An Old-Timey Wooden Top

By The Mother Earth News Editors
Published on May 1, 1980
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The finished wooden top, ready for a spin.
The finished wooden top, ready for a spin.
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To make the project simpler, redraw these patters on 1/2
To make the project simpler, redraw these patters on 1/2" squares then transfer to your working material. Be sure to retain the center-point mark on the circular flywheel.)

Amidst the gadgetry and gimcrackery of today’s modern toys, a plain old-fashioned plaything sure looks good! And it would be hard to imagine a more old-timey toy than the homemade wooden top put together by MOTHER EARTH NEWS’ craftsmen.

The little spinner can easily be built by even the most amateur woodworker . . . and requires nothing more than a coping saw, a drill (with 1/8″, 3/8″, and 7/16″ bits), some sandpaper, a small roundhead finishing brad, carpenter’s glue, a 3 1/2″ length of 3/8″ dowel, a 2″ section of 1″ dowel, an old shoestring, a piece of scrap wood (that measures about 3/4″ X 5″ X 7″), and approximately half an hour of time.

Cut the wood to size, then carefully drill a “pilot” hole through the handle and cope out the round opening that serves as the top’s string housing.

With that done, “guesstimate” the center of the just-cut opening and bore two 7/16″ holes — on a vertical line that intersects the central point — through the upper and lower “walls.” Next, carefully drill a straight 3/8″ hole exactly through the midpoint of the toy’s flywheel . . . to serve as the axle mount.

Now take your piece of 1″ dowel, find its center, and drill a 3/8″ hole about 1/4″ into one end. Using a coarse piece of sandpaper (or a file), fashion the opposite end of the peg into a point and tap your brad right into the tip. To complete the “gyro” part of the top, lightly coat one end of your 3/8″ dowel with glue and push it through the wooden disc until a 1/4″ nub protrudes. Cover the nub and a small area around it with adhesive, and fasten your metal-tipped peg to the flywheel and its axle. Then temporarily slip the shaft into the handle’s two holes and drill a 1/8″ bore through the rod to serve as a catch for the string “motor”.

Finally, sand the entire knickknack to a smooth finish (you might want to round its edges), and stain it or add a coat of polyurethane if desired.

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