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Toddler Flintstone Car

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introToddler Flintstone Car

I have a 20 month old grandaughter and a 14 month old grandson who are dressing up as Pebbles and Bambam for Halloween. I decided they needed a Flintstone Car to complete the look. This is how I made it...
Toddler Flintstone Car
 
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step 1Log Sides
Using a cartoon picture of the Flintstone's Car I drew out the sides on 1/2" plywood making them the same width as a large swim noodle and scaled the length to match. Once cut these plywood pieces would provide the shape of the log sides and determine the scale of the rest of the car. Next I cut a large 4" swim noodle in half using a table saw. After doing some basi…

step 2Frame, Seat, and Wheels
I next built a simple frame that would be strong enough to hold the entire assembly together. My original plan was to leave the floor open so the kids could push with their feet. However, my grandkids were too small to move the car so I later installed a floorboard to protect their little feet while being pushed. The seat was constructed from scrap wood and I used a…

step 3Rock Wheels and Dashboard
After making the 12" wheels I coated them very unevenly with Bondo-Filler to add imperfections so they would look more like rock instead of a smooth tube. My daughter then sanded them to remove any rough edges and painted them the same rock pattern she used on the seat. Once completed they were held in place with woodscrews between the fiberglass sides. The holes in…

step 4Car Top
To make the top I ran a 2x4 through a table saw several times turning it slightly each time. This produced poles that looked like they were whittled from wood. I then cut them to length. Once the cutting was complete Pebbles and Bambam tested the car to ensure it was the right size and then decided they wanted to help. After the kids were safely inside I used a ho…

step 5Castors
The original castors were attached to the frame but I soon found that the rock wheels had a tendency to scrape when the car went across uneven ground. To fix this I cut openings in the bottom of the rock wheels and installed a 2x4 flush with the bottom. This provides a strong mount for the castors. I then attached the castors using 2" lag bolts.

step 6Project Complete!
The last step was to add detail to the car. I painted the ends of the log sides to simulate wood grain and touched up any imperfections on the car. The entire project took me about three weeks with most of the work accomplished on Saturdays when my oldest daughter was in town. Most of the materials used were from scrap wood I had laying around. Since I fabricated t…

82 comments
1-50 of 82
Jan 24, 2010. 10:35 AMsandrualex says:
...unbelievable 
Sep 26, 2008. 2:04 PMchrisbonheur says:
very cool! Think I'll scale up for my older children. thanks.
Mar 10, 2009. 2:44 AMMerlynswolf says:
bugger the older kids im 30.. ill up scale it for me :D
Feb 24, 2009. 7:29 AMzombiehottie0900 says:
i love it
Jan 19, 2009. 9:17 AMFasteners says:
LOLz, im so glad this exists.
Dec 11, 2008. 4:29 PMshevekm says:
kudos
Jan 2, 2009. 11:23 AMfarmerben says:
??????
Jan 2, 2009. 1:36 PMshevekm says:
Uh, it means "nice work".
Jan 14, 2009. 3:42 PMfarmerben says:
thanks kudos
Jan 10, 2009. 9:31 AMmiketherdaintx says:
I was inspired and made a low budget copy of your design. I could not believe the amount of fuss and stopped traffic we had on or street on Halloween Day.People pulled over to take photos of us. Thanks for the inspiration.
Nov 16, 2008. 1:06 AMgahrere says:
Hi, I really am amazed by the way you take all the trouble just to make your grandchildren happy. I guess you are but one of the best grand dads the new generation has, nowonder the name GRAND is given to such people as you. By the way you ought to be the overall winner not only for your design but also for your affection. I wish I had ! like you or a parent like you. Guys VOTE for Granddad. Thank you.
Nov 3, 2008. 9:45 PMSuperCoPilot says:
i really hope this is foot powered but curious how is it powered?
Nov 13, 2008. 11:33 AMTitlepending says:
It says below that an adult pushed it =D<br/>Soon to be electric tho<br/>
Nov 3, 2008. 8:52 PMInventMe says:
Yabba Dabba Do!
Oct 17, 2008. 2:27 PMsc6chuck9 says:
Hey this is a really GREAT Project. You have done a fantastic job also. Please get your wife to pat you on the back many many times. I own and operate a machine shop and I'm an ole'fart also, however I have a lot of trouble making ANYTHING that I don't have a blue print for. Job well done sir.
Oct 4, 2008. 7:42 PMkaptaink_cg says:
Wow, That is a VERY cool project!
Sep 25, 2008. 10:29 AMcopycatfilms says:
wow, that is so awesome!! what a memory for those little ones! But one question...how do they push? Their feet don't touch the ground?
Sep 27, 2008. 5:06 AMlemaster63(author) says:
Future filmaker is correct...an adult pushes it. The car is not hard to push but a bit heavy for the kids since there is not a lot of foot traction when your sitting down.
Oct 3, 2008. 8:13 PMdontodamax says:
how much do you think that thing weighed? I'm thinking about making one to,but I'm thinking about making it solar and wind powered
Sep 27, 2008. 6:12 AMcopycatfilms says:
Cool. That makes sense...Fred must've been stronger than we all give him credit for ;-) --best of luck making it motorized or remote, etc. It looks like fun! You deserve Gpa of the year!
Sep 25, 2008. 3:09 PMFuture filmaker says:
the adult pushes... I think
Oct 3, 2008. 5:46 AMlitteratuer says:
You are a good man..and a good grandfather.. :-)
Oct 2, 2008. 5:57 PMalex-sharetskiy says:
Very nice! looks like the real thing!
Jul 5, 2008. 1:04 PMnokindofsupastar says:
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU! My boss decided this year that for the towns annual parade (which is a cartoon theme this year) that we were going to build a float for "the Jetsons meet the Flintstones" .... I am building one of these Flintstones cars to trail along behind the actual flat bed that will have the Flintstones house atop it. The car I'm building is a little bit bigger with 2 bench (one in the front and one in the back) because we have full grown adults dressing up as the Flintstones and Jetsons characters. But I seriously wouldn't have been able to even conceive the idea of the car! Thank goodness I ran across your page! You did a magnificent job! Thanks again!
Oct 1, 2008. 3:51 PMcanida says:
How did it go?
Jul 5, 2008. 7:08 PMlemaster63(author) says:
I'd love to see a picture when your finished.
Oct 1, 2008. 1:06 PMNachoMahma says:
. Wow! That is soooooooo cool. Fantastic job.
Oct 1, 2008. 8:33 AMm_yazhini says:
(removed by author or community request)
Sep 30, 2008. 7:17 PMzomfibame says:
that thing is out of sight , it's great; thanks for putting it on here for the rest of us to see it.
Sep 30, 2008. 7:09 PMThe Handmade Project says:
Yay! Brings me back to eighties cartoons and sugary cereal!
Sep 30, 2008. 5:00 PMDragon Maze says:
It's magical submissions like your's that make this site blow my mind. Talk about contributing to make a pure and giving community. Anyone outside this site would be looking to SELL plans for such a lavish creation. :P
Sep 27, 2008. 9:22 PMMoonfae says:
Wow, that's pretty incredible. those are some very lucky kids. I wonder if i could get my father in law to make that for my daughter.
Sep 26, 2008. 9:40 PMwiley coyote says:
You got skills! I want one.
Sep 26, 2008. 4:03 AMjeff-o says:
Awesome work! My daughter may end up dressing as Pebbles for Halloween, and now I wonder if I will have enough spare time to build this!
Sep 25, 2008. 10:56 PMKaptinScarlet says:
Absolutely amazing, now that's what you have a granddad for. Lovely pictures and well thought through instructable as well. Top Stuff.
Sep 25, 2008. 9:58 PMJahoovi says:
lawl 5*
Sep 25, 2008. 2:57 PMbobhill125 says:
bam bam
Sep 17, 2008. 7:28 AMjeymeowmix says:
i saw this in MAKE :D
Sep 17, 2008. 5:24 AMMrUbuntu says:
Great Instructable! I would like to have a life size one of these that i could drive
Aug 15, 2008. 8:33 PMsusanfromhauntspace says:
this is AWESOME!!!! well done, can i ride in it? ;-)
Jun 25, 2008. 10:11 PMGrey_Wolfe says:
I so want to do this for my kids, when I get the money to buy the supplies. This is an excellent project. Show it to my wife, and she thought so too. You, sir, are an artist. I'd rate you at 5 if I could just figure out how. lol What's gonna be your next custom stroller? Mystery machine? Speed Racer would be cool. Keep up the good work, Bud.
Jun 19, 2008. 5:23 AMandyhuntdesigns says:
Most impressive! Next up, a flying Jetson's-mobile!
May 26, 2008. 7:45 AMHammyHavoc says:
Love it. I want a full size one >.>
Jun 16, 2008. 2:15 PMgordokury says:
Yes! me too!
May 6, 2008. 6:07 AMlolochaust says:
sexy legs =0
Apr 14, 2008. 11:31 AMkiaulune says:
We tried and tried to come up with a way to make a Flintstone car for last Halloween, but eventually gave up on the idea because it was too complicated. It's great to see someone who actually pulled it off really really nicely! We ended up with a kid-sized sarcophagus and two mini-mummies to inhabit it and actually won a local costume competition... but I'm guessing if you had entered we wouldn't have had a chance!
Mar 25, 2008. 8:47 PMhappycamperama says:
wow - you rock! Halloween isn't huge in Australia but I am sure we can find a dress up party to go to! What a great project to do with the kids.thanks!
Mar 13, 2008. 5:49 PMbcr8ve says:
This is wonderful! What lucky grandchildren you have! My niece's favorite hairstyle was the Pebbles Flintstone topknot when she was little. She would have adored a car like this.
Feb 1, 2008. 10:51 AMsrilyk says:
Amazing! Great Job!
Dec 14, 2007. 8:34 AMcody212 says:
how long did it take to make
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