Using Double Sided Tape For Sandiing Duplicate Wooden Toy Car Parts

Using Double Sided Tape to Hold Wooden Toy Car Fenders Together for Sanding

I use double sided carpet tape to hold these fenders together for sanding so they will be as close to identical as I can make them. I use a 1x42 inch belt sander and a delicate touch for the outside curves and a spindle sander for the inside curves.  The rest of the edges are done by hand using files and sandpaper.

I'm not making any attempt to color match the wood. It's going to be sealed and painted, so the color doesn't matter.  The little bit of purple paint will get sanded off.

Because these are made from pine construction lumber, they are very easy to break while sanding. If I break a fender, it gets tossed into the kindling bucket, and I need to make another pair. Once the fenders get glued on, they are quite strong.

Below is a completed toy car.

Handmade Wooden Toy Car -  Bad Bob Custom Motors Coupe - Green and Yellow

Sanding The Last Car Body

Handmade Wooden Car Body - Final Hand Sanding

I started this batch of cars almost a year ago and got sidetracked by other things.

I originally started this as a project for my grandson after he asked me to make one he saw in a photo. John Leman at ToyMalingPlans.com made a set of plans for me.

Here is the original Bad Bob's Custom Motors Coupe.

Hand Made Wooden Toy Car - Bad Bob's Custom Motors Coupe - Green and Yellow

Etsy shop:
http://odinstoyfactory.etsy.com

#odinstoyfactoy #Tallahassee #Florida #handmade #handcrafted #woodentoys

Do you use acrylic primer?

Brush Painted Wooden Toy Car - Hot Rod Freaky Ford - 32 Deuce Coupe - MDF - Blue - Black - Gold

I tried an acrylic primer once. It was such a pain to sand that I never did it again. I've tried all sorts of methods for painting wood and MDF including using automotive primer filler I had left over. As far as I can tell it doesn't make any difference.  If I want to seal the material, I use shellac for the base coat. If I'm using a color that doesn't cover well I use white for the first coat or two.

No matter what finish I use, I apply at least two layers of finish sanding between each layer.  The first seals and makes the fuzzies stiff so the sandpaper can smooth the surface. If I get an acceptable finish, I stop at the second coat. If not, I continue to paint and sand until I am satisfied with the result.

I have tried just about every method I can find for applying finishes to my toys. The best I have used so far is spraying with an airbrush. I don't have a spray booth and need to spray outdoors. Painting outdoors is very dependent on weather conditions. Therefore, I use a brush to paint most of my toys. This one is brush painted with Behr acrylic house paint. Oops paint I purchased from Home Depot for $0.50 with no primer coat.

Painted With An Ait Brush - 20181003-202131 482476086 Wooden Toy Car Hot Rod Deuce Coupe From the Hot Rod Freaky Ford Series Pink

Spray Booth For Painting Toys

Spray booths need venting outside., Unless you like brain damage.

I researched this subject a while back and experimented with some cardboard box with a fan and filters. Even with the box fan and filters, I got paint dust all over the shop. This method doesn't filter out fumes. I was using acrylic paint, so I was not concerned about fire. I would not use this configuration to spray solvent based finishes.

If you re spraying outdoors that is a different matter altogether. I know someone who lets his the truck tailgate down and covers the back of his truck with a blue tarp to use for painting.  I have a table I make from saw horses to use when painting outdoors.  I don't use a backstop or a cover on the table. It's getting colorful.

The inexpensive spray booths they sell on eBay and else where are very small and ineffective.  Worst of all they use proprietary filters.

Larger commercial spray booths are available but, they cost prohibitive for a small shop and also use expensive challenging to find filters.

A DIY spray booth is the best alternative I could find. You need one that will spray anything including flammable finishes, filter out the paint overspray with relatively inexpensive, easy to find filters, and exhaust all the fumes outdoors. This DIY spray booth is the best I found. It's on my todo list.

 

 

Build Your Own Paint Spray Booth For Painting Toys

Simple Puzzles for Toddlers - Part 4

When making one puzzle, keeping track of the pieces is not a problem. However, when making a batch of them, you must keep track of every part and which tray it fits.

 Why? Because when you are cutting puzzles on a scroll saw, no two puzzles are precisely the same. If you don't keep the puzzle pieces together, somehow, there is a high risk that they will not fit together.

Handmade Wooden Toy Puzzles Cut and Numbered To Keep The Pieces Together

The only way I know to keep track of them is to either bag them or mark all pieces. I don't particularly appreciate dealing with the bags, so I number the sections. If you look closely at the photo, you will see that every puzzle piece and the tray is numbered. They also have numbers on the back. If I were to dump them all into a bucket and shake them up, I could still put them back in the right place.

 See the completed puzzles at the links below:
Toddlers Puzzle, Rooster, Chicken
Toddlers Puzzle, Butterfly, Very Easy Assembly
Toddlers Puzzle, Bunny Rabbit
Toddlers Cat Puzzle

Simple Puzzles for Toddlers - Part 5

I don't use spring clamps very much. They are not adjustable and always seem to clamp too hard or too little. Plastic spring clamps will slip easily out of place. I have tried to develop some way to make the jaws less slippery, but I have been unsuccessful so far.

Handmade Wooden Toy Puzzle Ready To Glue Up Butterfly

For clamping the backs onto my handmade tray puzzles, the spring clamps are almost perfect. They have just the right amount of pressure and no slipping. One of the best things is that they don't take up much room. When you are making a lot of puzzles, you can easily stack them while the glue cures.

 Best of all they are cheap. These spring clamps cost about $1.00 each at Harbor Freight.

 See the completed puzzles at the links below:

Toddlers Puzzle, Rooster, Chicken
Toddlers Puzzle, Butterfly, Very Easy Assembly
Toddlers Puzzle, Bunny Rabbit
Toddlers Cat Puzzle

Simple Puzzles for Toddlers - Part 3

When making tray puzzles, I like to make the tray backs from tempered hardboard. It's flat cheap and sturdy enough to do the job. This is the last I have been able to find locally that is smooth on both sides so I may be looking for another material for my puzzle tray backs.

I always cut the backs for my puzzle trays a little larger than the puzzle and then later trim and them to size. This makes it much easier the glue up.

I cut this batch on my scroll saw. I didn't have a factory edge to run against the bandsaw or table saw fence and since they were oversized intentionally, there was not any reason to have a perfect edge.

Handmade Wooden Toy Puzzle Tray Backs Made From Tempered Hardboard

See the completed puzzles at the links below:

Toddlers Puzzle, Rooster, Chicken
Toddlers Puzzle, Butterfly, Very Easy Assembly
Toddlers Puzzle, Bunny Rabbit
Toddlers Cat Puzzle