Too many projects, too little time

One of the major reasons I love woodworking is to build things of emotional value, in this age of rampant consumerism. Handmade heirloom wooden toys are something no made-in-china plastic electronic gadget can beat in terms of value and the sheer amount of fun a kid can have.

I wanted to build classic toys since I took up this hobby in 2006. I had to wait till my friends started having kids, but in the meantime I made a bunch of furnitures and gizmos to justify my addiction for tools. I did learn enough to design according to my time at hand, and turn it into a product. The hardest part is figuring out the exact sequence of operations. It is not uncommon to do everything well and then glue on the wrong side right before the final assembly !

I got this idea from John Michael Linck’s riding airplane model. I only needed to know the exterior dimensions and I designed the parts according to my own plan. I just hope my friend’s kid finds it comfortable when she starts walking in a few months.

For the curious, the wood is softwood pine. The top wing span is 24″ and the fuselage is about 28″. For the wheels I used omnidirectional casters from home depot. A jigsaw was needed to cut the curved fuselage. The round profile of the wood is done in a router after corner rounding on the drill press with a sanding drum. Joinery is mostly glue since I wanted to minimize screws on a toy. I hope it will hold.

Can’t wait to see this toy in action early next year. Maybe I will see a pilot’s logbook with imaginary flight plans very soon.