Chapter XXVI: Clockwork Automobiles

It is generally easy for a boy to get hold of a set of old clockworks, for a discarded clock of some sort is almost certain to be found in the household storeroom. If the main-spring is intact, it is highly probable that a little tinkering and cleaning will be sufficient to put the mechanism in working order, at least so that it can be used for running small engines, automobiles, and other mechanical toys that most interest boys.

Before taking a set of works apart, it is well to examine it carefully and note the positions of the various springs and wheels, so it will be possible to put them together again properly should you wish to do so. Without taking notice of this, you are likely to have a handful of wheels as a result, with which you can do nothing except perhaps convert them into tops.

The adaption of a set of works to

=An Automobile Touring-car= is shown in Figs. 375 and 376, the former showing the little machine completed and the latter its frame with the clockworks fastened in place. The same scheme as that used for the cars of the toy railway described in the preceding chapter will be followed in making

=The Frame= of the automobile, as that is about the simplest way, and makes a light, easy-running vehicle. The bed will be cut of a different pattern, however, as will be seen in Fig. 377. Lay out the piece to the dimensions shown upon this drawing, and then cut it out, making a mortise in each end for the wheels to fit in. The spool wheels should be mounted in the same manner as those of the railway cars, for which see Fig. 359, Chapter XXV, and the directions upon page 335. One end of spool _A_ should be pivoted with a longer finishing nail than those used for the other pivots, so that when driven in place about half an inch will project beyond the frame. A small silk spool should be fastened upon this for a belt-wheel (see _B_, Fig. 377). The hole in one of these spools is about three-sixteenths of an inch in diameter, so, in order to make it fit tightly upon the nail, it is necessary to fill in around the nail with sealing-wax. To do this, turn the wooden frame upon its edge and place the spool over the nail, being careful to get the nail in the exact centre of the hole. Then hold a stick of sealing-wax over the spool, and with a lighted match melt the end and allow it to drip into the hole. When the hole has been partially filled, allow the wax to harden a little, and then press it down around the nail with the end of a match, being careful not to throw the spool out of centre by doing so. The hole should then be filled to the top.

We are now ready to prepare the clockworks for mounting upon the wooden frame. The works shown in Fig. 376 are from an alarm clock, but if you have a striking clock, or one with works a little different from those shown in the illustration, it does not make a bit of difference in the scheme for attaching the works. The three parts shown in the foreground of Fig. 376 must first be removed from the works. These will be recognized readily in any clock, as they are pivoted close together, and regulate the speed of the other wheels. When they have been removed, the main-spring will unwind rapidly. The frame of the works shown in the illustration is held together with nuts, so that in removing the wheels it was necessary to unscrew two of them, spring the frame open enough to let the wheels drop out, and then replace the nuts again in their former positions. If the frame of your clockworks is riveted together, the wheels will have to be broken out. A small silk spool, such as _B_ (Fig. 377), should be fastened upon the small pivot which originally operated the clock's hands, for a belt-wheel. Lay the works upon a table with the face-side down, and, after centring the hole of the spool upon the pivot, fasten it in place with sealing-wax in the same manner as you attached spool _B_.

The works should now be attached to the wooden frame. Place them with the striker uppermost, near the edge of the frame, so that the small belt-wheels are in line with one another. Then bore a number of gimlet holes in the wooden frame and run copper wire through them, passing it around the posts of the clock-frame and twisting its ends until the works are firmly fastened in place.

A rubber band about an eighth of an inch wide and long enough to reach from one belt-wheel to the other should be procured for

=The Belt.=--This should stretch just enough to cling upon the spools, as more than that would cause too much friction.

Before going any further with the construction of the automobile

=Test the Machine=, to be sure that it is in perfect running order. Wind up the main-spring, pressing a finger against one of the wheels to hold it in check until you are ready to start the machine. When properly made, the clockwork automobile should run a distance of from twenty to twenty-five feet upon a wooden floor, while about three-quarters of that distance should be covered upon a floor with a fairly smooth carpet.

=The Cardboard Sides= and other details of the automobile should now be made. The pattern for these have been so shown in Figs. 378-385 that they can easily be laid out to the proper shape and size by means of the process of enlarging by squares described on page 110, Chapter VIII. White cardboard should be used upon which to draw these pieces, and the thinner it is the easier you will find it to work with.

First prepare the two sides, cutting them out by the pattern of Fig. 378. Then glue the bottom edge of each side to the edge of the wooden frame, cutting holes in the left side for the belt-wheels and projecting posts to run through (see Fig. 375 and _A_, _B_, _C_, _D_, and _E_, Fig. 387). The top to the front of the car should now be cut as shown in Fig. 388, the distance between the sides being measured to get the piece of proper dimensions. Bend the edges as in Fig. 388, and glue them to the inner surfaces of the side-pieces as shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 387. In the same way cut and glue a piece of cardboard between the side-pieces at _G_ and _H_ (Fig. 387) for the seat-backs. The bent edges of these pieces are shown by dotted lines in the illustration. Draw four

=Wheels= as shown in Fig. 379, using a compass with which to describe the circles, and cut them out with a sharp knife. You can cut out between the spokes, if you wish, or leave them solid. Glue the wheels to the cardboard, placing their centres about as located at _I_ and _J_, Fig. 387. Four

=Mud-guards= should be cut like Fig. 380, with flaps made along one edge. Then bend these guards around the tops of the wheels, and, after applying glue to the flaps, press them against the cardboard side, holding your fingers upon the flaps until the glue has dried (see Fig. 375). The guards should be placed a little above the tops of the wheels. Cut four

=Lamps= like Fig. 381, and glue end _K_ of two upon the front of the automobile at _L_ (Fig. 387) and one of the other two upon each side at _M_. These lamps are shown in position in the illustration of the completed automobile (Fig. 375). Draw and cut

=The Steering-wheel= similarly to Fig. 382, and, after pivoting it to the end of a strip of cardboard with a pin, as shown in Fig. 389, bend the lower end and glue it to the under side of the cardboard top _F_ at _N_ (see Fig. 387, also Fig. 375). Make a

=Horn= like Fig. 383, and glue it to the steering-wheel as shown in Fig. 389. A strip of cardboard about the size of that used for the upright of the steering-wheel should be cut for

=The Brake=, and glued to the inside surface of the right side of the car at _O_ (Fig. 387).

=The Chauffeur= should now be made. Cut his head and body the shape and size of Fig. 384, drawing the face upon each side with goggles over the eyes. Cut the arms in two pieces the shape of _P_ and _Q_ (Fig. 385), and then pivot _P_ to _Q_ at _R_ and the end of _Q_ to the shoulder of the body at _S_, using thread for fastening the pieces together. Paint the hat, coat, sleeves, and gloves a leather color, and the face flesh color. The body should then be fastened to the hammer of the clockworks with sealing-wax, as shown in Fig. 386, while the left hand should be glued to the edge of the steering-wheel and the right to the end of the brake (see Fig. 375). By thus attaching the body to the end of the hammer, and winding up the small spring, the chauffeur will shake violently when the auto runs across the floor, showing the vibrations of the machine in a greatly exaggerated and amusing manner.

It is now only necessary to

=Paint the Machine= to complete it. The photograph (Fig. 375) indicates the different colors used. The lamps, and top, ends, and sides of the front portion of the car should be painted the color of brass, and the rest of the sides, with the exception of a strip along the bottom and the edge of the arms, should be painted vermilion. Paint the inside of the car and the edges of the seat-arms tan color, to represent leather upholstering. With black paint, or ink, stripe off the door and trimmings upon the sides and top of the machine, as shown in Figs. 375, 387, and 388. Blacken the brake and steering-wheel and the spokes and rims of the wheels. Along the bottom of each side roughly indicate some machinery with black paint, about as it is drawn in Fig. 387.

When you have tired of your touring-car, you can easily convert it into

=An Automobile Delivery Wagon=, such as illustrated in Fig. 390. To make this you will require the same frame as that used for the touring-car, with the clockworks and belt-wheels attached in the same manner. If you have made the touring-car, remove the cardboard sides from its wooden frame, separating the cardboard from the wood carefully, so you can put the machine together again when you wish. If you haven't made this automobile, you will find the details for the construction of the frame in Figs. 376 and 377, and the manner of performing the work described on pages 343 to 346.

=The Cardboard Sides= are much easier to prepare than those for the touring-car, as they are straight and require but little cutting. The outline for these is shown in Fig. 390, surrounding the drawing of the completed wagon. Lay out one side upon a piece of cardboard, using the dimensions given upon the drawing, and then place it upon a board and cut it out with your knife. Using this as a pattern, place it upon another piece of cardboard and run a pencil around its edges, thus marking out the second side. In cutting out the latter piece, run your knife a little inside of the line in order to allow for the increase in size caused by marking it out with the first cardboard side. Having prepared the two sides, draw panels upon them in some such form as shown in the illustration, separating them with three lines. Draw a small window, with its top slightly arched, near the front edge of each side, and cut an opening for it (see illustration).

Glue the sides to the edges of the truck in the same manner as those of the touring-car were done, piercing holes for the posts of the clockworks to fit in, and openings for the belt-wheels to project through, in the left side. Cut a piece of cardboard for the back of the wagon, fit it between the sides, and fasten it in place by gluing a number of linen strips to it and the sides upon the inner or unexposed surfaces. Then cut a piece of cardboard for the roof, making it about two inches longer than the sides, to give it the proper projection over the front of the wagon. Fasten this piece in position in the same manner as you fastened the back of the wagon.

Make the floor and footboard for the wagon out of a piece of cardboard bent as shown in Fig. 390, and fasten it across the top edges of the projecting portions of the sides with linen strips. Cut a strip for a seat, and fit it between the sides an inch and one-half above the floor.

=The Wheels= of an automobile wagon contain fourteen spokes, but as you have the pattern for the touring-car wheels of twelve spokes, you can just as well use it in making the wagon wheels. They should be mounted upon the sides of the wagon, a trifle above the bottoms of the spool wheels, as shown in the illustration, so they will not touch the carpet when the machine is operated.

=All Other Portions= of the wagon should be made of the same patterns given for the touring-car, viz. the chauffeur (Figs. 384 and 385), the steering-wheel (Figs. 382 and 389), the brake (Fig. 375), and the lamps (Fig. 381). As the legs of the chauffeur will show, it will be necessary to cut a pair out of cardboard (the drawing shows the shape clearly enough to work by) and fasten them to his body. Fasten the chauffeur upon the seat and glue his left hand to the steering-wheel, placing the latter in front of him, as shown in the drawing. Stick the lower end of the cardboard upright of the steering-wheel upon a pin run through the wagon floor from the under side. Glue the upper end of the brake to the chauffeur's hand and the lower end to the side of the wagon.

=Paint the Wagon= with water colors, making the sides, end, and roof olive green, the steering-wheel, brake, and spokes of wheels black, and the lamps yellow or the color of brass. In painting the sides show the battery compartments upon them below what would properly be the bottom of the wagon (see illustration). Leave the cardboard white below this box, as it represents no portion of the machine, but is necessarily brought down so far to conceal the wooden frame. It will give the machine a more finished appearance if, after painting, you go over it with black paint and a fine brush and stripe the panels upon the sides, following the lines which you drew upon them with a pencil. Letter the word "Delivery" upon the centre panel of each side, and the firm name in the small panel between the lamp and window.

By attaching a set of clockworks in the same manner as described for the automobiles, you can make

=A Clockwork Railway=, constructing the cars similarly to the street car shown in Fig. 363, Chapter XXV, and using the schemes in the same chapter for the tracks and depots.