Looking for suggestions

[Ed in Tampa]

My grandson loves to build things but has very little real experience. For Christmas my wife suggestted we get him a kit.
We looked at electronic kits as Radio Shack but most seemed to be use a battery and make a fan, a spinning disk, a noise maker and flashing light type things or use a solar cell and power a motor to make a fan, a spinning disk, a noise maker, and a flashing light. I think you get the idea they seem over simplified.

Then we looked at bird house kits and such but they seem almost too simple also.

Then I thought of a knife kit and found some folding knife kits but the main thing there is shaping the wood handle (most are already cut to shape). If I use one where he has to get a block of wood then he can't do it at home he has to come to my shop to do it. And that can be good and bad. Good I get to spend time with him bad that he can't just do it when he wants too.

Can you guys think of any kind of craft kit that a young kid with miminal tools could do on his own that would interest a 13 year old and challenge him? It can be wood working, electronic or mechanical.

[JPG]

My grandson loves to build things but has very little real experience. For Christmas my wife suggestted we get him a kit.
We looked at electronic kits as Radio Shack but most seemed to be use a battery and make a fan, a spinning disk, a noise maker and flashing light type things or use a solar cell and power a motor to make a fan, a spinning disk, a noise maker, and a flashing light. I think you get the idea they seem over simplified.

Then we looked at bird house kits and such but they seem almost too simple also.

Then I thought of a knife kit and found some folding knife kits but the main thing there is shaping the wood handle (most are already cut to shape). If I use one where he has to get a block of wood then he can't do it at home he has to come to my shop to do it. And that can be good and bad. Good I get to spend time with him bad that he can't just do it when he wants too.

Can you guys think of any kind of craft kit that a young kid with miminal tools could do on his own that would interest a 13 year old and challenge him? It can be wood working, electronic or mechanical.

As you have already discovered and pointed out, most 'kit thingies' suitable for 'beginners' are simplistic and almost always only require 'some assembly'.

Instead of a 'kit', try to find out something that is of interest to him that the two of you could build from scratch rather than purchase. If there is nothing that he is so interested in, this is probably a waste of time. He will only gain from this if he has enough interest to stick with it.

I think such an experience is highly productive if driven from his interest point of view. You say he likes to build things but has little experience. If that is the case, I am not sure I understand his lack of 'real' experience.

I realize you are probably thinking Christmas present at this point, but I think a larger scope is relevant.

Although too juvenile at his age, but, I remember my 'Handy Andy' tool kit. I still have the small hammer, and use it occasionally. I mention it since that was the seed that caused my interest to sprout(that and a pretty handy do it yourself father).

I think that to encourage him like you want to you will have to gently nudge him so that he can be exposed to what is possible and develop an interest in being able to do those things himself. Casually encourage him to 'help' you often(in the shop making stuff).

Finally recognize that nothing will 'absolutely' work in this day and age. Too much idle time, too much 'entertaining distractions', very little 'work ethic', and automatic needs provided.

Then there are those hormones about to erupt!:D

[dusty]

I am uncertain as to the level of education you want from this kit experience but I think the approach is great. I know that I spent hours in the attic with my Lincoln Logs and then a bit later with the Erector Set. I ended up with two erector sets because I needed more parts. I traded comic books for the second erector set. Probably a valuable Superman edition.

The Erector Set was "hazardous". I got cut or pinched more than once. I believe this was my beginning to shop safety education. I learned then that sharp and or spinning can hurt. Safety laws attempt to prevent these injuries today. No wonder the shop accident rates are going up.

I had a chemistry set too. I, however, would not recommend the chemistry set until the youngster is less of a youngster. I got into a lot of trouble because of that "toy". The microscope that came with it was great.

Good idea Ed. I hope you find something really appropriate .

[foxtrapper]

If he is available to you, then I would suggest it be a grandpa project, that the two of you do together. Those are what ties people together, and gives wonderful memories.

It could be as simple as making a baseball bat on the shopsmith lathe.

Making a custom handle for a fishing pole.

Making a wooden tool box (Rockler carries a kit for this, don't they?)

Making a DVD rack or turntable.

A pocket knife kit (Rockler again, I think, or Smokey Mountain Knifeworks).

[Culprit]

The first thing I remember making with my Grandpa was a rubber band gun. Grandpa had bought one somewhere along the way and brought it home. He took my brother and I out to his shop, gave us some scrap lengths of 2x4, a few dowel rods, a bag of clothespins, a handful of small nails, and as little instruction as he could get away with. Our task was to make replicas of the model he brought home. He wanted us to discover how to do it for ourselves. He taught us how to use the tools safely, but not much beyond that. Of course he was right there smiling the whole time and ready to answer our questions.

Grandpa and Grandma lived in Florida at that point, so we went hunting for the small lizzards that lived in Grandma's flower garden with our new rubber band guns. It was great to knock them off a wall, then chase them down and do it over and over again.

[pennview]

Here are a couple of places to look for scientific kits --

http://store.discovery.com/teens-and-yo ... ung-adults

and

http://www.scientificsonline.com/scienc ... 4Aod13dITQ

[major_bob]

If he has some interest in electronics, the sets are still available that utilize the "spring posts" for connection. I had one 35 years ago and they haven't changed that much. About 4 years ago, I gave my son (then 9) a very basic one which allowed him to make a radio, telegraph, light activated switch, etc.....

If he is interested in robotics the Lego Mindstorm, although not cheap, is today's standard. More advanced hobbist digital electronics today utilize the Arduino system. My son, now 13, is getting an Arduino starter set for Xmas.

Check out MAKE Magazine's web page:
http://www.makershed.com

[Ed in Tampa]

My problem is to get him something like a knife kit which I think is a fantastic idea is this. He doesn't have access to tools unless he comes to my house.

I'm trying to think of something that he can do when he wants something to do. Not have to depend on me to come get him or have his mother bring him.

I found a few pocket knife kits at http://www.knifekits.com/vcom/contact_u ... on=success
That come with the wooden handles shaped. I was wondering if putting the finishing touches and assemblying and polishing the finished project would be enough fun or not.

I was even thinking of one where the wood was dimensioned to the correct thickness but the final shape would have to be cut/sanded into it. Whether whittling and hand sanding was realistic or was this something that needed a bandsaw and powered sander.

I know as a kid I would have loved to make my own knife. In fact I may still order one or two of these for myself. But again I have all the tools I need to finish it, where he is limited.

I even thought of having him come to a woodworking camp where he stayed a few days. But as someone said the hormones are starting to fire off and staying at ancient (in his eyes almost older than God) grandparents and out of action is fate worst than death to a teen.

[terrydowning]

Alternatively you could augment the knife kit that requires shaping of the scales with hand tools. A vise that can clamp to a table, a coping saw, a 4 in hand rasp, and some sand paper of varying grits, should be able to do a fine job of shaping knife scales.

As a kid, before I could use any power tool, I had to demonstrate mastery of the corresponding hand tools, including the care and maintenance of those tools.

[foxtrapper]

He doesn't have access to tools unless he comes to my house.

Great! Bring him over.

I'm trying to think of something that he can do when he wants something to do. Not have to depend on me to come get him or have his mother bring him.

Why on earth would you want that, when you could do it together?

Fishing is great fun, but you need to go with someone to learn how to do it, and how to enjoy it.

But as someone said the hormones are starting to fire off and staying at ancient (in his eyes almost older than God) grandparents and out of action is fate worst than death to a teen.

Oh, I disagree. I disagree most strongly. The time will be what the two of you make of it. Sure, if you sit and fart and stink of bengay and complain about kids today, he's going to want to get away as fast and far as he can. But if he's spending time with his grandpa, learning to do some cool things with this old guy, that's priceless.

Remember too, teenagers are about show. They've got to look cool, act cool, and dress the same as each other to show how distinct they are. Don't get flustered by their bluster.