Overview

We are at the end of the first week of November and if as a woodworker you have not yet given any thought to making Christmas gifts, here is a friendly reminder. In fact, this week's book review should be a giant hint for gifts for those younger giftees. A tissue launching crossbow, a pool cue marble shooter, a gumball machine, a golfinator and, 24 more imaginative toys for girls and boys. This is what Bob Gilsdorf's book is all about. The book is full of colour photos and detailed construction illustrations and great ideas to keep your kids entertained and gamed for hours on end. The toys are easily made in any home woodshop from simple materials that you will find in your scrap wood bin. A little glue, a couple of nails and a little paint and you're done. Tools used are very basic and the toys are imaginative and fun. The ping pong ball launcher will keep a child awed and amused. How about a ten cent labyrinth? Put a dime in one end, twist and turn the toy and hope to get it back. Hand baseball can use a wooden ball, a ping pong ball or even a smurf ball to hit a home run. Ah the fun of it all! Take the book into your shop and have fun building these great toys.Bob Gilsdorf is an inventor of Toys That Whiz, Spin, Pop and Fly. Picking up and reading this book just inspires one to have a go and make something. It contains toy shooters, launchers, games, gumball machines and the list is endless. All the projects shown in this book contain detailed plans, photographic how-to guides and even suggested paint schemes. The good news is that wood is being used as an inventive material. Nothing difficult to make here and most projects can be made by children under Granddads/Dads supervision using scraps of timber off-cuts. I can only sum up this book by quoting: "What do you getl when you combine a creative mind, a spark of ingenuity, a pinch of engineering and the fun of woodworking?" - 28 of the coolest, easy to make wooden action toys ever. This book should be part of any school curriculum and would benefit many a youth club as all the projects can be made with few tools and would introduce many a future woodworker to our enjoyable hobby.Featuring launchers and things that flip, this funny woodworking book appeals to all ages. Lots of drawings and exploded views with detailed measurements make assembly easy. Instruction on woodworking basics and tool usage is tucked in at the end, as are tips for working with children. This is a delightful addition for toy makers. Highly recommended.A public library isn't usually the place where you envision pounding hammers, snapping rubber bands or wads of tissue flying through the air. But that's exactly what kids and their caregivers found Sunday afternoon at the Sand Creek Library as they got a lesson in building their own wooden toys. "I normally think of Home Depot for this kind of stuff," said Zeff Gordon, 10. "But I guess any place is possible." About 25 youngsters and their parents or guardians showed up to get a lesson in toy making from Bob Gilsdorf, local author of the book "Zany Wooden Toys that Whiz, Spin, Pop and Fly." He's an electrical engineer by day but has been inventing wooden toys with his five sons for the past 18 years. The book is an accumulation of the various projects they've made together. Well, most of the projects, anyway. "It's only the toys that worked," he said. "There were quite a few that didn't make the cut." He's put on about four similar events in libraries throughout the area. He said they're popular in the libraries because while the kids are having fun, they're also learning about the invention process, physics and even aerodynamics. On Sunday, the kids screwed and hammered precut pieces of wood into tissue-launching crossbows, a cool name for a contraption that uses a rubber band and a clothespin to send tissue balls flying. Andrew Miller, 11, was excited to be working with tools. He built a birdhouse once but hasn't had any new projects since it broke, he said. His mom, Connie Miller, said she was just happy he could have fun. "It's nice that they can come to the library and they build something but receive an education at the same time," she said.I'll warn you now - this book is a lot of fun. Zany Wooden Toys that Whiz, Spin, Pop and Fly is a collection of woodworking projects for making the most dynamic toys you have ever seen: rapid-fire nickel launchers, monkey-tossing gumball machines, marble shooters, ball & socket robots and so many more action-packed, noise-making, motion-propelled goodies. These entertaining gadgets can be made in just an afternoon's time, with simple materials from the home store, and the easy-to-follow instructions inside Zany Wooden Toys That Whiz, Spin, Pop, and Fly. The handy guide provides readers with everything they need to complete the projects, including basics like: choosing wood, making cuts, drilling, and painting with lead-free paints and finishes. There's a special section on how to successfully make wheels, and axles, and how to work safely with children. Each project includes a photo of the finished toy, a tool and materials list, diagrams and instructions for construction, as well as how to operate the completed plaything. The guide is colourful, and charmingly-illustrated - keeping both the woodworker and his young companions on the edge of their seat for playtime. I can't wait to get my daughter in the shop to make some of these fun projects. I think we're going to start with the Tissue-Launching Crossbow.Written by Bob Gilsdorf, a third-generation woodworker, this 224-page softcover is a collection of woodworking projects for making all sorts of dynamic toys, like marble shooters and monkey-tossing gumball machines. Each project includes a photo of the finished toy, a tool and materials list, and instructions for construction.Become a master toy builder by checking out this book which features 28 projects that you can build on your own! Divided into fun sections like Shooters, Launchers, Games, Toys, and Gumball Machines, there's something for every creative mind to construct! A section on Woodworking Basics will help you get started, too!Got kids in your life? Zany Wooden Toys That Whiz, Spin, Pop alnd Fly by Bob Gilsdorf is as fun - maybe more so - for the parents or grandparents as it is for kids with its plans for some traditional and carnival type toys including shooters, launchers, handheld games, a ball-and-socket robot and gumball machines. It's designed in comic book style, with tips for success from the cartoon character toy inventor himself....I picked up called Zany Wooden Toys That Whiz, Spin, Pop, and Fly, by Bob Gilsdorf. It took a while, but managed to get hold of Bob and ask permission to make one of his projects for a video. Guys, this is one of the best woodworking books I have ever run across. All 28 projects are ones I would like to build. In most woodworking books, I'm happy to settle for a couple that look doable. These are so creative and clever! I wish I had half the creativity as Bob. All the projects are designed for the total beginning woodworker: you can do them all with a few basic hand tools. But what's cool is that they aren't your typical boring birdhouses and the like. These all do stuff! No, I'm not getting compensated in any way for all this praise. I just really like the book. In exchange for using one of Bob's plans, Fox Chapel Publishing asked me to link to the book here. If you would like to buy one, they have also given me a discount code that will save you 20%. When you check out, enter coupon code zany20. It's good until the end of the year. One of the projects in the book is a soccer player that you control. Using an ingenious rubber band system, his legs kick a ball, but I am making two modified versions that feature the heads of Chuck Norris and Mr.T. so they can have a fight to the finish. I have no doubt Chuck Norris will win. By the way, did you know that Chuck Norris can win a game of Connect 4 in three moves? Yeah man. But this ain't the only amazing Chuck Norris fact. I digress. The project I chose to do for the video is the "10 Cent Labyrinth Challenge". It's really simple to make, but will drive people nuts trying to solve! Enjoy the video.Do you have a child who's interested in woodworking? If you're a parent who has tools, time, and some basic woodworking knowledge, then you and your child may enjoy completing the 28 projects found in Zany Wooden Toys that Whiz, Spin, Pop and Fly by Bob Gilsdorf. In our current society where we are constantly bombarded with technology that provides instant gratification, the thought of actually making a toy sounds appealing. I think woodworking could provide an opportunity to teach kids about hard work and patience. Imagine, too, the pride they would feel when playing with a toy made by their very own hands. The toy projects are divided into categories: Shooters, Launchers, Games, Toys, and Gumball Machines. Each project begins with a basic layout of the project followed by wood patterns, a list of materials and tools, and step-by-step instructions complete with photos or drawings. The material in this guide seems organized and easy to follow, but I do admit this is coming from someone with zero woodworking skills. For those of you who are like me and not too familiar with woodworking, the appendix will come in very handy. It contains woodworking basics, such as selecting and cutting wood, drilling holes, how to nail, and decorating and finishing your wooden toy projects. The appendix also has time-saving tips as well as a list of toy-making supplies that should be kept on hand. Safety and working with small children are also discussed. Zany Wooden Toys, that Whiz, Spin, Pop and Fly is the perfect book for those who love hands-on projects and aren't afraid to use a saw. For just $19.95, you and your child will not only be building toys but memories as well!