Better Homes and Gardens (Australia)
BACK OF THE bus
DIY YOUR WAY TO A BRIGHT AND CHEERY BOOK STAND
All aboard to get your kids reading by building a cute bus bookstand. They’ll love the new home for their favourite books and, hopefully, they’ll pull one out to actually read it!
EASY STEPS TO MAKE YOUR BUS BOOKSTAND Gather your supplies
• 140 x 19mm x 1.2m dressed pine
• Undercoat tinted grey
• Red enamel paint
You’ll also need
Combination square; tenon saw; drill; 20mm spade bit; jigsaw; PVA glue; 30mm nails; hammer; 54mm hole saw; sanding block; sandpaper; clamps; painting equipment; dowel or wire; black spray paint; 18mm x 14g pan head screws
Here’s how
STEP 1 Use combination square to mark timber for components, then cut out with a tenon saw.
STEP 2 On front and back, mark out windows – 20mm in from the sides and one end. They are 45mm high.
STEP 3 Mark centre point for drilling holes to make curves of the windows. The points are 30mm in from the side and end near the top corner. Drill holes using a 20mm spade bit.
STEP 4 Use jigsaw to cut out windows. Also round the top corners of the front and back, all corners of the chassis and 2 corners of the bonnet pieces.
STEP 5 Glue bonnet pieces and nail together using 30mm nails.
STEP 6 To cut wheels, mark centre point for hole saw 20mm in from the edge of the timber.
STEP 7 Use a sanding block to smooth out cutting marks on all pieces. Start with a coarse grade before moving to finer grades to smooth out the timber.
STEP 8 Glue and nail front piece to bonnet so their bottom edges are flush and the bonnet sits centrally.
STEP 9 Clamp front assembly to chassis 10mm from one end. Turn over,
clamp to bench then nail. Repeat the process to clamp and nail back piece to other end of the chassis. STEP 10 Undercoat all pieces, then apply 2 coats of red paint to bus. Tinting the undercoat grey makes coverage of the red easier. STEP 11 Thread the wheels onto a piece of dowel or wire and spray paint black.
STEP 12 Insert pan head screws into wheels. Apply glue to flat side and stick to underside of the bus. The centre of the wheels are 60mm from the front and 100mm from the back. STEP 13 Mark and predrill for headlights. They are 15mm from the top edge and 15 and 30mm from the sides. Insert screws.