Lanterna Rally

Author: Jim Humphries

Publisher: A Treasury of Wooden Toys

Published: 2022-01-12

Total Pages: 250

ISBN-13: 9781667809755

A Treasury of Wooden Toys, Volume 4 offers home craftsmen detailed how-to construction information for building a selection of fine wooden toys. The seven full-color, illustrated chapters contain step-by-step instructions for building a classic sport plane, a storybook toy car, an old French army tank, and two designs of pull toys. A Mack dump truck and an antique steamroller complete the book. Several of the projects utilize a wood lathe, or alternate construction of component parts. Each chapter includes full-size, dimensioned scale plans drawn by the author. The pull toys, a mechanical turtle and a mechanical lady bug, have moving legs which oscillate realistically to delight a young child. The Mack dump truck rolls on commercially-available turned wooden wheels. Its dump bed can be manually raised to empty the contents. Mack trucks have a mystique all their own, and this near-scale model won't disappoint. The toys in this volume are intended for children old enough to be taught how to operate them and care for them. The old Aveling and Porter 1898 vintage road machine is included as the last chapter to appeal to the experienced craftsman with a well-equipped woodworking shop. It includes large, spoked wooden drive wheels with carefully-detailed instructions for making them in a home workshop. The boiler, the drive wheels, the front roller and the smokestack are all made on the lathe. The steamroller is functional and, in appearance, is near scale. As the big drive wheels roll, the flywheel is driven through a simple hairband, and rotates in the opposite direction, turning a wire crankshaft that drives an oscillating piston. The movement of these components is a major attraction of the model. It features a canopy which doubles as a handhold to drive the toy. Although an intricate project, it is designed to be sturdy, and tough enough for child's play after an adult explains the care required to use it with it without damaging it.