Its canvas-like top “corrals” a bunch of toys out of sight while its large diameter wooden wheels make it easy to move from room-to-room.

Here’s a replica of an early settler’s covered wagon that any child would enjoy having to store away their favorite toys and “private” possessions. It’s sturdy enough for the heaviest loads of toy cargo and with the top removed, it can serve double-duty as a pull-along wagon. It makes a great heirloom-quality Christmas gift, as well…so get started early and it’ll be done in plenty of time for the Holidays. For best results, we suggest that you review all of the instructions before getting started. We made ours with solid red oak sides, wheels and handle and an oak veneer plywood bottom for the perfect combination of beauty and durability.

LIST OF MATERIALS

(finished dimensions in inches)

Hardware

1: Cut all of the lumber for the Sides, Ends, Bottoms and Cleats to size. If you’re starting out with rough lumber, be sure to plane all of your wood for these pieces to the same thickness at once. The slightest variance in thickness will make it difficult to square the project properly. When making your sizing cuts, be sure to cut the pieces to length first, then rip them to width.

2: Slightly round over the edges of the Sides and Ends. We used a Radi-Plane to make simple work of this job. Round-over the 5-3/4″ and 2″ wide stock to eliminate all sharp edges. When using this tool, first make a test pass on a piece of scrap wood to set the cutters to your desired depth.

3: Temporarily hold the Sides and Ends together using bar clamps. Position a clamp at each end of your stock, open-side up…with your stock face side down…and a third clamp across the center. This will help to keep the surfaces flush and make it easier for you to mount the 2″ wide vertical Braces on the ends of the Sides. Hold an end Brace (D) in position temporarily to ensure the proper alignment of the two end Braces (B) during assembly as shown in Figure 1. Drill 7/64″screw pilot holes and use a countersink to allow the screw heads to sit flush with all board surfaces. Use six 1-1/4″ x #8 wood screws and glue to hold each end Brace in position.

4: Following a similar procedure to that described in #3 above, mount the two center Braces, 14-1/8″ in from each of the attached end Braces (See exploded diagram). Again, use six 1-1/4″ x #8 wood screws and glue to hold each center Brace in position. Don’t forget to drill pilot holes first and countersink your screw heads.

5: Mount the Cleats (F & G) to the Bottom (E) using glue and wood screws driven down from the top surface of the bottom into the cleat strips. Be sure to countersink for the screw heads to keep the screw heads from scratching your children’s treasured toys. Cleats should be mounted flush with the outside edges of the Bottom (see exploded diagram).

6: Use bar clamps to temporarily hold the assembled Box Sides (A) and Ends (C) in position while you screw the four corners together as shown in the exploded diagram. You can either countersink your screw heads as in the previous steps…or counterbore them and conceal the screw heads with matching wood plugs.

If you choose the latter, you’ll need to drill 5/16″ deep by 3/8″ diameter counterbores at each screw position first, then drill your 7/64″ pilot holes in the centers of these counterbores. Use a 3/8″ Plug Cutter to create your plugs from a piece of scrap stock that matches your wagon wood. Remember that if your plugs are to go into the face grain of a board, they should have face grain at their tops. Likewise, if they are to go into end or edge grain wood, they should be cut accordingly for the best match.

7: Turn the assembled Box over with its top side sitting on your bench. Drop the Bottom (with attached cleats) into the Box with the cleats up, toward you. Use small C-Clamps or Hand screws to temporarily hold the bottom in position while you drill your 7/32″ screw pilot holes through the Cleats and into the Box Sides and Ends as shown in the exploded diagram. Be sure to drill at a slight angle so you can easily get a grip on your screwdriver during assembly. Again, countersink all holes for the screw heads, then assemble.

8: Size your stock for the Bottom Wheel Supports (H), Front Wheel Pivot (I) and Axle Supports (J).

9: Drill a 1/4″ deep by 3/4″ diameter counterbore into the top center of the Front Wheel Support (H). Using the center point of this counterbore as a guide, drill a 1/2″ diameter through hole in this same board…and another 1/2″ diameter through hole in the center of the Front Wheel Pivot as shown in the exploded diagram.

10: Draw an arc on each end of the Pivot Board, then cut on your Bandsaw and sand smooth on the Disc Sander.

11: Make the Axle Supports (J) from 1-1/2″ thick stock…or from two pieces of 3/4″ stock, laminated together. If you choose the later option, it would be a good idea to add some wood screws to help hold these laminations together.

NOTE: Be sure to position these laminating screws so they won’t interfere with the locations of the axle or the screws that mount the Supports to the Front Wheel Pivot or Rear Wheel Support.

Remember to make the two front Supports (J) 7/8″ shorter than the back ones (K) to compensate for the thickness of the Front Wheel Pivot and pivot washer. When cutting these Supports, attach each pair (front & back) together temporarily with Double Stick Tape so the profiles and hole locations will match-up perfectly.

Mount the Front Axle Supports to the Front Wheel Pivot…and the Back Axle Supports to the rear Bottom Wheel Support with three wood screws and glue. Be sure to countersink the screw heads a little deeper than normal so the screw heads on the Front assembly won’t rub on the front Bottom Wheel Support when the wagon is steered.

12: Cut out the Pull Handle Stem (S) and Pivot Block Stem (R) as described in the List of Materials. As with the Axle Supports, these can be made with 1-1/2″ thick stock or with two pieces of 3/4″ stock laminated together. In fact, we recommend that you use this lamination procedure when making the Pivot Block Stem (R) alternating the grain directions of the two layers for added strength.

Cut out the front joint and rear pivot bolt cutout on the Pivot Block Stem (R) using your Bandsaw. Be sure to leave enough clearance to get a socket wrench around the Pivot Bolt Nut. Insert and glue the cross dowel (T) to the Handle. Insert the Joint Dowel (Q) through the Pivot Block Stem and Handle and glue just the ends…being careful not to get any glue on the dowel where it passes through the Handle.