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Giant Wood Lego Man (from a single 2x4!)

by JackmanWorks on January 10, 2016

Table of Contents

Giant Wood Lego Man (from a single 2x4!) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Intro: Giant Wood Lego Man (from a single 2x4!) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Step 1: Scaling & Drawings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Step 2: Rough Cut Pieces from 2x4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Step 3: Creating The Legs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Step 4: Creating The Body . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Step 5: Creating The Arms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Step 6: Creating the Hips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Step 7: Creating The Head . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Step 8: Creating The Hands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Step 9: Making & Installing The Dowels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Step 10: Final Shaping & Sanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Step 11: Burning & Stamping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Step 12: Finishing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Step 13: Assembly! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Step 14: Photos & the Jackman Timelapse! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Step 15: Done! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Related Instructables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

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Comments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

http://www.instructables.com/id/Giant-Wood-Lego-Man-from-a-Single-2x4/
 Author:JackmanWorks Need to see more J-Works?!
I started making as a teenager - Jackman Works was founded in 2009 and I have been growing it a lot recently with my YouTube channel. My goals are to
inspire you to make cool things, get young people excited about making, and teaching while keeping it super fun and interesting. Thanks for stopping by! -
Paul Jackman

Intro: Giant Wood Lego Man (from a single 2x4!)

A giant wood Lego man standing just short of 1'-3" tall (10x the size of a typical lego man!!) all made from just a single 8' long 2x4. I scaled every dimension from a
typical Lego man and you can find those free plans at the link in the first step. He is a miniature version of myself, even with his own hammer. He is about as useful as
me too.

Legs and hips were finished with burning and linseed oil. Body and arms were finished with red wood dye and linseed oil. Hands and head were simply finished with
linseed oil.

Be sure to check out the build video too! https://youtu.be/xjOT5r2wNX8

(music in video is by Kirk Fleta, an independent musician from Gatlinburg, TN: www.kirkfleta.com)

Step 1: Scaling & Drawings

It all started by measuring every piece of the Lego man and transferring these dimensions into my computer. Autodesk AutoCAD was used to create the drawings. The
exact dimensions were input for each piece and the whole model was scaled up so that the depth of the body & legs were 3" -- perfect for working with a 3-1/2" wide 2x4
with just a little bit of a waste factor built in for the round corners.

I went a little overboard creating a 3d model of the guy too. If it's worth doing, it's worth overdoing.

These plans are available for free at my website: http://www.jackmanworks.com/Plans

http://www.instructables.com/id/Giant-Wood-Lego-Man-from-a-Single-2x4/
Step 2: Rough Cut Pieces from 2x4
Cut down the 8' long 2x4 into rough lengths for the body, legs, arms, hips, and head. These dimensions are listed both in the plans and also in the following steps.

Notice I paid close attention to knot locations on each piece during the whole construction process. I hid as many of them as I could within the glue-ups or on sides of
pieces that would not be visible.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Giant-Wood-Lego-Man-from-a-Single-2x4/
Step 3: Creating The Legs
The legs are cut to just over 5-1/2" in rough length and it takes 4 of these pieces glued together to have enough material for each leg. Flatten the face of the pieces with
either a jointer or sander and glue them together. Then it's just a matter of flattening the glue-up, cutting a 2-1/2" wide piece for each leg, and cutting the shape of the legs
using the template.

To transfer the template, I printed it out full size and used carbon paper to transfer this over to each piece of wood.

Step 4: Creating The Body

The body is created very similarly through laminating 4 pieces, this time just over 4-1/2" in rough length. The shape of the body is quite simple, so just measure and draw
the lines on the body. Cut it down to the correct thickness and knock the corners off to create the body shape.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Giant-Wood-Lego-Man-from-a-Single-2x4/
Step 5: Creating The Arms
The shape of the arms is a little bit trickier. Take 2 more pieces cut to 4-1/2" in length and draw the arm shape on each piece - this is a good place to use carbon paper
again. Connect the dots and cut it out on your saw of choice. To finish them, use a router to create a round-over on one side of each arm -- make sure you have a left a
right arm designated at this point! Otherwise, it's going to be an awkward conversation with Mr. Lego man when he's given 2 left arms.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Giant-Wood-Lego-Man-from-a-Single-2x4/
Step 6: Creating the Hips
The hips are a little tricky too. Start with a piece 5-1/4" long. In order to create the cove shape where the top of the legs fit, I used my table saw. With this procedure you
set up a temporary angled fence on the table saw. By nibbling off a little bit at a time and moving the fence a little each time, you can get the shape just right.

At this point the piece is still too thick so you can cut it down to thickness and then use that cutoff to create the circle that will be fastened to the hips in order to hold the
legs. I simply used wood glue to hold the circle to the main part of the hips.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Giant-Wood-Lego-Man-from-a-Single-2x4/
Step 7: Creating The Head
The head is another laminated piece made from 4 pieces rough cut to just over 4-1/2". This piece is glued together with wood glue and then mounted on the lathe. It's
rough turned to the thickest diameter and then measurements are transferred to the piece. From there, the rounded corners are cut and final shaping and sanding is
done.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Giant-Wood-Lego-Man-from-a-Single-2x4/
Step 8: Creating The Hands
The hands come from another small cutoff. A compass is used to draw the pieces onto the 2x4. First cut the outside diameter and then sand that round and cut the inside
diameter and hole for the hand.

Step 9: Making & Installing The Dowels

Rip the remainder of the 2x4 down the middle to create 1-1/2" square spindles. These spindles are turned on the lathe to create a 1" diameter dowel to act as pivot points
for all of the pieces. (notice that the only dowel which is different is the one which attaches to the hands, which are closer to a 5/8" diameter)

These dowels are then cut to length depending on how deep you drill the receiving holes. Each dowel is glue into one side and the other receiving hole is left lose to allow
for rotation of the parts.

If you are planning on applying a finish to the pieces, be sure to leave a little bit of wiggle room at the dowels which tighten up with a couple layers of finish.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Giant-Wood-Lego-Man-from-a-Single-2x4/
http://www.instructables.com/id/Giant-Wood-Lego-Man-from-a-Single-2x4/
Step 10: Final Shaping & Sanding
At this point it looks awesome, but it's not done! I think I hear him talking to me...maybe that's just in my head.

To do the final shaping of the pieces it's a combination of filing and sanding to get everything smooth.

Step 11: Burning & Stamping

Mr. Lego did not look personable enough so I thought making a mini-me was only appropriate. I used a wood-burner to create a beard and eyeballs to mock my own.

At the same time, I also turned up the heat to create a burned finish on the legs and hips. This is done with a propane torch and just enough time on each face to give it
some color.

I also stamped "Jackman Carpentry" (my previous moniker) onto his chest using the toner transfer method. This is done by printing an image mirrored and then using
acetone rubbed on the paper to transfer the image to the wood.

It was also at this time I decided to fashion him his own hammer from the leftover pieces (to mimic my mascot Jacko from my old logo). Maybe one of these days I'll sew
him a hat!!

http://www.instructables.com/id/Giant-Wood-Lego-Man-from-a-Single-2x4/
Step 12: Finishing
Red wood dye was used for his "shirt" on his body and arms. Linseed oil was used on the rest of the parts.

After waiting for all of this to dry, a couple of coats of poly were sprayed on every piece to seal them.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Giant-Wood-Lego-Man-from-a-Single-2x4/
Step 13: Assembly!
He has a brain of his own. I would expect nothing less from one of my creations.

Step 14: Photos & the Jackman Timelapse!

I'm a bit of a timlapse nut, so with each completed project comes a timelapse! This was not one of my favorites, but it was good to see the Lego man exploring his natural
habitat...

Very little scrap was left over from the 2x4. Other than sawdust, I saved all of my scrap pieces in this box.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Giant-Wood-Lego-Man-from-a-Single-2x4/
Step 15: Done!
Hopefully this inspires you to go and create something with your hands, maybe even a 10x scale Lego man! I'd love to see it if you do, thanks for stopping by.

?Build video here: http://youtu.be/xjOT5r2wNX8

?Free plans here: http://www.jackmanworks.com/Plans

?See more on my YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/JackmanCarpentry

?See more on my website: http://www.jackmanworks.com

http://www.instructables.com/id/Giant-Wood-Lego-Man-from-a-Single-2x4/
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Comments
12 comments Add Comment

seamster says: Jan 18, 2016. 8:35 AM REPLY

This is fantastic! I love the way your LEGO man turned out. Very impressed!

JackmanWorks says: Jan 18, 2016. 5:40 PM REPLY

Thanks so much! Glad everyone is enjoying it!

mech4fun says: Jan 18, 2016. 9:21 AM REPLY

Very nice!!!

JackmanWorks says: Jan 18, 2016. 5:40 PM REPLY

Thanks for checking it out!

JokerDAS says: Jan 18, 2016. 11:05 AM REPLY

That is FANTASTIC! Your scaling is spot on! Clear, great instructions!

I am not much of a woodworker, but I absolutely want to try this one!

http://www.instructables.com/id/Giant-Wood-Lego-Man-from-a-Single-2x4/
 JackmanWorks says: Jan 18, 2016. 5:40 PM REPLY
Thanks so much for checking it out! It doesn't take all the tools I used to build it. Definitely worth a shot -- all you might lose is a $3 2x4! :)

dhpenner1 says: Jan 18, 2016. 10:52 AM REPLY

You crafty SOB! Looks like we are competing!

JackmanWorks says: Jan 18, 2016. 11:07 AM REPLY

Ha! Hey Dustin, you are a worthy adversary, I look forward to it :)

dhpenner1 says: Jan 18, 2016. 12:07 PM REPLY

Loser has to send a sticker to the winner.

JackmanWorks says: Jan 18, 2016. 5:39 PM REPLY

I think we need to up the ante and put Jimmy's chisel on the line ;)

mlawing says: Jan 18, 2016. 12:58 PM REPLY

One of my favorite projects ever.

JackmanWorks says: Jan 18, 2016. 3:00 PM REPLY

Wow, I'm honored

http://www.instructables.com/id/Giant-Wood-Lego-Man-from-a-Single-2x4/