A. Neely Hall

“ Home-made toys are generally longer lived than store toys because the boy or girl who expends a certain amount of effort producing gives them better care. Home-made toys have a greater value than boughten ones because there is as much fun making them as playing with them. Doing something interesting, getting satisfying results out of the work, putting an idea into tangible form, and having a toy to show of which it can be said, "I made this all myself,"—these are the factors in toy-making so fascinating to boys and girls. ”

“ An inexperienced person is very apt to dull or nick a tool by striking its edge against nails or by using it for purposes other than what it was made for. For this reason a carpenter is very apt to refuse a boy, or any amateur for that matter, the use of his tools, and he is right in doing so. Just imagine the amount of work it makes for him to put the tools in shape after they have been returned in all sorts of conditions. ”

“ There are many styles of tops, probably more than you ever dreamed of, and it will surprise you to hear that the owners of some of the most curious forms are bearded men who take as much delight as any girl or boy in spinning them. A few years ago on Murray Island, which is way down among the South Sea Islands, top spinning took such a strong hold upon the attention of the natives that they neglected their work, and families often were without food, boys and girls having to go to school hungry. ”

“ In purchasing Tools for your workshop it is not advisable to buy them in chests, for they are almost always made of cheap material, and poor tools are of no use to the boy who intends to do good work. It is a much better plan to buy a few tools at a time, getting a good quality of steel, and to gradually increase your outfit as your money permits. Then if you really want a chest you can make it yourself. A hatchet, hammer, saw, plane, chisel, jack-knife, bit and bit-stock, screw-driver, and square are the principal tools you will require, and need be all you have to start out with. ”

“ No mechanical toy is more interesting to make, nor more interesting to watch in operation, than a miniature windmill. It is a very simple toy to construct, and the material for making one can usually be found at hand, which are two reasons why nearly every boy and girl at one time or another builds one.
The Paper Pinwheel shown in Fig. 1 is one of the best whirlers ever devised. A slight forward thrust of the stick handle upon which it is mounted starts it in motion, and when you run with the stick extended in front of you it whirls at a merry speed. ”

“ Even though a boy has passed the kindergarten age, he will find this work entertaining for days when the weather is disagreeable without; and though he may not care to play with them himself, his work will not have been wasted, for a younger brother will surely be glad to have some cork animals and birds to add to his menagerie, and a sister no less delighted with a small log-cabin and set of cork furniture. ”

“ It is often thought that a toy railway is beyond a boy's ingenuity to construct, whereas, in reality, it is one of the simplest toys he can make. This applies to the tracks, stations, and cars of every description, all of which can be made with a few strips of wood, some spools, nails, cardboard, and a bottle of glue, for materials. ”

“ The boy of to-day is ever on the lookout for new ideas which can be adopted for his work and recreation, schemes which are practical and which are thoroughly up-to-date. They must be helpful in suggesting ways of earning money, as well as entertaining, for what boy of the present day does not feel the need of such suggestions to aid him in raising the funds necessary to carry on his work? ”

“ Nothing daunts the ambitious boy. If he has not a press, and there are no prospects of him earning one for some time, he will not allow this to interfere with his plans. It only means he must devise some other way of printing. Many boys have already proven that a press is not an absolute necessity, by issuing papers printed with rubber type, written by pen and on typewriters, and printed by the mimeograph and such duplicating machines. ”

“ A Cricket-rattle is about the liveliest form of rattle ever devised (Fig. 114) . After constructing one for your sister or brother, you probably will decide to make one for yourself. For this rattle, first prepare a notched spool (A, Fig. 116) . The notches in this need not be cut as perfectly as shown, but the notches in one end of the spool must be exactly opposite those in the other end. Whittle the handle B to the shape and size shown, cut the strips C out of cigar [Pg 76] box wood, and prepare the block D as shown. ”

“ Knowing that many boys who would like to build themselves a club-house have not the money in their treasury with which to buy new lumber, this chapter will describe the manner in which a rough-and-ready house may be built. It will not be attempted to show the correct methods of putting up a framework, such as would be built if the right-sized lumber were obtainable, but the simplest way in which boys can make use of the material at hand. ”

“ Most of the smaller mechanical toys are not only easy to make, but they require materials which cost little and can usually be picked up at home. Sometimes it takes considerable thinking and planning to discover just the things which can be adapted to the various parts of toys; but that is where part of the fun of toy making comes in.
A Buzz-saw Whirligig is an interesting toy (Fig. 108) . Lay out a disk about 5 inches in diameter upon a piece of cardboard, locate the position for the spool-end on the center of each face, and make four rings outside of this. ”

“ When a circus came to town, it seemed but natural for the boys of our neighborhood to club together and arrange a performance on a small scale, but as nearly like that of the professionals as possible. A back-yard was transformed into training quarters, and here we worked hard for several days before the show, imitating as best we could the stunts of the circus performers. Because one fellow could walk on his hands, and turn hand-springs, besides being the owner of a pair of tights, he naturally became the chief attraction ”

“ After you have made a final inspection to see that everything has been put together properly, your toy will be ready for operation, and I am sure that when you set the clockwork machinery in motion, and the little wheel begins to revolve slowly with each little car balancing upon its axle, you will agree that you have constructed a very interesting toy. ”

“ Be sure you understand the process of sharpening tools before you undertake to use the oil-and grind-stones.
All tools are not sharpened alike, and you will need to know the different ways in order to get their cutting edges the right shape to serve their different purposes.
Grinding is the most difficult part of the work, and most boys have trouble with it. One fault lies in using the grind-stone too frequently, grinding the edge of a tool when it requires only a little rubbing upon the oil-stone to put it in shape, and thus wearing down the tool unnecessarily. ”

“ When you have tired of your touring-car, you can easily convert it into
An Automobile Delivery Wagon, such as illustrated in Fig. 175. To make this you will require the same frame as that used for the touring-car, with the clockworks and belt-wheels attached in the same manner. If you have made the touring-car, remove the cardboard sides from its wooden frame, separating the cardboard from the wood carefully so you can put the machine together again when you wish. If you haven't made this automobile, you will find the details for the construction of the frame in Figs. ”

“ The Hatchet is an indispensable tool, for it can be used for a good deal of your rough work, such as splitting and paring. It requires practice to handle one successfully, however. A misplaced blow will sometimes ruin your work, either by cutting into it or striking grain which runs off into the portion to be finished. With straight grained wood it is not so difficult to pare to a line with the hatchet. The wood should be removed to within less than an eighth of an inch of the line, as the work must be dressed up afterward with the plane. ”

“ Few boys and girls are given a one hundred dollar assortment of toys at a time, yet any one can own a collection of this value who is willing to spend the time necessary to follow the instructions given in this book. Probably, though, some of the toys will be wanted now, and the others one, two or three seasons hence, because, you see, the book is an all-the-year-round handy book with suggestions for every season. Some of the toys will be of especial interest to boys, yet girls who like what boys like will enjoy making them also. ”

“ An amateur should master as much of the work as possible. One of the most interesting parts is missed if you pay a professional to develop your plates, and you never know where your faults have been made in taking the pictures, by not seeing the manner in which the image appears on the negative during the development. Even though you spoil one or two plates in your first attempts at developing, your results on the whole will probably be as good as those obtained by a professional, who is very often careless with amateurs' work. ”

“ Probably nothing can be found which will make a more interesting entertainment for a winter evening, than a miniature theatre patterned as nearly as possible after a large playhouse. The construction of the stage, and preparation of miniature scenery, properties, and mechanical effects, furnish good work for disagreeable weather when it becomes necessary to remain indoors, and there is plenty of it, and of great enough variety, to occupy the attention of a number of boys. ”

“ When you have a long board to work upon, it cannot be held steady by the vise alone. One end should be placed in the vise and the other rested upon a peg stuck in a hole bored in the side of the bench. For boards of different lengths, several holes should be bored, as shown in the illustration of the finished bench (see frontispiece) , and a movable peg cut to fit in them.
A Bench-stop of some sort fastened to the top of the bench will be found useful to push work against while planing it, when it is not convenient to use the vise. ”

“ The Best Kind of Iron Runners for a home-made sled are those that a boy can put on without the aid of a blacksmith, and such a pair of runners is shown in the drawing of this sled. They consist of what are known as half-oval iron strips, and can be had usually at a hardware store or blacksmith shop. A pair forty inches long and three-quarters of an inch wide, with five holes for countersunk screws drilled in each, can be bought for fifty cents. When they have been procured, screw them to the bottom of the runners, using one inch or one and one-quarter inch screws for the purpose. ”

“ The corner of a block of wood is very often chamfered, when planing end-wood, to prevent the wood from splintering. It can only be done, of course, before the adjoining side has been planed up, that a square corner can be obtained again when the work is finished.
The Gouge is a chisel with a curved section, its use being for cutting grooves and curvatures in a piece of work where the chisel cannot be employed.
A Draw-knife is very handy for quickly reducing the size of material and in rounding sticks. The blade is drawn toward you instead of being pushed as in the case of a plane or chisel. ”

“ Hang the pictures to the picture moulding with thread.
A Cosey-corner may be fitted up in the ball-room by fastening a strip of a cigar-box in one corner an inch and one-half above the floor for the seat, and hanging draperies on each side of it. Pillows may be made for it out of scraps of silk stuffed with cotton.
A doll-house properly proportioned in every detail, including the selection of its furniture, is pleasing to look at, and is to be desired much more than some of the specimens to be found in the stores. ”

“ A Scraper is about the best appliance that can be had for cleaning snow from the steps, especially when the snow [Pg 171] has turned to slush. For the making of one of these, prepare a seven-eighths inch board sixteen inches long by four inches wide. Bevel the lower edge and nail a two inch strip below the top, as at A in Fig. 180. Bore a hole through both thicknesses of wood at B and fit a broom-handle in it, bracing the handle with a piece of wire run from a small hole bored in the handle at C to the ends of the scraper. ”

“ The Necessary Equipment for a dark-room is not large, about all you require besides your chemicals being a ruby lantern, printing frame, three trays,—one for developing, another for fixing, and a third for toning,—a two-inch camel's-hair brush for dusting plates, a drying-rack, glass graduate, funnel, set of scales, bottles for solutions, and a cabinet in which to keep your apparatus and supplies.
A Dark-room is not a necessity, although it is a great convenience, especially if you are doing much work. ”

“ If he lives in the country or near the woods he is sure to grow fond of the wild creatures around him, and spend some time in following their tracks and watching their ways and habits. If he is a city boy he may not have these advantages, but is probably just as much interested in the study of birds and animals as his country cousin is, and when the opportunity presents itself will slip off to the nearest woods to spend the day with his little friends, and perhaps carry one or two back home to share city life with him. ”

“ Glue the upper end of the brake to the chauffeur's hand and the lower end to the side of the wagon.
Paint the Wagon with water colors, making the sides, end, and roof olive green, the steering-wheel, brake, and spokes of wheels black, and the lamps yellow or the color of brass. In painting the sides show the battery compartments upon them below what would properly be the bottom of the wagon (see illustration) . Leave the cardboard white below this box, as it represents no portion of the machine, but is necessarily brought down so far to conceal the wooden frame. ”