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The body, tail, and wings are all just tapered and rounded board shapes — genuinely simple cuts, and easy to treat as the whole project. The part actually worth taking seriously is the suspension hardware: eye lag bolts with washers, rated for the load, threaded well into solid wood, and rope clips positioned beneath the upper eye bolts to keep the plane level. That hardware is what a child's full weight and swinging motion load into, not the plywood body.
Attach the propeller only after painting is finished, since it's a separate spinning piece and painting it in place would either glue it solid or make a mess of the paint job.
| Item | Qty |
|---|---|
| Pine, 2x4, 8 ft |
| 1 each |
| Pine, 1x8, 8 ft | 1 each |
| Pine, 1x6, 10 ft | 1 each |
| Wood dowel, 1", 6–8 in | 1 each |
| Exterior wood screws, 2" | 1 box |
| Exterior wood screws, 1-1/4" | 1 box |
| Lag screw, 3", with washersAttaches the propeller. | 1 each |
| Rope, 3/8"–1/2", exterior rated | 20 ft |
| Eye screw, 3" | 1 each |
| Eye lag bolts, 3", with washers | 3 each |
| Rope clips | 2 each |
| Sandpaper, assorted grit | 2 sheet |
| Exterior paint | 1 can |
| Wood glue | 2 oz |
Overall cost: $. Lumber prices vary by region, species, and season, so we give a band rather than a figure we would only be pretending to know.
| Part | Qty | T × W × L |
|---|---|---|
| Body centerPine 2x4Tapered toward the back. | 1 | 1 1/2" × 3 1/2" × 36" |
| Body sidesPine 1x8Tapered toward the back, rounded at the front bottom. | 2 | 3/4" × 7 1/4" × 36" |
| SeatPine 1x6 | 1 | 3/4" × 5 1/2" × 30 1/2" |
| Tail bodyPine 1x6Rounded ends. | 1 | 3/4" × 5 1/2" × 12" |
| Tail finPine 1x8Rounded top. | 1 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 5" |
| WingsPine 1x6Rounded ends. | 2 | 3/4" × 5 1/2" × 30" |
| Wing spacer boardsPine 2x4 | 2 | 1 1/2" × 3 1/2" × 8 1/8" |
| Handle barPine 1x6Cut from scrap; drilled for the 1" dowel handle. | 1 | 3/4" × 5 1/2" × 8" |
| PropellerPine 1x8 scrapCut from 1x8 offcut. | 1 | 3/4" × 2 1/2" × 6" |
Buy 6 boards at 8 ft.
1 board
1 board
2 boards
1 board
1 board
Assumes 8 ft stock, a 1/8" saw kerf, and buying each part at its own width. Change the board size or kerf on the full board plan →
Cut all the body, seat, tail, and wing pieces per the cut list, tapering and rounding as noted. Begin assembling the tail section, then the seat section, then the wing section, attaching each with 2" exterior screws and glue.
Drill a hole sized to the 1" dowel in the handle bar scrap and glue the dowel in place. Drill pilot holes and install the eye screw and eye lag bolts at the marked suspension points, backed with washers for load-bearing strength.
Sand every surface smooth, then paint. Attach the propeller with the lag screw and washers only after the paint has fully dried, so it can still spin freely.
Feed the rope through the plane and secure with strong knots underneath the wings. Use rope clips beneath the upper eye bolts to keep the airplane hanging level.
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