Wheels for a little guy.

I made three little wooden vehicles for my little baby cousin. They’re based on versions by Hape, but, similar styles are all over Etsy, too.

They’re cut from 1″ poplar (which is actually 3/4″- lumber dimensions are taken before boards are surfaced/planed) on my band saw. I used Forstner bits on our drill press to drill the finger holes/windows- they are awesome for wood. My husband cut the wheels out of 1/2″ poplar (that’s actually 1/2″- :::eyeroll:::: ) with hole saw bits on our drill press.

I used my electronic cutter to cut masks for the wheels and the truck’s “E” symbol from cheap contact paper. They worked pretty well. I’d originally planned to leave the wheels unpainted, but, the treads just looked awful- poplar is kind of a furry wood, and it would’ve taken some heavy duty sanding to get those edges smooth. And I was worried that all that sanding would be uneven, leaving lumpy unbalanced wheels. Hence the “tires”.

My favorite. The box is 2″ poplar (which is actually 1.5″- labeling it that way would just make too much sense). I drilled a 1/4″ hole into the bed of the truck, stuck the little 1/4″ dowel in with some wood glue, and drilled a 5/16″ hole in the box, so it comes off and on pretty easily. I ended up placing the wheels just a tiny itty bitty ridiculously small amount too high, so I had to drill little wheel wells into the box so it doesn’t bog down the back wheels- crisis averted.  A toy truck that doesn’t roll would be no fun.

All the bare wood is finished with a little touch of 3 BEEutiful Bees beeswax and mineral oil polish- I use the one with lavender and lemon oil. I love how it makes toys smell. 🙂

They’re going to get boxed up today for their trip across the country- happily, baby E lives less than an hour away, but, is spending Christmas with relatives up north. I hope he likes them!