Zebra

This Zebra is based on the pattern I used for the horse. My inspiration for using two types of wood was from a friend of mine who turns wood pens using multi wood blanks to start with.

Two species of wood were needed for the different colours. I used walnut and maple. After the blank was glued up, I smoothed the edges with a smoothing plane. A small scraping plane was used to take out the tiny marks left in the wood. The final effect of the planes was a finish

that was absolutely flat.

When two different types of wood are used there will be differences in how the wood is sanded. The walnut is softer than the maple. I finished this project with Tung Oil and I was impressed with the way the colours of the wood came out.

Horsepower

My niece was born yesterday in Salmon Arm, B.C. I made this horse on wheels for her.

This was my first project where I made a blank using two species of wood. In this case - walnut and maple

The mane and tail were made from hemp string.

Toy Tractor

This toy tractor was made for my nephew in Manitoba. Walnut was used for the cab and front end. Hemlock is the chassis. Tung Oil is the finish I used to seal the wood. I like using Tung oil because it really brings out the colour of the wood.

Update: I've been having problems with the wood axles. The ends are chipping off.

I installed plastic washers between the axle and wheel and between the wheel and the chassis. This did not fix the problem. I made a dually rear axle assembly that turns as a unit. I wedged the axles at the ends where they come through the outside wheel. This modification will be a lot stronger. A picture will be coming soon!

1/2 ton truck

This truck is modelled after a generic 1/2 ton pickup. It was the very first wood truck I had made back in Dec of 2007. I built it for my nephew who was only a few weeks old at the time.

I had some problems with locating axles holes in the chassis. From this project on I use a hand held dowel jig(Wolfcraft) and a cordless drill to accurately locate all the axles at exactly equal distance from the bottom of the chassis. This prevents the toy from rocking on a flat surface.

My nephew has put this toy to the ultimate test and has shown the axles to be less tough than I had estimated. The outboard end of the axles were breaking off - paralell with the grain.
I cut the axles off flush with the chassis and drilled new holes for the new axles. One washer goes under the axle 'hub' ( between the axle and the wheel) and one between the wheel and the chassis. I die cut plastic washers from an ice cream pail lid. (5/16" I.D. and 5/8" O.D.)
Time will tell if this will fix the broken axle problem. June 2009

Wooden Jeep and Kei truck

The Jeep(left) and kei truck(right)
were made this past summer.
You can't see it in this picture but the jeep has a spare wheel mounted at the back. The jeep was given to a friend of ours for her son , Gavin.
The kei truck was inspired by our trip to the Cayman Islands back in May.
The truck was given to our godson, who lives in Grand Cayman with his Dad and Mom

No metal fasteners are used in any of my toys. I try to use joints whenever possible (eg: rabbet, dowel, butt).

Rabbet joints are used to increase the surface area that the glue can adhere to.

Wood Dump Truck

The dump truck, pictured to the left, is the newest wood toy to join my fleet of toy trucks.

I used pine, hemlock, fir and other hard woods for materials.

The winch, seen, on the right side of the cab can be used to raise and lower the box.

The chassis and box are re used wood from the church pews that my Opa Mulder built in my hometown of Salmon Arm, B.C.