Odin's Toy Factory: April 2020

2020-04-29

Etsy Listing - Handmade Wooden Toy Pickup Truck Play Pal Series Clear Shellac With Metallic Blue Hubs

Handmade Wooden Toy Pickup Truck Play Pal Series Clear Shellac With Metallic Blue Hubs

Click here to see the listing.

I've made a lot of these little wooden toy trucks. Each one is carefully cut on my scroll saw and hand-sanded until they are smooth to the touch. Any toys with no repairable defects are dent to the designer kindling pile. My goal is to make toys as high quality as I possibly can. This version of the truck is hand finished with clear shellac and hand-rubbed, waxed, and polished to a satin finish.

These are some of my favorite toys to make. The simple design lends itself to extensive variation.

Handmade Wooden Toy Pickup Truck Play Pal Series Clear Shellac With Metallic Blue Hubs

A cute vintage style kids gift for boys or girls. Handmade and hand-finished to perfection. You can easily convert this toy into Christmas Ornament for that vintage Christmas look or use it with other small wooden toys to as nursery decor. It's the perfect size to use as a stocking stuffer or party favor. Several trucks and or cars in rainbow colors would make an excellent mobile.

Handmade Wooden Toy Pickup Truck Play Pal Series Clear Shellac With Metallic Blue Hubs

Approximate Dimensions:

Length: 3-1/2 inches/89mm
Height: 1-3/8 inches/23mm
Width: 1-1/2 inches/51mm
Wheels: 3/4 inch/34mm diameter

Handmade Wooden Toy Pickup Truck Play Pal Series Clear Shellac With Metallic Blue Hubs

My Other Cars and Trucks
https://www.etsy.com/shop/odinstoyfactory?section_id=20276302

Handmade Wooden Toy Pickup Truck Play Pal Series Clear Shellac With Metallic Blue Hubs

Not for children under three or children who are still at that stage where they put everything in their mouths. It is not a teether.

Handmade Wooden Toy Pickup Truck Play Pal Series Clear Shellac With Metallic Blue Hubs

Custom orders are welcome. I can make toys from Pine, Oak, Poplar, Cherry, Walnut, Plywood, MDF, and many other kinds of wood. Larger sizes are also an option. Painting is available in just about any color. Need more than one for party favors or gifts. I can accommodate you. Please contact me for custom order pricing.

Handmade Wooden Toy Pickup Truck Play Pal Series Clear Shellac With Metallic Blue Hubs

Handmade Wooden Toy Pickup Truck Play Pal Series Clear Shellac With Metallic Blue Hubs On Wood Ruler

2020-04-28

Toy Makers Shop - How To Get The Wooden Wheels On Your Toys To Roll Well

Wooden Toy Wheels Nylon Washers and Axle Pegs Ready For Assembly

I have don't some extensive testing with my grandson building cars with many methods of mounting wheels to see which ones worked best and if they didn't work well why. Using the techniques outlined below, I have built Play Pals that can compete with Hot Wheels cars on a Blue Track.

Washers behind the wheels are essential. They act as a spacer between the wheels and the body. Without the washers, the wheels will rub against the body. Friction between the wheel and the body of the toy will slow the toy down and eventually damage the finish.

Nylon Washers In A Storage Bin Used For Bearings and Spacers Behind Toy Wheels

I use nylon washers behind the wheels on all my rolling toys. I tested several washer materials, and nylon is substantially better than any of the metal washers. The nylon acts as a crude bearing with the added benefit that wood glue will not stick to it. If you get a little to much glue that squeezes out on the back of the wheel, it will not glue the wheel to the car.

Wooden Toy Wheel Nylon Washer and Axle Pegs Ready For Dry Fit

Drilling your axle holes square and true is very important. If the axle holes are not parallel to each other they work against each other. Axel holes also need to be drilled at 90 degrees to the surface. A drill press is a great help getting the holes straight. Your stock needs to be flat. Construction (cheap/free) lumber is prone to cupping, bowing, and cupping. Drilling the hole straight and true is difficult if the wood isn't flat.

Handmade Wooden Toy Bat Car Example of a Toy Car With Axle Pegs

Axel pegs work better than solid axels that go all the way through the body. They work better because of the wheels operating independently of each other. They also tend to roll straighter.

Wheels on your toys should be mounted as close to the body as possible being sure to leave a small gap. You can ensure the gap by making a jig from a thin plastic card that is notched to fit around the axels.

Wooden Toy Wheels Waiting For Glue To Cure In A Shop Made Jig

Glue the wheels on one end of the axel first and let the glue cure enough to hold the wheels tight. No more than twenty minutes, but it depends on the working time of your glue. When the first set of wheels is ready to assemble everything, wheels, axles, washers, and spacers, press everything up snug and pull out the spacers. It is essential that everything fits closely else the wheels will wobble and slow down the toys.

Wooden Wheel Axle Peg and Nylon Washer Ready For Gluing

Dry fit your wheels and axels. When you have glue on your parts is not the time to find out that the dowel does not fit the hole in your wheels.

Using a bit of wax on the axles helps but not as much I initially expected. It is somewhat challenging to wax the axels without getting the was somewhere you don't want it. Wax prevents wood glue from bonding.

You can use polished nails for axles and get toys to roll even faster. Plastic wheels roll better than wood. However, I don't use plastic wheels or nails. I prefer to stay as close to 100% wood as I can.

Summary:
If you want your toys to roll well, washers between the wheels and the body are a must.

Nylon washers work better than any metal.

Drilling everything straight, accurate, and square to the sides is essential to keep the wheels running true.

Axel holes must be parallel to each other. The more axels the toy has, the more critical this gets.

Axel pegs work better than solid axels, and you can pin them to keep them from coming out.

Wheels should be mounted as close to the body as possible without touching. Use a jig made from a thin plastic card to keep the space.

Glue the wheels one side at a time, making sure they are square to the axels. Let the first wheels cure before adding the second set of wheels.

A bit of wax on the axels helps, but be sure to keep it off the places where you need glue.

2020-04-27

Etsy Listing - Handmade Wooden Toy Car Hot Rod 1932 Ford Sedan From the Hot Rod Freaky Ford Series 536462157

Handmade Wooden Toy Car Hot Rod 1932 Ford Sedan From the Hot Rod Freaky Ford Series Orange & Black Wooden Toys In the Background On Workbench

Here is a classic vintage style wooden toy car dressed in Black & Orange Halloween colors. There are four cars available in this series 27 T Coupe, Deuce Coupe, 27 T Bucket, and 32 Sedan. I can make these in any color or quantity you need. The cars are 3" wide x 6" long, but I can adjust the size to your needs. Sure, to make that special child smile and have many hours of fun. Grandkids love them.

A handmade wooden toy car for adults or kids. A unique gift for a vintage Hot Rod lover. Use them to decorate a kids room, nursery, home, or office space: a unique birthday, shower, or Christmas gift.

Sturdy, durable, and made to last and grandkids love them. With a bit of care, this toy should still be around for the next generation.

There are four cars in the Hot Rod Series. Please click the link below to see the Hot Rods that are currently available:

https://www.etsy.com/shop/odinstoyfactory?search_query=Hot+Rod

Approximate Dimensions"

Length: 6 inches
Height: 3 inches
Width: 2.5 Inches

Each toy is handmade by me. Handmade toys will vary a little in appearance. The one you receive might be a bit different from the one in the photographs. The variations will be small and probably unnoticeable.

I welcome custom orders. I can make these from Pine, Oak, Poplar, Plywood MDF, and other materials in other sizes and many colors. Please contact me for custom order pricing.

Handmade Wooden Toy Car Hot Rod 1932 Ford Sedan From the Hot Rod Freaky Ford Series Orange & Black Wooden Toys In the Background On Workbench

Handmade Wooden Toy Car Hot Rod 1932 Ford Sedan From the Hot Rod Freaky Ford Series On Wooden Rule Orange & Black

Handmade Wooden Toy Car Hot Rod 1932 Ford Sedan From the Hot Rod Freaky Ford Series Orange & Black

Handmade Wooden Toy Car Hot Rod 1932 Ford Sedan From the Hot Rod Freaky Ford Series Orange & Black Wooden Toys In the Background On Workbench

2020-04-25

Stack Cutting on The Scroll Saw - Tropical Fish Filigree Ornaments

Stack Cutting a Tropical Fish Filigree Ornament On a Scroll Saw

I purchased SLDK319 Tropical Fish Filigree Ornaments from Sheila Landry Designs with the intent of testing my self to see if I could cut these.

The first one I cut from 1/4-inch poplar because it was what I had on hand. Oh yeah, I can cut these, but the poplar was too fragile, and it fuzzed like crazy. I broke it while attempting to sand the fuzzies off.

Try again this time with 18-inch baltic birch. I had to slow the saw way down to be able to control it using a #2 blade. Yes, I can cut 1/8-inch plywood. It was much stronger and did not break, but little chunks of veneer came off.

Next, I try stack cutting. after reading everything I could find on the subject I decided that I needed to make a sandwich with sacrificial pieces on the top and bottom. I have stack cut larger things before and normally use bits of carpet tape to hold the wood together. It leaves a small gap between the pieces of wood and you still get some tear-out. In this case, I didn't want any tear-out at all. The idea was to get a finished piece that I didn't need to sand. I don't like taping the edges or wrapping with tape because there is a tendency for snagging on tape edges and the material never seems to want to sit flat on the table.

Scroll Saw Tropical Fish Filigree Ornament Backer Board Made From Hardboard

The solution I came up with was wood glue. I've never seen this posted anywhere before. I have seen hot glue used an tried it myself. Hot glue makes a larger gap between the pieces then the carpet tape.

Here is what I did. I put a tiny drop of wood glue in each corner and clamped the pieces together. Apply the clamp to the center first to squeeze out any bowing or cupping. Then make sure the pieces are all aligned and apply clamps to the corners. After about five minutes I remove the clamps and add two more pieces to the stack. One on either side an repeat the process until the stack is built.

Scroll Saw Stack Cutting Glued Up And Clamped For Five Minutes

It worked like a charm. With no gap between the pieces and a top and bottom sacrificial pieces, there was zero tear-out.

I used hardboard for my sacrificial boards. After seeing how well the sacrificial boards turned out I might have been better off to just use the 1/8-inch Baltic Birch plywood. I could have added at least two more pieces to the stack and it is likely that the top piece would be usable while the bottom piece would have all the tear-out it might be useable.

2020-04-21

Photos From The Toymakers Shop Bob's Custom Motors Yellow & White Coupe

Handmade Wooden Toy Car Coupe From The Bad Bob's Custom Motors Series In Yellow and White

These cars are surprisingly difficult to build. The fenders were quite fragile until I had them glued to the body. I broke several of them before I got them all finished. If I make them again they finders will be made from Baltic Birch plywood or shop made plywood. I broke the fenders while sanding.

Handmade Wooden Toy Car Coupe From The Bad Bob's Custom Motors Series In Yellow and White

Getting the holes for the head and tail lights drilled square and true to the front and rear of the car. This is where the horizontal boring featire came in very handy.

Handmade Wooden Toy Car Coupe From The Bad Bob's Custom Motors Series In Yellow and White

To drill the holes I first cut the the blanks square then applied the pattern with the flat bottom of the pattern even with one of the long edges. With the pattern inplace it was easy to mark the locations of the hole using a square and a pencil.

Handmade Wooden Toy Car Coupe From The Bad Bob's Custom Motors Series In Yellow and White

Next I clamped the blank to the Shopsmith table lined up square to the bit, set the depth stop and drill the holes. I your making a batch its best to add somr stops and drill all the same size hole at once. You blanks would all need to be the same size to do this.

Handmade Wooden Toy Car Coupe From The Bad Bob's Custom Motors Series In Yellow and White

I cut these bodies from pine 2x4s but you could glue up some 3/4-inch thick stock to get the right thickness. MDF woul probably work well for the body and it paints much easier than pine.

Handmade Wooden Toy Car Coupe From The Bad Bob's Custom Motors Series In Yellow and White

I purchased the wheels from craftparts.com. While the wheels are strong enough I wasn't to happy with the construction. I ordered just enough wheels to make the cars plus a few spares. I was a good thing that I purchased spares. Several of the wheels had crooked spooks or glue on the outso\ide of the wheels.If I make these again I may not use the spoked wheels or try my hand at making them myself.