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BuiltWithNOF
Fire Engine (4)
Making the Ladder

The ladder was made from 2 strips of plywood joined by dowel. The plywood had blind holes drilled in it to accept the dowel which was also glued in place. I also used screws from beneath the roof to hold the ladder in place as I didn’t want to rely just on glue.

Building the body up

This is where it starts to get tricky - the “Big Stick”. The most important consideration was that the wheels went around. By this time the internal panels and the roof was stuck to the chassis. I then temporarliy attached the wheels to the axels and found the best position for the body side - making sure it lined up with the chassis and the wheels would turn.

The wheels are part TW50 from Hobbies. At this point I’ve only used short screws - but the final screws used are Hobbies part SSR81.

Completing the big stick

In this picture - the first body side has been stuck down and the wheels moved to the other side of the axels. The sealent tubes help ensure the 2 sides are lined up and temporarily fitting the wheels ensure they have enough clearance. Some compromise is always necessary as the parts are not made 100% accurately.

I only kept the toy in this rig until the glue began to grip. Then I moved it to the bench vice to clamp it better whilst the glue set overnight.

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All text and images Copyright © 2000-2011 Roland Givan, unless otherwise stated. All Rights Reserved. Game artwork copyright their respective publishers.

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