"KIDSTER" By Marvin Hartley DAD WILL have little trouble "selling" the family small fry on the features of this sporty, pedal-driven auto—one look will be enough. They'll be quick to see the real headlights, plastic windshield, rubber tires and airplane-type steering wheel. Built from common parts and stock lumber, the car features a chain drive, using a standard tricycle sprocket bolted to a pipe support. Fig. 1 gives the dimensions for laying out the sides on 1 x 12-in. pine stock. Cleats for supporting the sheet-metal sheet-m etal hood hood and rear re ar deck are screwed and glued to the inner faces of the sides 1/2 in. down from the top edge. Mounting cleats for the pillow blocks which carry the rear axle are centered in the wheel openings. Remember to make a right and left-hand assembly. The sides are joined together at the front with a heavy cross member, to which the pipe support is bolted, and at the back with a 1 x 6 board. Long flat-headed screws are used to fasten these cross members, the rear member being 16 in. long, and the front one 14-1/2" long. The seat board and back are also screwed in place at this time. The final wooden piece to be added is the 1 x 6-in. board that supports the windshield and steering-column bracket. However, you may find it more convenient to fasten this in place after the pillow blocks for the steering assembly are installed. Fig. 2 shows the chassis assembly at a glance. glance. The 3/4-in. pipe support sup port for the car is drilled at the points indicated for mounting the tricycle sprocket, the eyebolt for the steering column and the bolts which anchor the pipe to the body. A U-shaped yoke, bent from flat iron, is used to fasten the rear end of the pipe to the bottom of the seat. Lengths of 1/2-in. cold-rolled shafting are used for the steering assembly, the steering column and the front and rear axles. Details in Figs. 2 and 3 show how "knuckles" for the front wheels are improvised from 1/4-in. pipe tees. These are drilled or reamed out and then cross-pinned to lengths of 1/2-in. 190
POPULAR MECHANICS
P E D A L M A T IC
MARCH 1951
F O R '5 1
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The wooden
radiator ornament is screwed to the hood from the underside, while two roundheaded screws hold the flat-iron bumper in place
Like a tricycle, braking is done with the pedals, and if the driver has difficulty reaching the pedals, a back cushion can be provided
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rod, 3-in. lengths being provided for the wheel axles. Note that the tees are pinned about 3/4 in. from the ends of the vertical lengths to permit attaching radius arms to the lower ends. Cranks taken from tricycle pedals were used for these on the original car, although you can make them from bar stock, drilling and tapping each one for for a setscrew. Note that a third crank is used on the steering column to engage a slotted bracket riveted to a flat-iron radius rod. Two collars, one above and one below the lower pillow block on each side of the car, hold the steering assembly in place. The lower end of the steering column is supported by an eyebolt, while the upper end is held by a flat-iron flat-iron b r ac k et . A pipe pipe spacer placed over the upperend of the shaft holds the column in place. The pipe flange, to which the steering wheel is fastened, is drilled out and pinned to the column. Pillow blocks, which provide bearings for the real wheels, are screwed securely to the ends of the mounting cleats provided, and an 8-tooth standard sprocket is fitted to the axle in line with the tricycle sprocket. Slotted mounting holes in the latter provide takeup of the roller chain. Any 10-in. semi-pneumatic, ball-bearing wheels can be used. Details in Fig. 2 show how the left wheel is locked to the rear axle. The sheet-metal hood and deck covering are attached to the cleats with oval-headed screws and cup washers, spaced about 2 in. apart. The windshield consists of two piec pieces es of clear clear plast plastic ic 5 x 8 in. which are fastened to the body at about a 2-in. slant with pieces of metal angle. The lights used are battery-operated headlights purchased at a bicycle shop, and are attached to the hood by driving the mounting screws into wooden blocks fitted under the sheet metal. POPULAR MECHANICS