Anyone for skittles? - Vintage Projects

Anyonefor skittles?By CLIFFORD B. HICKSFOR CENTURIES, Englishmen have gathered inpubs to play skittles—a miniature sort of bowlinggame. The object is to send the top spinningthrough the "rooms," knocking down skittles(pins) as it goes. Point values in the "rooms" canshave 10 points off your score or boost it by 100.The game may be played for a predeterminednumber of turns or simply with each player takinga turn to see who gets the highest score. Youneedn't go to England to try it—it's easy to makeyour own board.A 4 x 4-ft. sheet of 1/2-in. plywood will provideadequate material. After cutting the base andwalls, mark and cut the dadoes; if your shoplacks a power saw, simple butt joints may beused.An optional step is to cement a scrap of plasticlaminate or tempered hardboard to the inner faceof the end wall, where the hole for the top willbe cut. Without this protection, the top willeventually wear away a cradle to brake its spin.After cutting all doorways—a job you canspeed by careful stacking of the blanks—sandedges smooth. A coat of shellac thinned 50 percentwith alcohol, followed with two coats ofenamel makes a durable finish. Brushing is easierif you prefinish the parts before you glue andnail them together.The smoother the finish on the floor, the longerthe top will spin, so give it extra care and attention.Sand carefully between each coat of shellac

To spin the top, wind the cord around itsstem, then feed the free end down through theslits as you lower the top into the positionshown above. Hold the top snugly against theend wall with your left hand, releasing it at thesame moment you give a sharp, smooth tug topull the cord out through the slotand enamel; then apply a paste wax and buff it toa hard finish before assembly.If you have a lathe, turning the skittles willpresent no problem. The alternative is to usestraight sections of dowel. These have a greatertendency to block doorways than do the turnedpins, but they are usable. So are toy bowlingpins.If you don't have a lathe but do have a portabledrill, you can make a true-spinning top by drivinga 1/4-in. dowel in a tight-fitting hole in a hardwooddisk and then chucking it in the drill totrue the disk with a sharp wood chisel. It's importantthat the top be made of hardwood sinceit takes quite a battering as it bounces off thewalls. Strong black thread makes a good cord andshould be about 12 in. long with a pull handletied at the end. Happy skittling!