WOOD TOY NEWS June 4, 2013 Tuesday
Don Floyd, an avid toymaker and a creative genius builds an amazing Coal Truck. It’s one of his many carefully crafted creations.
walks you through the process of creating a similar awesome Coal Truck. You can also read about how to make your own wheels. All you need is a hole saw and disk sander to make perfect wheels.
Don Floyd’s additional toy creations include the
The photographs below depict how the coal truck went from scratch to a final finished product. Don preferred to paint it yellow with black trim to give it an unique personality. The photo below shows the coal truck fresh from the workshop. Even with its raw finish one can see how Don’s hard work has paid off.
This raw truck is then taken through the finishing process. It is given perspective through shades of yellow and black as seen in the photos.
June 3, 2013 Tuesday
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Super ReallyWood Desert Storm Tank Carrier shown below.
You can see the precise craftsmanship in the photo below that shows the rear end of the coal truck being operated similar to a real life coal truck. This coal truck has been created using the MegaToys Giant Coal Mine Truck toy plan. Also check out the video link on the product page which
The two photos above display fun trucks which have been customized by Don using the Easy Weekenders book of toy plans. Don Floyd can be reached at: wooddawg@windstream.net
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Wood Toy News Deb Adams, a creative and exciting toymaker comes up with great fun toys using the Londonberry Farm Plan Set from toymakingplans.com. With animals, farmer, other farm personnel and a complete fence Deb scrolled out the entire Londonberry Farm toy planset to perfection. The fence was designed to ensure the tops are not sharp for youngsters to play with. Deb has also used a lot of colors to put life and personality into these toys. This is the final structure which includes the animals, farmer, maid and the fence around the farm. We just love the farmer, the maid and the hired hand which make up the personnel working in the farm. These creations give youngsters a real feel for life on a farm. The unique design of the farm depicts a wonderful 2
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Medieval farm scene for children to play with including the livestock and the villagers.
Wood Toy Cars and Trucks toymaking book of 20 cars and trucks is bound to give you the aesthetic ability to build upon your personal imagination. An instant hit with kids, one can come up with a wide range of cars and trucks to building a complete fleet.
The fun images above show the horses and ox. The Table Saw Magic Super Crane is a work in progress for Deb. Deb Adams can be reached at: jeepnut58@yahoo.com.
The above image shows a couple of the trucks that Denis designed and crafted. A complete fleet of vehicles can be seen in the image below.
Using the Wood Toy Cars & Trucks Book, Denis Muras brings his creative genius to the front as he creates his own fleet of vehicles. Using unique different colors accenting the vehicle shapes Denis displays his meticulous and artistic abilities. With plenty of patterns to choose from the
Denis is a versatile toymaker who enjoys adding special details such as metallic painted hubcaps and windshield. Denis Muras can be reached at: denis_muras@yahoo.com
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Wood Toy News Don Belcer uses the Build Big Wood Toy Trucks book of plan sets to perfection when coming up with his toy truck creations.
Shaping the trucks and adding personality while preserving the fun aspect of any toy is a challenge in itself. Don came through this challenge and the result is an exciting and modern fleet of trucks from the Build Big Wood Toy Trucks book.
All you need is a table saw and an electric hand drill. The average truck size is 10 ½” long while the semi-trucks measure 17” long. Don Belcer can be reached at: dbelcer@comcast.net. June 3, 2013 Tuesday
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Wood Toy News
Toymaker Dave Ackmann has captivated people with his toymaking skills and brings his new additions. We love what Dave has done with the Tanker Truck, Stake Truck and the Brass Cannon. We are certain you will also admire these toys and the entire thought process behind the designs. The Stake Truck Dave’s creation of the state truck is a variation of the lumber truck in the Build Big Wood Toy Trucks book of plans with some dimensional modifications in it. Take a close look at the side view of Dave’s completed stake truck. The bed is narrower by 1/4” and 1/8” shorter. Stakes were made with 1/8” lattice. The bed is surrounded with a 1-1/4” wide piece to bring the exterior dimen4
June 4, 2013 Tuesday
posts are 3/8” by 3/8” and 1/8” slots were made in the tail gate posts to receive the tail gate.
sions up to the original size while creating a lip upon which the stakes could be glued. Dave recommends using 3/16” or even 1/4” for the stakes since 1/8” are fragile for young Check out the rear view of the completed state hands. Also one can avoid rounding off the truck with 1/2” wide pieces used to make the 3 sides of the bed to which the lattices have stakes and glue them to the lips. Four corner been glued. www.toymakingplans.com © 2013
Wood Toy News
The Tanker Truck The finished tanker truck is based on the flatbed trailer but is a bit narrower. Additions include fenders over the wheels which are 2-1/2” treaded tires from www.craftparts.com. The stock for the tank has been created by laminating a pair of 10” 2x4s and then turning it to be a cylinder. The trick is to turn it about 1/4” off center to get a flat side to make it easier for gluing purposes onto the flat bed. The toys that Dave has constructed are modifications to the trucks in our Build Big Wood Toy Trucks book. French Toymaker Dan Halog Encourages the Creative Instinct to grow in the Elderly and Disabled.
Dave’s Famous Brass Cannon (Dave’s design) It is skillfully painted to make it look better than the original plain wood version. You can contact Dave at: ackmanns@charter.net.
June 3, 2013 Tuesday
Dan Holog is an excellent creative French wooden toymaker who provides a lot of support to nursing homes. Designing and creating unique, fun-to-play-with and inspirational wooden toys is Dan’s forte and his works are simply inspiring for any age group including the disabled and elderly. Dan’s toys have unique personalities and have an amazing aesthetic appeal enjoyable by both kids and adults. Handicrafts, artistic products and creative toys go a long way in helping older people especially those in nursing homes to feel productive and
worthwhile. The elderly and people with disabilities often require a much needed inspirational enthusiasm boost to help keep a positive outlook. It can be frustrating sometimes to find activities that can engage the elderly in ways that give them joy, keep them busy and help them forget their worries. The motor skills and abilities of the elderly and disabled are amazing. www.toymakingplans.com © 2013
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Wood Toy News Some major benefits of involving elderly people in toymaking projects or other handicrafts include the following aspects. The crafts projects provide encouragement for them to perform well and help them to focus on the project. Painting the toys help improve motor skill abilities which might need some sharpening due to their advancing age.
group activity for the nursing home residents to paint and finish the Zoo playset. It kept them them engaged and helped foster a personal feeling of self worth as they worked together to complete the playset. Dan hopes that other toymakers will be encouraged to get involved with similar projects with elderly groups in their local community. To be part of an activity that helps to bring out each person’s creativity while increasing their happiness and joy is well worth it! You can contact Dan at: dan.holog@neuf.fr.
Wooden toys and other handicrafts play an important role in their therapy. Helping them to think creatively while giving them a small project of their own and exposing them to the nuances of arts and crafts proves to be beneficial in bringing happiness and excitement to a life that can become confined, lonely and overwhelming at times.
The toys seen in this edition of Wood Toy News were made from the following plan sets available on www.toymakingplans.com: The shared group activity creates an environment of happiness, creativity and satisfaction while keeping them busy and focused. It is also great for fine tuning other skills such as the capability to interact and engage with others while working as a group. One such project that provides hours of wonderful fun and helps to keep the elderly active is painting and finishing the Zanzibar Zoo play set. Dan scroll sawed the animals and zoo pieces and brought them to the nursing home for the residents to finish. Some of the residents preferred to get involved in painting only a small part of the Zoo project while others enjoyed painting multiple pieces for the project.
Page 1: Mega-Toys Giant Coal Mine Truck Super ReallyWood Desert Storm Tank Carrier Page 2: Londonberry Farm Play Set Table Saw Magic Super Crane Wood Toys Cars and Trucks Page 3 and 4: Build Big Wood Toy Trucks Page 5 and 6: Brass Cannon (Dave’s personal design) Zanzibar Zoo Play Set
The Zanzibar Zoo project provided a positive 6
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