Making Tin Can Toys by Edward Thatcher 1919

Chapter 2

Tools and Appliances part 3

Laying Out and Marking Off the Work. - Before attempting to begin actual work with the cans" it may be well to consider various ways of measuring to certain dimensions and transferring these measurements to the surface of the tin, and laying out and marking off the work for cutting, folding, etc

The tools needed for this work are few and simple. A ruler, a marking awl, a small try square, and a pair of spring dividers are all one needs for this part of the work. The ruler may be of wood or metal and should be at least 12 inches in length with the inch divisions marked on it. A plain straight rule of hard wood such as is used in the grade schools will do very well.

The marking awl may be purchased at any good tool house or hardware store, or an ice pick will do very well if sharpened to a good point so that a line may be easily scratched in the surface of the tin wit the point. A large stiff needle may be forced in pen handle to make an excellent marking awl or common steel knitting needle may be used if the point is sufficiently sharp. Metal workers always scratch their dimension lines in the surface of the metal as pencil lines are easily rubbed away by the hands when working with the metal.

The try square should be about six inches long at the blade or measuring side, and should be entirely constructed of metal and the measuring blade should be marked off in inches and fractions thereof. Good try squares may frequently be purchased in the 5 and 10 cent stores and these are quite accurate enough for the purpose. The spring dividers should be about 6 inches in length. These dividers are held open by the strong spring in the top and are opened and closed by a nut acting on the screw thread. Do not purchase the heavy dividers or compass commonly used by carpenters as these are not as capable of the small adjustments as are the spring dividers. The spring dividers may sometimes be found at the 5 and 10 cent stores and may always be found at good hardware stores and tool houses.

All the tools used for laying out and marking off the work are plainly shown (Plate VI).

Tools needed for Tin Can Toy Making