Step 2: Attach Axle and Wheels
1. Cut a 4" length of the wooden dowel. File any rough ends or edges. Make sure it fits through the eye screws and can spin freely. File it down if it’s too tight.
3. Insert the dowel into one of the laser cut wheels. It should be snug. If it’s too loose, wrap the dowel in a little duct tape and try inserting it again. If it’s too big, file down the end until it fits.
4. Feed the dowel through the two eye screws and attach the other wheel.
Posted January 25th, 2011
Make Your Own Mousetrap Powered Car
There’s a kinder way to take advantage of the energy stored in a mousetrap’s torsion spring: make a mousetrap-powered car! NYU-Poly PhD candidate Dustyn Roberts created this project, featured in her book, Making Things Move: DIY Mechanisms for Inventors, Hobbyists, and Artists (McGraw-Hill, 2010).
Materials
- Mousetrap
- 1/4” diameter wooden dowel
- 2 eye screws that the dowel fits into (like McMaster #9496T27)
- 24" of monofilament (fishing line)
- 2 laser cut wheels (make yourself, or order from Ponoko.com)
- Wooden paint stirring stick
- Ping-pong ball
- Multi-tool with knife and file
- Duct tape
Adpated from instructables.com where you can find additional images, expanded instructions, and more of Dustyn Roberts’ projects.
