DIY Cardboard Choo...choo... Train!!!

Hello creative minds. This train will really awake the inner child in you .

You can even control it's speed.

It's the best combination of fun with cardboard and magnet.

Most of the components used in this projects are salvaged from home, even the circuit.

So anyone can make this project with very little effort.

The supplies needed are:

Cardboard

Two small neodymium magnets[I got it from an old dvd writer]

Thermocol

Glue

Power supply 12 v

Geared motor dc motor

Thermocol cutter

Glue gun

Scissors

Cello tape

Old scale

Bottle caps or any piece of circular plastic

From a large cardboard box cut out the desired sheet of cardboard for your train. We need two identical sheets . Remember the size of the sheet determines the size of the track and the size of the geared motor. You would need large motors to drive large shafts.

Now draw the track of your choice .You can draw simple circular tracks for much simplicity or can draw a little bit tricky track like the one I drawn .Then cut out the track with thermocol cutter.

Glue the track to the other cardboard piece. Remember to put spacings before joining it to the cardboard. The spacing will help the cap to slide firmly along the track. A scale is attached to the end of the geared motor .The geared motor is then fixed to a hard cardboard piece. Which is then it is glued onto the track. One neodymium magnet is glued in to the cap. This magnet will be used to pull the train above the cardboard. The cap is then attached to the other end of the scale using threads as shown in the image.

The way in which the geared motor pull the cap is shown in the last few photos. You could make a simpler circular track to avoid any complexity. I even didn't had a powerful geared motor so I had to add additional gears to facilitate the movement of the cap through the track . Which may not be necessary if you have a geared motor with sufficient torque or a smaller track etc.

You can make any design for your train .I used thermocol ,cardboard rolls etc to make it. I have provided the templates used for my build .I used caps of glue bottles and pens to add detail elements of the trains . And then finally paint it.

Using color full book binds one can cutout trees and signals templates . Now mark the track for your train using a black marker as shown. I also made a cover for the circuit using card board and fitted it with light and switch.

You can simply connect the motor to a power supply . The use of the circuit is only needed if you want to control the speed of the train .I made the circuit using lm317 IC ,capacitors , resistors(10k ohm variable,220ohm) and diodes . I got all the parts for the circuit from an old receiver and a stereo.

Attach magnet to the base of the train via a cello tape .Make sure to check the pole of the magnet facing downwards . It should be attached so that when the train is placed on the track the magnet placed on the cap attract it. Now you can add a small incense stick at the nozzle to create the smoke effect. Finally our build is complete.

Thank you for reading

I hope everyone liked this project.

Yours,

MISFIT MAKER

This is optional if you have motor with enough torque ,you can directly connect it with scale .Unfortunately at the time I only had this motor (as shown) ,so had to make a gear mechanism as shown from two small bearings (from a fidget spinner),a gear from the printer mechanism and a 10mm nut and bolt.