Carriage Repair

Several years ago, I made this cart.  I no longer have the reference, but it was patterned after a sturdy antique vehicle that had been rebuilt and was for sale (and therefore had lots of pictures online).  I never quite finished it - the hand rails and seat cushions were never glued in, and I hadn't attached the wheels as I originally intended to paint them.

I took a few photo show pictures, and set it aside.  Today I pulled it out to finish, so I could box it up and put it away.  And then, I remembered why I hadn't finished it.

See that spot lit by the sun on the left?  It's supposed to be attached.

The springs had popped loose.  Pushing them in meant that the brass strips that hold the slats onto the floor of the cart (which attach under the seat) didn't fit.  I had to re-bend the springs and then tack down the brass strips, which I hadn't done.  It was literally a 4-handed job: one hand to hold the pliers holding  the tack (the cut-off head of a pin), one to hold the...thing...(it's a long metal stick so you can hammer in a small place, not sure what it's called), one to hold the hammer, and one to hold the upside down carriage still.  Luckily, my dad helped out.

Much cheaper than buying dollhouse nails.

Upper left corner...that little silver dot was problem #2!

Fixing that made two of the floor slats pop loose, then re-fastening a few other parts I had left holes for but not pinned caused the wood to crack.  In the end, though, it didn't need repainting, which is why I had left things unattached.  But on to the fun stuff!
The competition number is made from a small plastic bag.  If you can find a stiff cellophane one, you can carefully heat-seal the plastic with a heated butter knife.  Be sure to use one that you won't use for food again; a candle will heat the edge enough.  The number card was made on the computer.  The top edge is just folded paper, and the number is attached by handmade wire hooks strung through two holes in the bottom of the trunk.

The trunk opens using dollhouse hinges, and I'd like to make a full spares kit to go in it.  The cart was painted with model car spray paint - the original was also painted with automotive paint in this color.

 The cart is made mainly of basswood, which is very soft but comes in pre-cut strips from the craft store.  The only power tool I used was a power table sander (and that wasn't even necessary).  Basswood has less grain than balsa, and I think it's a little denser.  Hardwood would have been better, but there's no way I could cut even slats by hand.  Three brass strips hold the slats together - they were sanded rough so that the glue would stick.  A few key places are attached with dollhouse nails (that came with the hinges) which are then bent over on the inside if they stuck out.  The singletree under the curved brace swivels and the "bolt" is a cut-off nail.

The dash is leather, folded in half with short loops glued inside for the frame.  The cushions are two layers of craft foam, covered with black skiver leather.  Unfortunately I misplaced the back cushion, but you can see the strips of brass tacked on with pins.  The holes in the brass strips were made by carefully hammering a small nail in just far enough to create a hole. The edges were then hammered flat.  The hand rails, the dash frame, and the tug pulls were made of hollow aluminum tubing from a hobby shop.  This must be bent carefully and slowly, or else it will collapse or break off, but it wasn't too hard.  The ends of the tubes were hammered flat so that they could be pinned (for the tugs) or fit into grooves and glued (for the arm rests).  The dash frame was left round and pins the seat brace to the top of the foot area.  The springs were made of a thicker wire - lead-free solder?  and flattened on the ends (which were bent around an eye bolt on the bottom, and nailed to the seat on top), and in the center, where they were wired together into a curvy X shape.

 What you may or may not be able to see here is the joint in the shafts.  It is a faint line between the dash and the singletree ring. The good thing about using basswood or balsa is that it is easy to bend.  The hard part is a multi-directional bend, so each shaft is made in two parts and then joined.  Draw the curve you need on a piece of scrap wood (such as a 2x4) and hammer long sturdy nails along that line so that they stick up about 2 inches.  Simmer the strips of wood one at a time in a pot of water until they're soft enough to bend, then ease them around the nails.  Clamp in place (little spring clips will work) until dry.  Repeat until the piece is as thick as you want, spreading wood glue liberally between layers.  These shafts were 3 or 4 layers of 1/8" thick strips.  Sand smooth.  The two parts were either notched and glued or pinned with a nail with the head cut off.  These shafts are quite strong thanks to the glue but they can dent if you're not careful.  It is basswood, after all.

 The cart was made to fit the current Breyer doll's legs, so she can sit with her feet flat on the floor.  It is pony sized - specifically Fjord sized, though it also fits the Haflinger and Misty pretty well.  Please forgive the harness, it literally fell to pieces the last time I had it out.  I only used it for 10 years...

 

 I do have all the parts for a very fancy new harness with working tongue buckles, but I have to get the intended horse to a more finished state first.

Dear Breyer, please make another regular run Fjord.  I'm out of cheap bodies, but not ideas.

 The doll is a Breyer western doll with a new shirt, jacket, necklace (made of silver braid), hat, and a driving apron.  Her hands were painted black and the left is slit between the ring and middle fingers so she can hold the reins properly.

And here is the cart in it's finished (except for the missing cushion) state!  The hubcaps are silver brads, the type you fasten paper with.  The wheels are plastic, and unfortunately the store that carried them went out of business long ago.  The real cart was supposed to be incredibly comfortable to ride in, due to the springs, yet very sturdy.  It's nice enough for show pleasure driving, and sturdy enough for a pleasure marathon, a good all-around vehicle.  Kind of the equivalent of a Meadowbrook cart, but with some style.  And blue!

Edited to add: I've found the original reference.  The cart was called the Buckeye Easy Riding Cart and can be seen here: http://www.shadygrovetrainingcenter.com/carriages/newly_renovated_buckeye_cart_200.htm