Lifelong Dream Fulfilled
Meet JAMES McNELLIS of JIM DANDY TOYS
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Read James Earl’s Tutorial
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Hill Billy Hot Rod by JIM DANDY TOYS 1
Letter from Editor WHAT’S YOUR TOY MAKING WHY? There are probably countless reasons one could list as to why they build wood toys. Maybe it’s just plain fun. Maybe it’s relaxing. Maybe you build them for your kids or even your grandkids. Maybe you build them to give away to charity so as to bring a smile to a child’s face. All are uper great reasons to build wood toys. However, through customer emails, in our forum posts and even through our social media interactions there seems to be a recurring theme as to why a lot of you build toys. It gives you purpose and often takes your mind off of the day-to-day grind or distracts from past experiences that you just wish to not think about. What better way is there to brighten your day and lighten your mood than to spend a few hours in the woodshop? In this issue of WoodToyWeekly we will highlight James and Dana McNellis of Tacoma, Washington. James just recently started his wood toy building and selling business, Jim Dandy Toys and Dana is a graphic artist that runs Jaguarwoman Designs. They are a great team as you will read about in the spotlight. I met James on Facebook as I do a lot of you. He reached out with pictures of his toy builds and his story of how he came to find ToymakingPlans.com and begin what he calls his lifelong dream of being a full time woodworker. Like all of us he experienced some setbacks in life and in woodworking in general but through pure perseverance and nudging from his beautiful wife Dana he has set the ball a rolling on his new venture in life and I couldn’t be more happy for him. I believe you will find James’ story to be quite fascinating and inspirational. His “why” for toy making and for his life in general are really interesting and inspirational. Kenneth Smith Creative Marketing/Social Media Director
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John W Lewman (right) and his son John T Lewman discuss new protoypes of a toy soldier set, coming soon!
Submitting Your Story Want to see your work highlighted in the pages of WTW? Just drop us a line, telling us a bit about yourself and answer our seven questions. 1. How long have you been making toys? 2. Who or what was your initial inspiration? 3. Did you have any early roadblocks? 4. What has been your favorite Toy Build project? 5. What does Toy Making mean to/for you? 6. Favorite tool in your shop? 7. If you could pass one piece of advice on to a new Toy Maker, what would that be? We especially want to see your work made from our plan sets. Please e-mail images with up to six images attached to each e-mail. You can send them directly to us at: woodtoyweekly@toymakingplans.com
Contents
Visit Us on Social Media
Follow our Community on these social media platforms as well. facebook.com/toymaking
James McNellis page 4
Flame Painting Tutorial page 10
twitter.com/toymakingplans
instagram.com/toy_making_plans www.pinterest.com/ woodtoyforumgallery/wood-toy-plans/ www.toymakingplans.com
Photo Gallery page 7
James Earl page 14
Free Patterns page 16
Submitting Your Photos Try to include a broad selection of images providing the reader with a comprehensive view of your work. Include vertical as well as horizontal format images. Consider your background, try to not have too much going on in the background. Nothing beats a good workshop setting. We especially want to see your work made from our plan sets. Good photos greatly increases the chance of material being accepted. Digital images shot at high resolution with a camera of at least 6 megapixels assures a decent image. Low-resolution digital photos don’t work well. Please e-mail images with up to six images attached to each e-mail. You can send them directly to us at: woodtoyweekly@toymakingplans.com
Mighty Mack Convoy page 8
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Meet JAMES McNELLIS of JIM DANDY TOYS My name is James McNellis, I was born and raised in Butte, Montana. I attended local schools and went to work in the pit copper mine before entering the Army.
I spent 21 years in the Army combat arms
serving as an Army Ranger and in Special Forces. I served tours in Vietnam, Germany, Korea, and other countries.
I attended Drexel Jim in rare Vietnam photo University in Philadelphia, PA while also serving as an ROTC instructor. When I retired from the military I settled in Tacoma, WA with my wife Maria. We would spend 33 years together before she passed away. I later met Dana and have been married for almost two years. We were both widowed around the same time. After selling my house we started remodeling Dana’s house and I claimed half of the two car garage for my wood shop.
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At this point I started to acquire tools and one day while I was online I came across toy patterns at ToymakingPlans.com. Like most of you, I downloaded and tried the three free patterns and well frankly the toy making bug bit me! I realized I needed to do two things right away. I needed to install more lights and I needed cataract surgery. After accomplishing both of those things I started to follow my life long dream and Dana and I started Jim Dandy Toys. Dana is a professional digital artist, so while she is busy designing, I spend my time making toys. We have very ambitious plans for our toy making business and I wake up in the morning raring to go out in the shop and build toys! Editor’s Notes: I really enjoyed speaking with James and hearing his story. You can support James and Dana and Jim Dandy Toys by going to their facebook page and giving it a like and a follow at https://www.facebook. com/Jim-Dandy-Toys-120881685965558/
Toy builds by James McNellis at Jim Dandy Toys.
Photos by Dana McNellis at JaguarWoman Designs.
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Visiting with JAMES McNELLIS of JIM DANDY TOYS 1. How long have you been making wood toys? I have been building toys for a year.
2. Who or what was your initial inspiration? My wife Dana. Watching how she makes her products just makes me want to be creative.
3. Did you have any early roadblocks, obstacles? Yes. I had trouble seeing and needed cataract surgery. I also needed good lights in the shop. Then we had to create a space and make it usable for toy making. We’re still working on that.
4. What has been your favorite Toy Build project? I would have to say the Hilly Billy Hot Rod series.
5. What does Toy Making mean to and for you? I suffer from PTSD and the hours I spend making toys gives me a calmness and serenity that is only matched by the time I spend with Dana. When I had colon cancer I spent some time watching kids that had to deal with killer illneses. I made a promise to myself that if I could ever put a smile on even one of those faces I would do it. I can tell you a toy will do it every time! We have a lot smiles to work on at Mary Bridge Children Hospital.
6. Favorite tool in your shop? My new scroll saw without a doubt.
7. If you could pass one piece of advice on to a new Toymaker, what would that be? Patience. Take your time and enjoy making the project. It also helps to use good blades. I learned that the hard way.
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WTW Photo Gallery
Built by Forum member: wombat
Built by Forum member: wwalker47
Built by Forum member: Meds853
Built by Forum member: Meds853
Visit and Join our worldwide community Forum at: https://toymakingplans.com/toymakers-forum/
Built by Forum member: wwalker47 5
Built by Forum member: Kel 7
INTRODUCING OUR NEWEST PLANSET
Mighty Mack Convoy
IT’S SUPER EASY!
THREE TRUCKS BUILT FROM ONE 1” X 10” X 10’ BOARD YARD STICK FOR SCALE
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How to Paint Flames on Your Toy Cars By James Earl, aka forum member flamepainter
James’ custom flames on a Freaky Ford Hot Rod I am going to attempt to explain how I painted flames on the Hot Rod Deuce Coupe Freaky Ford that I posted in the ToymakingPlans.com forum. The process is the same no matter what size or body style is used. I sometimes tend to get a little wordy with my explanations. I hope it doesn’t distract from the main objective. I have been painting flames on plastic car models for over 20 years. I have an example shown below on a 1/25th scale plastic model. Once I got the technique down, it was just a matter of drawing what I want and transferring 10
it onto the model. Sounds simple, right? I always make sure the model is finished painted and as smooth as possible before starting. I usually have a clear coat over the finished color that the flames will be going over. This is so the contact paper will stick to it better, preventing paint from getting under the contact paper. When I start a flame project on a model, the very first thing I do is draw two outlines of the model on a piece of paper (one outline for each right and left sides). These can be just opposite sides of the same drawing as I have shown on the next page. Toymakingplans.com has made this step a little easier because you already have the outline at the proper size in the plans, all you have to do is print another copy to draw on. From that you know what size to
make the flames and how you can fit them in the space you have. I have drawn in where the tires will be for reference.
Now you start drawing (sketching) the flames. If you have any obstacles that might affect the flames such as door handles or, as in the case of the Freaky Ford, pipes coming out the side that you want to go around, you need to make sure they are on the outline drawing also. There are a lot of inspirational pictures on the internet. If you search for “custom car flames images”, you’ll see a lot of images of all different types of flames for cars. Pick the type of flame you like and try drawing it on your outline.
by carefully drawing over the lines, making them a little heavier. The next step is going to be to put the flames onto something that can be adhered to the model after it is cut out. I use smooth (not textured) self-adhesive (Contact) shelf paper. It is inexpensive and a roll lasts a long time. You can adhere it any way you want though.
You can use carbon paper, if you have it for the next steps when you transfer the flames to the toy, but I usually just use the pencil drawing. The pencil “lead” transfers well to the contact paper. To transfer your drawing to the contact paper turn the drawing you made over and make sure you can see it from the other side when it is on the contact paper. Position it where you want it onto the outline for the correct side. It is best to tape down the outline and the drawing to prevent either of them moving while transferring the images. Trace the image onto the contact paper.
Did I mention you need to do all the drawing in pencil? If it doesn’t look like what you want on the first try, simply erase it and try again. It might take several tries to get it looking like you want. Once the flames look the way you want them, make the lines more crisp and solid 11
Flip the drawing over and draw it again in reverse for the other side of the car onto a different part of the contact paper. Now the real fun begins! Using a sharp craft knife, cut out the flames drawn on the contact paper. At this point, try not to cut through the contact paper backing, just the vinyl. Go slow and make the cuts as precise as you can. After all the cutting is done, remove the part of the drawing you want the paint in. In this case it’s the flame itself. Some might want to keep the background as the flame color and paint around the flames for a different look. It is completely up to the individual. I will show both ways on the same model here so you can see what I mean.
Put some tape over the cutout after removing the image. Use a low tack tape such as painters tape so it can be easily removed. I do this because when I take the flames off the contact paper backing, the template will keep its shape while putting it onto the model. This step usually isn’t necessary if you are painting around the flames. Simply place the cutout where you want it on the model after removing the backing. 12
Carefully remove the contact paper backing and adhere the contact paper onto the wood in the proper place. Remove the tape used to keep the template shape. Tape the wood to prevent any overspray getting on the wood where you don’t want the paint, when spray painting the flames. After the contact paper is adhered to both sides of the model and it is taped to prevent overspray, simply paint it. You can do this with a spray can, airbrush, or even hand brush if you wish.
After the paint has dried some (about 20 minutes is usually enough), remove the template carefully, making sure you pull it away from the wood carefully so paint doesn’t smear. If you let the paint dry completely, you might have to score around the template to prevent the paint coming off.
I usually use regular craft acrylics (or other water based paints) on my models with the Rustoleum 2x gloss clear coat over it but any paint can be used. Again, the craft paints are inexpensive and go a long way when thinned for airbrushing. Another advantage of using craft acrylics, is that if there is a minor mistake on the airbrushing, it can be easily removed with a little water and cotton swab. I hope this helps those who are interested in it. Give me a shout on my forum post if you have any questions. Jim Earl Forum Name: flamepainter
To download a PDF of Jim’s tutorial or to ask Jim a question please visit his forum post at https://toymakingplans.com/toymakersforum/?p=post%2Fhowto-paint-flames-onyour-hot-rod-toy-cars-10269828
There are many techniques you can use when painting depending on the look you are going for in the finished product. You will see on the my finished toy the red flames were outlined in yellow (which actually came out looking like orange). I will show that technique another time perhaps. If you’re not comfortable with lining the flames, that’s okay too.
Editor’s Notes: Thank you James for such a great and informative tutorial on painting flames. Readers can interact and see other great tips and join our community at the ToymakingPlans.com Community Forum at https://toymakingplans.com/toymakersforum/ 13
MEET JAMES EARL
I’m James Earl, I am a retired industrial maintenance technician. Prior to that I spent 22 years in the Navy Submarine Force. I have been working with wood for over 40 years on home renovations and repairs as well as some small gift type items. I have always done “crafty” type things and feel like I need to be always making something in my spare time. Finding ToymakingPlans.com has given me the opportunity to start something slightly newer than what I had been building and to be able to apply my experiences and knowledge to the toys I build. Editor’s Notes: James is a great contributor in our Toymakers Forum, he is currently working on a tutorial for adding realistic chrome to wood toy projects! Visit and Join our worldwide community Forum at: https://toymakingplans.com/toymakers-forum/ 14
Visiting with JAMES EARL 1. How long have you been making wood toys?
I only recently began making these wood toys although I have been making small wood projects for many years (probably 20 or more).
2. Who or what was your initial inspiration?
I guess my initial inspiration, like many others was my father. He was a carpenter/ cabinet maker for his whole life. When I was growing up, I saw that he could make anything out of wood. He would make small items used for entertainment. Everything from puzzles to carousel size animals. He would build, carve, anything needed to make items that normally came out of his head instead of written plans. He would spend much of his spare time working on something.
3. Did you have any early roadblocks, obstacles?
As far as roadblocks in the toy making area, I’m still too new at it to answer that question. The biggest roadblock I have right now is that I really don’t have a shop to work in. I’m sharing the garage with a car so when I want to make anything, I have to move the car out, set up the equipment, put equipment back when done, clean up, put car back in garage. It is a bit annoying but I manage.
4. What has been your favorite Toy Build project?
As most everyone knows, the only thing I’ve made so far as toys go are the cars I’ve shown on your website. I hope to build many more cars, trucks, most anything transportation related.
5. What does Toy Making mean to/for you?
Toy making has become a relaxing, new outlet for my crafty side. Prior to this, I built plastic model cars off and on for 50 years. I acquired a lot of models finished and still in the box when I sort of lost interest. In the meantime, I learned a lot of techniques and ideas that I see I can use in making the toy cars.
6. Favorite tool in your shop? Bandsaw
7. If you could pass one piece of advice on to a new Toy Maker, what would that be?
Keep plugging away and don’t give up. If your toy doesn’t look like you expect it to, that’s okay, there is more wood out there to make another one. Remember there is no wrong way to do most tasks, just different ways. Pick the one that you are most comfortable with.
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Fun FREE Plan Playful Pumpkins! Simply print this page, cut out the pieces and stick’m to some wood and start making sawdust. Remember that there isn’t any scrap wood, just pieces not yet used.
Best cut from 1/4”, 1/2”, or 3/4” wood stock. 16
PHOTO CONTEST RULES
1. Must be completely made of wood 2. Must be a car built from one of our three selected car plans (Hill Billy Hot Rods, Hot Rod Jamboree or 1930 Rat Rod) 3. Photos must be received by November 25th. Judging will take place the first week of December. Email entries to: contest@toymakingplans.com 4. MUST HAVE FUN BUILDING IT!
PRIZES
Best in Show - $100 Home Depot Card The PISTOL Trophy, A Feature in the Wood Toy Weekly Best Painted & Best Natural $25 Home Depot Card Two Honorable Mentions $10 Home Depot Card Questions:
contest@toymakingplans.com
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