A toy for my Nephew.

[Mr. Lara]

It started last year when my wife and i visited my sister. And i noticed my nephew's little wooden toy cars.

Absolutely nothing wrong with them, but when my sister told me the price of them. I told her i think i can make him one and wouldn't cost me half as much.

So i went to the local Home depot and bought some scrap wood (i think it's pine), a jigsaw, some holesaws and some sandpaper. i bought the dowel rods for the tires there as well.

This is how i started:



i used the hole saw to cut out the tires, and the jigsaw to cut out the body.



After a rough sanding



I then took some time off the project because of work, but yesterday i sanded it a lot and here's how it came out.












Of course i didn't go through all this without some errors. I had cut out a set of tires, but i didn't like how they came out.



And after trying to drill the middle for a 'rim' effect, i damaged it.



so i cut out a new set and used a smaller holesaw to drill the middle out, and those were the ones i ended up going with.


I wanted to fine sand it with a #400 grit, but the instructions on the finish said to use no finer than a #220. The first coat was applied yesterday, and later today i will be appying the second coat. I can already see the grain 'pop' out a bit. I'll post pictures when it's finished.

[PLD]

Nice work, you nephew will love playing with that.

[elderly]

Nice work. It should provide hours of fun for your nephew.
Cheers Frank.

[crowie]

That's one fine looking toy truck, simple & strong ready for hours of fun and play - 10 out of 10 Mr Lara..
May I suggest that you'll make the wheels a little easier using a harder timber....
What finish are you going to use??
Cheers, crowie

[Mr. Lara]

That's one fine looking toy truck, simple & strong ready for hours of fun and play - 10 out of 10 Mr Lara..
May I suggest that you'll make the wheels a little easier using a harder timber....
What finish are you going to use??
Cheers, crowie

Thank you, I am using Toy maker's finish from general finishes.

Of course, what type of wood would you suggest? And I appreciate the advice, i definitely want to use different types of wood. i just don't know what kinds.

[crowie]

Thank you, I am using Toy maker's finish from general finishes.

Of course, what type of wood would you suggest? And I appreciate the advice, i definitely want to use different types of wood. i just don't know what kinds.

G'Day "Mr Lara'', It's difficult to saw which hardwoods to use in the ''Lone Star State''.
I'll email a mate who lives near Austin in Texas to ask his advice for you on specific hardwoods locally available.
Here is Australia we have a good array of ''eucalyptus'' for hardwood along with a whole heap of other Aussie timbers.
Cheers, crowie

[bj383ss]

Hello Mr. Lara,

Depending on where you are there are several good hardwoods that aren't that expensive. Home Depot and Lowes both carry Red Oak. It is pricey but it is already dimensioned for you. As you get the tools to thickness and mill your own wood you can find a local hardwood dealer and your choices are limitless. I use alot of Walnut and Hard Maple. There is also Cherry, Pecan, White Oak, Poplar, and the list goes on.

My Train is mostly Walnut


Log Truck and lowboy trailer are Walnut and Hard Maple


Train I made from Pine. Pine is ok but it is hard to get a good finish on because of the difference of the Heart and Sap wood and it doesn't hold a good edge. Hence when you are trying to drill a hole in a certain spot if you hit the heartwood it will jump over to the softer sapwood and mess you up. I use if for prototype parts sometimes.



Hope this helps if you have any other questions please feel free to email me. [email protected] I am in Leander by the way north of Austin.

One more thing if you are planning on making alot of wheels I recommend getting some forstner bits. You can drill the inside of your wheels with no tear out. Here is a full set from Lowes.
Shop PORTER-CABLE 14-Piece Forstner Bit Set at Lowes.com

Bret

[PLD]

bj383ss, the angle you photographed you locomotive engine in the first picture, looked to me like you had built it full size! I had to keep going back for more looks. Great looking models you have.

[Mr. Lara]

WOW! those are amazing!

I haven't really looked in depth when visiting Home depot to see if they have other types of wood. I usually just pick up the stuff that's about 70%-80% off. After the first trial of messed up tires, i went and got myself a forstner set.

And what you said about the pine makes a lot of sense, i applied the second coat yesterday and looking it just now. It doesn't seem to have made the grain come out as much. The tires got a bit darker, but the body not so much. is there anything else i can apply to it that will help out?

Thank you very much for the pointers.

[bj383ss]

WOW! those are amazing!

I haven't really looked in depth when visiting Home depot to see if they have other types of wood. I usually just pick up the stuff that's about 70%-80% off. After the first trial of messed up tires, i went and got myself a forstner set.

And what you said about the pine makes a lot of sense, i applied the second coat yesterday and looking it just now. It doesn't seem to have made the grain come out as much. The tires got a bit darker, but the body not so much. is there anything else i can apply to it that will help out?

Thank you very much for the pointers.

If you get the clear pine it will finish better than the yellow pine. One thing you can do is use a pre stain conditioner under stain or a coat of shellac. Only other way to get Pine to stain real dark is to use an aniline dye. They cost about $18 for a little bottle and you mix it with denatured alcohol. You can buy it at a Woodcraft store if you have one near you. Hope this helps.

Bret

[Mr. Lara]

If you get the clear pine it will finish better than the yellow pine. One thing you can do is use a pre stain conditioner under stain or a coat of shellac. Only other way to get Pine to stain real dark is to use an aniline dye. They cost about $18 for a little bottle and you mix it with denatured alcohol. You can buy it at a Woodcraft store if you have one near you. Hope this helps.

Bret

There is a Rockler woodworking shop near me (seems to be the shop that i will frequent for more serious projects), and the guy there was the one that said i should go with that toy maker's finish, instead of Tung oil. Since i don't know much about finishes, i went with his suggestion.

Is what you suggested safe for little kids? (my nephew is almost 2). And my sister is very cautious of what goes near her little one. I don't really want to darken it, i just wanted the grain to pop a lot more.

i just did the 3rd, and what should be the final coat. It seems to have taken a bit more, maybe as it dries it will look better tomorrow.


Edit: i wish i could have gotten it look like this.



according to the person that made that, it is also pine. But it says that they used, and i quote: "It then went through a special process using all natural elements to create a unique finish". So i have no idea what they used.

[crowie]

Got to love this forum, especially the toymakers, top mob of blokes....

Well done to all the North American blokes for helping each other...

canada3:usa3:yourock2:

[bj383ss]

It all started with you guys from down under. I had the same warm welcome. Mr. Lara you could possibly get a sheen close to that with several coats of shellac. It is an all natural product food safe. You are so lucky to have a Rockler nearby. They have some awesome stuff. They sale hardwood in their catalog not sure about in their store. You could also use a water based poly clear finish.

Bret

[Dalboy]

This is the second time of trying to welcome you to the toy making section. As what has been said before some very knowledgeable people on here.

If you like Bret's train that much here is his excellent build of it https://www.woodworkforums.com/f201/1...motive-142879/

[Mr. Lara]

This is the second time of trying to welcome you to the toy making section. As what has been said before some very knowledgeable people on here.

If you like Bret's train that much here is his excellent build of it https://www.woodworkforums.com/f201/1...motive-142879/

i apologize if i didn't see your post before, i definitely feel most welcome here. Thank you.

@bj383ss the rockler shops have great stuff, but it's a bit expensive. Specially the tools.