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Instructions for Mouse Trap Cars

Sharing a love of cars with a child can be as simple as traveling to the nearest retail store and picking a small car from the generous selection in the toy aisles. That is often fun, but some kids may enjoy a more hands-on project that requires a little extra effort and creativity. Make your own “snappy” race car on a limited budget with a few craft-store materials and power supplied by an old-fashioned mouse trap.

Things You'll Need

Wooden mouse trap
Board, roughly same width as trap and twice as long
4 wheels; front wheels can be smaller than back
String
Balsa wood dowels
Fine blade saw
4 eye hooks (large enough for dowels)
4 rubber washers
Epoxy or super glue
Tape

Instructions

- 1
  Remove the mousetrap’s bait pan and hook bar. The unsprung trap’s bar should rest toward the front of the base. Glue the trap to one end of the board, making the board a base with the trap at its back end. Wrap tape around the trap and base for added strength.
- 2
  Attach the four eye hooks to the corners at the front end and back end of the base, on the base board’s narrow part. These will hold the car’s two axles at each end of the vehicle. Make sure the eye hook holes are straight so that the axles will be parallel to the bottom of the car.
  
  Cut the dowel into two pieces wide enough to serve as axles, with enough space on each side for the wheels to turn without rubbing the base. Thread the dowels through the eye hooks.
- 3
  Put the rubber washers on the axles, leaving some space between them and the eye hooks. Put the wheels next to the washers and firmly glue the wheels to the axles.
- 4
  Tie one end of the string on the mousetrap’s bar.
- 5
  Select a surface for the car, something not too smooth. Pull back the trap’s bar and hold it. Coil the rest of the string around the rear axle. Put the car on the ground and release the trap. The trap should spring, spinning the rear wheels and sending the racer across the floor.

Educational Toys