pump you see in fields, and it is built from friendly shapes: a long rectangle, a pointy oval, a big circle, and a tall triangle of legs. It rocks up and down like a see-saw, which makes it fun to draw and fun to imagine moving. If you can draw a box and a circle, you can draw this.
- Medium
- 15 minutes
- 8 steps
You need: paper, a pencil, an eraser, and crayons or markers for coloring.
Start drawing
In this article (7 sections)
How to draw a pumpjack step by step
How to Draw a Pumpjack · tinyhandscreate.com
Step 1: Guide shapes
Lightly sketch this oval. It only shows where the big parts go, so press softly. You will erase it at the end.
Step 2: The base
Draw a long, flat rectangle with rounded corners across the bottom of your paper. This is the strong platform that holds the whole pumpjack up.
Step 3: The horsehead
Near the top left, draw a tall pointy oval, like a leaf or a lemon, leaning a little to the right. Then draw one straight line going down from its bottom tip to the base. Add a small curved hook above the right end of the base.
Step 4: The long beam
From the right side of the horsehead, draw a long, slanted rectangle going down to the right, like a see-saw arm. Round the far corner on the right end.
Step 5: The tall stand
Draw two long slanted lines that start close together under the middle of the beam and spread apart as they reach the base, like the legs of a tall triangle. Add a small square where they meet the beam.
Step 6: The wheel and rods
On the right side, sitting on the base, draw a big round wheel with a small rounded bump on its right edge, like a handle. Then draw two short straight lines hanging down from the right end of the beam.
Step 7: The box
Above the wheel, draw a rectangle with no bottom line: a top and two sides. Connect its top to the two short lines hanging from the beam.
Step 8: Wheel center and dots
Draw a small ring in the middle of the wheel, a circle inside a circle. Then add three little dots inside the horsehead.
All done!
Erase the guide shapes, go over your lines, then color it in.
Finished your pumpjack? Keep the pencils out and learn how to draw a rocket or how to draw a shooting star next.
Tips for drawing a pumpjack
- Draw the long beam with a ruler edge or by lining your pencil up on a slant, so both of its lines run side by side and stay the same distance apart.
- The two stand legs should start close together and spread wider at the bottom. Make a small dot where each leg ends on the base before you draw the line.
- Draw the wheel by tracing a round lid or coin lightly first. The small ring in the center is easier if you put a dot there before you circle it.
Free pumpjack coloring page
Want to go straight to coloring? Open this pumpjack coloring page at full size and print it. It is the same drawing you just learned, with clean lines ready for crayons or markers.
How to color your pumpjack drawing
Try a bright yellow or red for the horsehead and wheel, with gray for the beam and stand. For a creative twist, color the sky behind it sunset orange and add a few brown hills.
Pumpjack fun fact for kids
A pumpjack is sometimes called a nodding donkey or a horsehead pump because the big head at one end rocks up and down like an animal nodding. It pulls oil up from deep underground.
Questions about drawing a pumpjack
What shapes do I need to draw a pumpjack?
You need a pointy oval for the head, a long slanted rectangle for the beam, two slanted lines for the stand, a big circle for the wheel, a small box above the wheel, and a flat rectangle for the base.
How do I make my pumpjack look like it is moving?
Draw the beam tilted a little higher or lower on a second picture to show the rocking. Flip between the two pictures and the horsehead will seem to nod.
What is the hardest part of drawing a pumpjack?
Most kids find the long slanted beam the trickiest. Draw it lightly first, then go over it once both lines look even.
