Toy Train Set

A toy train set I made for my kids for Christmas.

The majority of the cars are made from maple and walnut. The boxcar is aromatic cedar leftover from my blanket chest project

Plans are found in this book:

http://www.amazon.com/Making-Toys-Teach-Step-Step/dp/1561586064

Wheels, smokestack, and axle pins were purchased at Rockler. Finish was just a couple coats of BLO.

This project was a ton of fun to do and the reaction on my kid’s face was priceless. You really only need a small bandsaw and a sander to pull this off, so it’s perfectly workable even in the smallest of shops. Best of all, in spite of all the other junk my kids got for Christmas that year, this toy is still the one most sought after.

One tip for the main locomotive, the author recommends 2 inch dowel, but I had a really hard time finding anything under $40 bucks. I picked up a short oak chair rail from Home Depot for $8. Best part the bottom was already flat so it sat perfectly on the frame. :-) It’s the little things…