WOOD TOY NEWS

JANUARY 27, 2014

www.toymakingplans.com

Inside this edition:

Master Toymaker
Dave Szczepanek
shares his
Antique Metro Trucks
tips and tricks.

DOWNLOAD Table Saw Magic Antique Metro Trucks Plan Set by

copying & pasting this link into your browser: http://ow.ly/sZOuG

CUSTOMIZED ANTIQUE
METRO TRUCKS AND STOREFRONTS

Wood Toy News

Table Saw Magician with Dave Szczepanek

Greetings everyone! Wood Toy News invites you to follow along this week as we
visit Dave Szczepanek hard at work in his workshop, Bopas Wood Shop. In this
issue Dave is using his table saw skills customizing the Table Saw Magic Antique
Metro Trucks plan set and Storefronts with exciting and original details.
Dave adds opening doors, modular hook-ups, fire station details and many more
fantastic modifications to this fun plan set. He even creates a Puppy Town!
Please follow along as we take you through Dave Szczepaneks town play set.
Benjamin Trokey
Wood Toy News
Editor

DOWNLOAD Table Saw Magic Antique Metro Trucks Plan Set by copying &
pasting this link into your browser: http://ow.ly/sZOuG

Above: Dave adds secial

details to the storefronts,
trucks and town.
Right: Original plan set.
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Dave customizes the Antique Metro Trucks

storefront design in the plan set to a modular
design that allows for a variety of building set ups.

continued...
4 January 27, 2014 Monday

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Wood Toy News

STOREFRONT MODIFICATIONS ARE EXPERTLY DESIGNED

AND CRAFTED WITH A HIGH LEVEL OF ENGINEERING AND
MANUFACTURING SKILL.
Modular walls and storefronts are constructed
and modified depending on the type of
building. Dave suggests that you start by
looking through your wood scrap pile and
finding wood shorts to make wall sections.

Blocks with Dowel Pegs

Blocks with dowel pegs are glued to wall side edges.

Walls when finished will connect easily to each other
using the removable drilled connector blocks.

Construction starts by assembling the window

wall and door walls. The pegs are added to
the window wall and the door wall. You can
see how short pieces are glued together to
create window and door openings.
For Daves business, Bopas Wood Shop, he builds several
sets of the Antique Metro Trucks and Town.

Dave creatively added connectors and pegs,

so storefronts and walls will be unique in
appearance. Building connectors and pegs
are then fitted together to link the walls of the
storefronts.
Drilled Connector Blocks

Above: Wall shown before Blocks with Dowel Pegs are

glued to sides.
Drilled connector blocks are used to connect the
freestanding walls together. Hours of fun for the kids!

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DOWNLOAD Table Saw Magic Antique Metro

Trucks Plan Set by copying & pasting this link into
your browser: http://ow.ly/sZOuG

January 27, 2014 Monday 5

Wood Toy News

Removable
Connector
Block

Above: Wall shown after Blocks with Dowel Pegs are

glued to wall sides.

Pieces needed for the fire department store

front are shown below. You can add an
overhead door later.

Overhead door for Fire Department.

CONSTRUCTION OF DOORS

The photo below shows the door pre-assembly.

Dave installed the doors into wall openings by
adding hinge bars, pins and the door.
Dave cuts and trims the hinge bars for a tight
fit. Likewise, he trims the door at the bottom
or along the unhinged side for the correct
clearance. This also allows the use of a
different stain for the door or overhead door as
desired. Suggestions:

Below: How the connectors are used to

connect the storefront to any of the window or Use a round over
doorwalls.
bit on both edges
along the hinge
side.
Drill top & bottom
holes before
routing edge.
Drill all hinge bars
at one time and
make extra bars.
Removable Connector
Blocks in place.

6 January 27, 2014 Monday

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Dave used straight offcut and short wood from

the scrap pile for the wall sections. He ripped
cut the pieces to proper widths as needed.
The widths are uniform in all walls. Openings
for doors, overhead doors and windows are
cross cut to length.

When gluing along sides of each length, Dave

used clamps, as well as cauls to keep walls
flat. The peg pieces are the last parts glued to
the walls.
3 saw kerfs were used to create the overhead
Here you can see the front and back views of door section effect.
a window wall section.
He pre-glued the oak window and then
overlayed it on the wall.

Fire Department overhead door, front and

back views:
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January 27, 2014 Monday 7

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CONSTRUCTION OF
AND STOREFRONTS

TRUCKS

The overhead door opens so the fire truck can

be backed into the fire house.

Lets review Daves photos to see some

Below: The fire department storefront and fire
trucks and their accompanying storefronts. He
truck broken down.
created 7 different modified and original store
fronts for Metro Village.
1- Fire Department and the Metro Village
Fire Truck

Here is a close look at the fire truck. The

ladders are removable. Yes, that is a fire hose
in the back of the fire engine.

The small air tanks are removable. In fact, the

water storage tank can be removed. The fire
hose was made from small fuel line tubing
used in RC Control Planes. You can add a
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8 January 27, 2014 Monday

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Wood Toy News

fire hose nozzle to the tubing and another one 2- Police Department and the Police Patrol
stored at the back of the fire engine.
Truck

Components that make up the Metro Village

Police Department are shown below.

Dowel tabs
hold back door
in place.

continued...
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January 27, 2014 Monday 9

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The back door can be locked into place by

using the dowel tab on top.

Dowel tabs hold

back door in place.

Here is the front and back of Metro Hospital

storefront. The back shows how the doors
and hinge bars were inserted into the opening
created.

3- Metro Hospital and the Ambulance

Metro Hospital comes with two window panel

walls and a lamp post.
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10 January 27, 2014 Monday

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Pictures of the ambulance:

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January 27, 2014 Monday 11

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4- Post Office and the Mail Truck

After hours the mail box has to be emptied

and mail brought to the Post Office.
Components that make up the US Post Office
store front.

When the Post Office is open, you can drop

mail off. If it is closed, you can use the mail
box or night drop at the Post Office.
Details of the Post Office:

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12 January 27, 2014 Monday

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5- Puppy Town Store and Puppy Town

continued...
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January 27, 2014 Monday 13

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Limo.

The components that make up the Puppy

Town Store and Limo:

The Puppy Town Limo.

Side walls can be located to the side or to the

back.

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14 January 27, 2014 Monday

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Wood Toy News

6- Metro Warehouse and the Delivery Truck

Wonder where the Town is getting its supplies?
All supplies come from the Metro Warehouse
and they will make Metro Truck deliveries.

The truck can be unloaded now

Not only is the Metro Warehouse Delivery

Truck filled, but it has a cooler for ice cubes.

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January 27, 2014 Monday 15

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Components for the Metro Warehouse:

7- City General Store and Delivery Truck

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16 January 27, 2014 Monday

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General Store and Delivery Truck.

Construction of the Lamp Posts

Heres how the
lamp posts for
the village are
constructed
and
how you can do the
same.
After gluing, stain
and apply finish to
the lamp posts.

continued...
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January 27, 2014 Monday 17

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Construction of the Fire Hydrants

Heres how the fire hydrants are constructed
and how you can do it.

1. Glue two dowels together

2. Glue other smaller wheel

1. Drill small hole into half round

2. Drill hole for smaller dowel
3. Flat wheel
4. Small plane wheel
5. Flat wheel

Glue tops into assembly and small accent

dowels.

Glue pieces together.

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18 January 27, 2014 Monday

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Wood Toy News

Paint and apply finish to the hydrants.

Dave Szczepanek
Bopas Wood Shop
Avon, Indiana USA
Dave can be contacted at:
szczepanek1643@sbcglobal.net

DOWNLOAD Table Saw Magic Antique Metro Trucks

Plan Set by copying & pasting this link into your
browser: http://ow.ly/sZOuG

www.toymakingplans.com 2014

January 27, 2014 Monday 19