Tuesday, February 12, 2013

pint sized truck II

   Last week I began the mini truck project, in the hope that I would have it finished while our grand children were here and so Kieran would continue to be spoiled by Opa and Oma and get yet another gift. 



  The challenge was scheduling shop time around play time and nap time and snow shovelling time. On Friday I shovelled the driveway and side walk three times and our wonderful neighbour blew the driveway once with this John Deere snow blower.  Kieran loves the Green and Yellow.


  At any rate the truck got finished this morning, 24 hours late.  The children returned home yesterday and I have spend the morning picking up toys and being amazed at how huge and empty our house has become.


    The red pick up truck is 1 1/4 inches long by 3/4 wide.  I am pretty sure that the ratios are not up to international specs, but I don't care.  This is to be a pocket truck for Kieran to carry around.  I think we would call it a good luck charm, but I don't think he would understand that idea yet.  

   Every project as things to teach, even a little project like this one.

a: it still takes time for paint to dry, the small amount doesn't effect the curing time much.

b: sharp tools and a fine toothed saws are a real must, maybe more that with large projects since a tiny flaw seems to be magnified on a tiny project.

c: get the thing mounted on a support as it is in the photo right away.  I fiddled around trying to paint it holding it in my fingers initially, a clumsy move, once I screwed the gimlet into the bottom of the truck it was 100% easier to paint.  That seems so obvious now.

d: seal the wood with sanding sealer first, then undercoat in a neutral  colour paint, sand and then start final colours.  The coverage was much easier and the colours deeper in tone.  I used spray shellac over the craft paint, it has two coats.

e: I will make the next one from maple or birch, this one is pine.  Pine is easy to work but it doesn't hold hard edges very well, and some of the detail would look better with hard edges.

f:  Don't get in a hurry, no project is improved by haste.



    A foot note, I am working on my wife's computer, thanks sweetie, mine is #%%#$* again.

    Don't forget Valentine's Day folks, we couldn't do what we do without the support of our Valentine Sweethearts.

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