How to assemble a tank from a metal construction set. How I make motorcycles

This is how I remember my childhood. Light, also due to the abundance interesting technology and iron around. My parents, especially my dad, surrounded me very much from the time I was little. interesting things- then the engine is from a Cossack kitchen table, either a color tube TV disassembled for repair, or a portable Mriya radio, which could play gramophone records while suspended. But most importantly, my parents sometimes bought me various interesting construction sets. And the most memorable thing for me was the “Electrical engineering in 200 experiments” set.

Photo from the Virtual Museum and Directory - Domestic Radio Engineering of the 20th Century

Now, unfortunately, they don’t make such things, including abroad. I constantly look at the shelves of stores with toys both in our country and when I travel around Europe. There is nothing like it. What was good about this designer was that it combined a lot of the most various parts and components from which it was possible to assemble both toys and conduct entertaining physical and electrical experiments. For example, it was possible to assemble a telegraph.

Photo from the Made in Leningrad community

Or an electric motor-fan, or a homemade one galvanic battery, in general, the designer lived up to the name - you could assemble two hundred unique crafts, not counting your own invented ones.

And now, when my son is growing up, I also want to surround him with interesting technical things. And one of them is such a constructor. I don’t want to buy incomplete used ones from 30 years ago, because incompleteness is a tragedy :) And it’s almost impossible to find it at flea markets. But to assemble something similar from available parts It is quite possible, and without much effort.

First, the base, ordinary inexpensive metal construction sets that can still be bought in toy stores.

And secondly, what will bring this constructor to life will add movement. These are motors, wires and batteries. Where can I get them? Ha, I'm sure if you have children, you know what Chinese toys are. They are certainly bought as gifts for children by both parents and grandmothers, acquaintances, and guests of parents. All these flying dogs, jumping cars, barking airplanes - all this breaks down in an hour (day, week) and goes into the trash. But for me they go into the trash only after the main treasure has been extracted from them :)

Engines direct current. Considering that I have four children, I have accumulated a lot of this wealth. How can these motors help? Here's what. One day a couple of years ago, my son and I were tinkering with my tools and I suddenly suggested to him, let’s build a car out of a stick. Who wouldn't agree to this? We took a piece of some kind of block, a motor, nails, an AAA battery and put it together in 30 minutes.

From nails and sticks, literally, it turned out to be an unsightly self-propelled toy. The child did not let go of it all evening, and then showed it to all the guests - “Look what a limousine dad and I made!” That's when I decided it was time to do these things on a more serious level. First we assembled a windmill, a memorable object from our last trip to Europe.

It turned out so cool that there was only one thing left to do, stock up on parts for such crafts in sufficient industrial quantities :) I bought all sorts of switches, battery holders, and rubber bands at the market. Grandmothers and friends were told that now our best gift is a metal construction set. And after a while, my son and I became the owners of the coolest set possible. It was possible to start creating.

Our next craft is an airplane. Twin-engine fighter.

Where there is a plane, there is a helicopter. The son added two additional floors to the main rotor, which seemed better to him.

The child played with this helicopter toy for the longest time, because the main rotor was easily used as Circular Saw grinders - a lot of things in the house were cut down by helicopter - to the delight of my mother :)

Now she walks reluctantly, the mechanism needs to be adjusted.

But immediately after production, the walking machine, as its son nicknamed it, made everyone very happy with its vigorous gait :)

And the very last of our crafts. To make it, I bought on Aliexpress a radio control kit, a remote control with a receiver, a motor with a gearbox and wheels, a steering servo and a motor control board. All these things are available on Ali in abundance different sizes, capacities, opportunities. We made a radio-controlled tricycle with full control - gas, brakes, steering.

There is so much dope in this crazy tricycle that it’s difficult to get going without slipping. But it’s easy to make a police U-turn.

Below is a video of the unequal battle between a mad car and a caterpillar. My son and I collected the caterpillar for an exhibition in kindergarten, there was a need for a craft from natural material, well, we’ve built a realooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo, well, we built a real oooooooooooooo slow caterpillar from coconuts, chestnuts and construction elements. Due to the slowness of the caterpillar, the video is a little long :)

Such wonderful things can be made from ordinary things. metal constructor, fragments of old toys and some purchased parts. The only necessary skill for parents is to be able to solder a little, without this it will be difficult with all these wires, switches and batteries. And, of course, imagination, but usually children have even more of it than adults, so involve your child, he will tell you what to do.

There is, of course, another way. For example ready-made kits Lego. Lego has a windmill.

There are all sorts of racing cars and trucks.

In general, Lego has everything, including robots and kits for customizing and programming them.

But personally, I don’t have a passion for Lego. And my son has problems with Lego, once he dropped the toy, and it was shattered into small cubes, it’s very disappointing to put everything back together. And Lego costs immeasurably, especially interactive robotic kits with motors or limited editions of all sorts of starships from star wars. Our metal will be more affordable, even taking into account the purchase of remote controls on Ali.

There is also an original metal construction set, Meccano. But again, it is very expensive and it is not easy to get it in our area. Therefore, here is the final photo of our wealth.

Designing motorcycles is no less exciting than creating any other vehicles. In addition, a motorcycle, which is essentially a naked concept of a self-propelled mechanism, requires greater design sophistication, inventive talent and the instincts of a good mechanic. I present to the readers my ideas for designing homemade motorcycles. I can say that I have some experience in this kind of work: at the “Motosam-90” show-competition, my home-made motorcycle, the eighth in a row, was presented, a photo of which the magazine’s readers could see in the report from the show in No. 2 for 1991 . The photographs presented on these pages show three more motorcycles of my design. I want to tell readers about one of them - the last and most successful.

Over the course of thirteen years, I designed and built twelve two-wheeled vehicles. They were all significantly different from each other. Moreover, two motorcycles were designed using a partial monocoque design, and three were completely frameless, with a monocoque monocoque body. It is precisely this design solution that I prefer today: it seems to me the most reliable and advantageous in terms of strength, weight and ergonomics.

I hope that my design experience can be useful for those who are planning to make a motorcycle.

So what is a regular frame motorcycle? To simplify the answer, we can say that this is a frame, a fuel tank, tool boxes, an air filter housing with an intake noise muffler, an exhaust muffler, a rear fender with a tail light bracket and numbers, a saddle base, a trunk, as well as a kilogram of all kinds of bolts, nuts, bushings , pins, washers and rubber bands, with the help of which all of the above are connected into a single structure.

If you sum up the masses of these components and assemblies, you get a very impressive value. In addition, when all this is put together, it forms a far from aesthetically pleasing “skeleton”, which has many secret places where absolutely irremovable dirt will inevitably accumulate - you can only get rid of it by completely disassembling the motorcycle.

A year or two passes - and the tool boxes begin to rattle, cracks creep along the rear fender, the number plate along with the bracket falls off... And if the motorcyclist, God forbid, gets into at least a minor accident or even simply falls? In these cases, the frame bends and dents appear on the tank and tool boxes. Huge lower mufflers cause even more trouble, clinging even to smooth asphalt when cornering and significantly reducing passability on bad roads.

The two-wheeled vehicle, designed according to the “monocoque” design scheme, is free of all these shortcomings. Such a motorcycle is a monoblock welded box-shaped structure that performs the functions of all the parts and assemblies listed above. Interestingly, the spatial box structure is significantly more rigid and durable than the classic frame structure (including duplex frames). The use of a “monocoque” design in a motorcycle design not only reduces the weight of a two-wheeled vehicle, but also brings the motorcycle’s center of gravity closer to the ground. This happens due to the fact that in this design the tool box and battery compartment are located in the lower part of the body, and a lightweight air filter with an intake noise muffler is located in the upper part, where the fuel tank cap is located on classic motorcycles. The air intake is made above the steering column - in this area the cleanest, dust-free air is. An exhaust noise muffler may also be located inside the monocoque, but reliable thermal insulation from the fuel and seat cushion must be ensured.

1 - rearview mirror, 2 - secret fuel tank plug, 3 - shock absorber compensation chamber, 4 - shock absorber with a stroke of 120 mm, 5 - swing lever, 6 - push lever, 7 - brake rod, 8 - rear part of the body with exhaust muffler (left) and oil tank (right), 9 - rear turn signal, 10 - parking light and brake light (dual), 11 - exhaust pipe (left), 12 - brake disc with a diameter of 300 mm, 13 - chain catcher, 14 - rear wheel sprocket (z=37), 15 - rear wheel suspension pendulum, 16 - drive sprocket (z=15), 17 - foot brake pedal, 18 - drive box lever gears, 19 - winch drum, 20 - muffler - resonator, 21 - winch cable guide bracket, 22 - front brake disc with a diameter of 300 mm.

Rice. 2. Monocoque body layout. The cell size of the scale grid is 100×100 mm.

Pictures 1 and 2 show my enduro motorcycle and its monocoque body with rear suspension and engine protective frame. The weight of the monocoque is only 23 kilograms, and the useful volume of such a body is about 56 liters, of which 41 liters are for fuel tanks (more than that of the Zhiguli!), and the remaining volume of the body is fully used. At the same time, the motorcycle does not look bulky. On the contrary, it has relatively small dimensions - in particular, the base of the machine is only 1350 mm (smaller than that of any Izhevsk motorcycle).

It must be said that making a monocoque body is no more difficult than welding a good frame and equipping it with all the attached parts. You just need to strictly adhere to the pre-developed technology so that all the parts fit together well and are convenient to weld.

When drawing the design of the body, take care to ensure a comfortable position for the driver - this is especially important for enduro-type motorcycles - as well as the safety of the motorcyclist’s movements, ease of movement in a sitting position, in a rack and in the drawbar.

After choosing the optimal, in the designer’s opinion, layout solution, you should draw the entire motorcycle in full size - depict a side view, top view, front and rear, and also draw the most characteristic sections. The more detailed the drawing documentation, the easier further work on the manufacture of a two-wheeled vehicle will be.

It is most rational to place the engine directly on the axis of the pendulum. In this case, the reaction from the tension of the drive chain is connected directly to the pendulum. And it is far from small - sometimes it reaches the breaking strength of the chain, that is, almost two tons! It is necessary to mount the powerful and not very well balanced Izh-Planet engine (as well as all cross-country motors) using silent blocks or rubber cushions. You just need to take into account that the chain not only pulls the engine back, but also turns it in a horizontal plane due to the asymmetrical arrangement of the chain.

When creating a monocoque body, it is very convenient to use the volumetric prototyping method. In this case, the body layout is assembled from cardboard blanks, which are connected using strips of paper and glue. In the process of making a model, as a rule, changes occur in the design of the body, since not everything can be provided for in flat drawing projections. Simultaneously with prototyping the case, it is advisable to work out a technological map of its assembly - this will ensure convenience welding work. It is necessary to take into account the possible warping of metal workpieces when welding the body with uneven heating. Keep in mind that the parts that hold the swingarm and steering column are welded last. If necessary, they should be adjusted to the body so that on the finished motorcycle the planes of the wheels coincide with the plane of symmetry of the monocoque body.

The finished volumetric model is cut at the gluing points, and the cardboard patterns of the monocoque elements are numbered: it is from these patterns that blanks will be cut from a steel sheet of the appropriate thickness - from 1.2 to 1.5 mm. The easiest way to do this is with a chisel on a massive anvil.

Welding must be carried out in strict accordance with technological map. To make the seams look neat and strong, the edges of the parts being welded should be slightly bent, as shown in Figure 3.

To ensure sufficient strength of the monocoque body, it is advisable to introduce additional reinforcements, flanges, and stiffeners into its design. For example, the steering column on my motorcycle and the transverse stiffening beam, to which the bracket for the only shock absorber of the rear suspension is welded, are additionally connected steel pipe rectangular section 25x40 mm. In addition, it is convenient to place electrical wiring and motorcycle control cables inside this pipe.

The design of the intake silencer significantly affects the engine power and its torque characteristics. The larger its volume, the easier the engine “breathes,” and the less air pulsation in the filter, which means less noise. Experts recommend setting the muffler volume to at least 20 engine displacements. The path from the air filter to the carburetor must be smooth, eliminating turbulence in the air flow, which significantly reduces engine power.

After welding, the monocoque body is checked for leaks - first with water and then with clean gasoline. If there is no leak welding seams coated from the inside with liquid epoxy glue - it will fill small pores, bind pieces of slag and drops of metal - this is especially important for an intake noise muffler.

Rear suspension - pendulum type, with cantilever mount wheels. Wheel travel is about 260 mm. The pendulum hinge is on ball bearings and sealed with oil seals. Chain tension is done using an eccentric. The disc brake is mechanically driven.

The front suspension is based on the fork from the CZ-516 cross-country motorcycle. The wheel is for 21-inch tires, the disc brake pad drive is hydraulic.

The soft saddle pad is glued directly to the monocoque body, and the cover is made of artificial leather It is attached to it with screws.

I would like to warn readers who do not have sufficient experience in designing motor vehicles that creating homemade two-wheeled vehicles is a very difficult matter. In this material I tried to talk about my work and those ideas that I consider promising for amateur motorcycle building. However, I would categorically not advise novice motorcycle builders to start creating a powerful machine based on this material. It might be better to start with simpler motorcycles. After all, I was moving towards a monocoque, having created more than a dozen intermediate structures...

Alexey GARAGASHIAN, St. Petersburg

The metal construction set is considered a complex toy and embodies the dream of any boy to “work” with tools similar to adults.

Cold metal fascinates, allows you to create the most complex models using a screwdriver, keys, bolts and screws. The activity of assembling a model will seem interesting not only to children, but also to adults. Metal intellectual toys are a real excursion into the world of children's thinking and imagination.

The main idea of the toy

The complete set of each product consists of components similar to those that dad keeps in his tool box: nuts, brackets, screws, and other fasteners. All this appears to the child as real, only performed in miniature.

Metal objects are fastened together by screwing in bolts of suitable diameter. The plates can be straight, curved, narrow or wide, each element of the plate is perforated with holes.

This makes the designer universal and makes it possible to create models guided only by imagination. Sets with a variety of elements allow you to assemble structures of all possible sizes and varying degrees of complexity.

Samples of finished products are shown on the packaging, accompanied by an assembly diagram and instructions for use. A boy can successfully create unique mechanisms and structures, collect crafts for school and preschool classes and play assembled models in games.

Self-made toys are a source of pride for a boy, so children’s interests should not be ignored; it is important to introduce a child to construction from an early age.

A smart toy will allow parents to captivate their child for a long time and go about their business.

Before starting the game, it is important to explain to the child that the initial design may not work out, but correcting errors will allow the desired results to be achieved in the future. The solution to the problems and non-standard tasks– the main purpose of the team game.

Differences from other species

It is difficult to call a metal construction set a toy; rather, it refers to serious intellectual work associated with creativity. Assembling the constituent elements, the child constantly refers to the instructions, develops ingenuity, patience and receives the result of his hard work in the form of a finished car or construction crane.

The game has many small elements that need to be carefully connected to each other not with grooves, which is typical for other types of assembly toys, but with bolts, washers and nuts using special tools. During design, parts must be constantly recalculated so as not to make mistakes when installing the necessary elements.

The assembly structure has moving components that can be loosened or tightened depending on the nature of the finished product. From metal elements One model can be used to create others, and you don’t always need to act according to the instructions. This will allow the child to develop and improve the logical line of imagination.

By establishing the interaction of objects according to the type of connection, the baby builds his own approach to the process, forms personal preferences, and raises self-esteem. With the correct design of complex parts in finished design, the boys feel indescribable pride in the invention.

Advantages of the game build:

Versatility and the ability to deviate from instructions;
Parts of different modifications and special tools complement each other;
Suitable for classes for children of different sexes;
Divided by age and intellectual development.

For preschoolers, such a construction set is suitable as preparation for school and lessons. labor disciplines. Interest in assembling metal products changes the behavior of many children, developing in them perseverance, concentration, and contact with adults at the level of discussing the action associated with assembling the necessary product.

It has been proven that assembling a construction set develops a boy’s intelligible and beautiful handwriting, which is important when depicting clear lines and letter symbols.

The benefits of a smart toy

Metal plates with perforations for construction became known in the last century. Manufacturers of construction sets in those years were unlikely to be guided by serious pedagogical motives, because the world of bright plastic had not yet been conquered, and wood and metal were the basic materials for making children's toys.

The popularity of logic toys made of metal has not slowed down, but on the contrary, interest in it is increasing every year.

The gaming assembly toy is designed to collect not only the parts from the instructions, but also others that can only come to mind. This allows you to develop imagination and logic.

Metal assembly toys are designed for children aged 5-6 years. In some cases, they are used in labor lessons in kindergarten and school, and for making crafts.

In the process of diligent study, the boy:

receives the basics of technical thinking and logic;
develops fine motor skills hands;
develops concentration;
development creative potential and systems thinking;
increases alertness and coordination of movements.

On the mental side, a feeling of self-satisfaction and adequate self-esteem develops after collecting the model.

Assembly and design have always been considered in a good way relieve tension and stress, develop a personal opinion about yourself, learn to set achievable goals and overcome difficult tasks.

These abilities will help boys in the future, since many technical specialties in higher education are widely available to them. educational institutions. Proper systems thinking can improve school performance.

Types of metal constructors

Nowadays, metal construction sets have many modifications, and assembly can be carried out in the most unusual models. Classic cars, cranes, steam locomotives - today have been greatly modernized beyond recognition.

The kid can assemble a real plane, a tower, or a truck with a large body. The sizes of the construction set vary from medium to large, and the number of parts in the kit always differs from each other.

Many modern views designers are equipped with electronics. This is very exciting, as it creates the illusion of a real game: with tanks, cars, signal flares and so on. Once assembled, technical devices can produce characteristic sounds, light up, and some moving parts can be controlled remotely.

If the designer is classic, without additional devices, then the child controls the finished product himself.

A logic game made of metal can be produced for small children from three years old and for older children. They differ in some complexity of assembly and the level of intellectual perception in children.

Mini-constructors are suitable for beginners. They are characterized by a small number of parts, simple assembly and instructions.

Set of metal construction sets

Items undergo strict quality control from manufacturing to packaging. Depending on the type and type of assembly, fragments of the construction set may include cords, plastic or rubber parts. The kit comes with a set of assembly tools and instructions.

If necessary, special notes and a diagram of a non-standard combination of fragments, the use of elements with electronics, and safety rules during the game are indicated.

How to choose a metal construction set

The purchase of a logic toy made of metal should be considered, since the type of activity is serious. It is worth considering some nuances that will not discourage the child from further design and self-development.

Markings on packaging about mandatory quality certification;
Age limit indication on packaging;
When inspected, metal plates must be smooth, without sharp points or rough protrusions;
The fasteners must have clear cuts and threads without visible defects;
Toy parts for children under 5 years old should not be less than 50 mm;
The product should not emit the smell of paint or rust;
All constituent fragments must comply with safety requirements.

Thematic areas

When purchasing a play assembly toy, parents are often guided by the child's preferences. It is impossible to attract his attention with uninteresting activities, so manufacturers develop models of metal construction sets taking into account the interests of young inventors. Accepted trends include designers in a technical and futuristic style.

Technical style

Aimed at creating classic models of combat and specialized vehicles: armored vehicles, tanks, military aircraft, guns, fire engines and signal vehicles with beacons, police crews and motorized vehicles, tower and cranes.

This type of assembly game is suitable for older children, so that they can later use the finished product as an addition to their own collection of toys.

Futuristic style

The direction is characteristic of creation famous heroes from cartoons. These assembly games come with additional parts made of high-quality bright plastic, cords, and rubber bands.

This game is suitable for younger age groups and has fragments large size, bright color solutions. Children associate cartoon characters with positivity. Finished goods Can be used as a toy or room decoration.

IN Soviet times Children's metal construction sets were very popular - sets of strips and plates of different sizes, with holes and fastening screws. Although the expression “iron toys” was at one time pronounced with ridicule, life has shown that plastic toys are much worse. Especially if it is cheap toxic material from China. It is not surprising that many parents prefer environmentally friendly wooden or iron ones. Therefore, silumin car models cost 2-3 times more than plastic ones. But let's return to the designer from this review. In the photo below, half of the elements are already missing (let's go to work), but the essence is clear.

It was bought by friends through an online store, for only 600 rubles, as a gift for his son. The set is called “Super Universal”, and believe me, it fully justifies its “super” prefix! Moreover, such a thing is, as it were, preparatory stage mastering electronics for kids, showing how complex structures are made from individual simple parts.

In a convenient plastic box there are a lot of all sorts of parts, not just simple cadmium-plated ones, and painted in various colors durable powder paint. The developers even provided such useful little things as a hook for a crane, a nylon rope, rollers and several types of wheels.

Constructor kit

1. Plank - 36 pcs.
2. Corner - 10 pcs.
3. Plate - 25 pcs.
4. Hood - 1 pc.
5. Plate - 3 pcs.
6. Fork - 5 pcs.
7. Bracket - 11 pcs.
8. Disc - 2 pcs.
9. Roller - 7 pcs.
10. Large wheel - 4 pcs.
11. Small wheel - 2 pcs.
12. Wheel - 4 pcs.
13. Tire - 4 pcs.
14. Hairpin - 5 pcs.
15. Axle - 4 pcs.
16. Cord - 2m.
17. Handle - 2 pcs.
18. Screw - 74 pcs.
19. Nut - 96 pcs.
20. Key - 3 pcs.
21. Screwdriver - 1 pc.
21. Instructions

The instructions contain a dozen samples of what can be assembled from such a set, but it is clear that with a little imagination, the amount possible design unlimited. Here is just a small part of what I managed to photograph during the process:

Photos of crafts made from an iron constructor

Machine

Helicopter

Airplane

Self-propelled gun

Tank

Lantern with lamps

Motorbike

Tractor

Sofa

Crane

In general, at such a ridiculous price, we get not just one car or tank, but a whole bunch of all kinds of toys. I got tired of one - they took it apart and put a new one, and so on at least every day. And the main thing is that they cannot be broken, unlike delicate plastic ones. You can only bend it, but this can be fixed :)