Issue 52 February 2026

8 Miniature Time Traveller glued Step 4. At this stage paint the sides and ends. Two or three coats may be needed as Balsa is quite porous. When the paint is dry, glue the playing field within the box, sitting on the supports ( E ). Glue on any glittery details onto the field and anything else you think may enhance it. Glue the back onto the back of the carcass you have made. Step 7. Make up the back light box. Glue the top and bottom strips (G) between the sides (F). Cut some thin strips of card and glue around the front edge so the acrylic front can be glued onto them. See the image on the right. Strips 1 or 2mm thick and about 3mm wide work well. Before gluing the acrylic sheet into place, photocopy the artwork for this, enhance it with coloured pens and glue it to the outside of the acrylic. This cuts the shine down on the image which would make it diƯicult to see. Position this artwork with a 1 cm gap top and bottom which will allow the diamante strips to show. If you want, paint inside the box . At this stage you will notice it doesn’t have a back. This is because this piece has to be removable if batteries in the LED lights have to be changed. The strips of diamantes are glued onto the actual back (C ). Cut two strips of diamantes (available in sheets at craft stores.) Glue to the relevant positions on the back. Also work out the positions of the magnetic lights and blue tack them into place. See the positions on the image on far right. See page 35 for details on these sort of lights. They can be turned on from the outside of the box with a magnet. This does works through the layer of paper. The light box frame will be removed if you want to change the batteries on the LEDs. Before glueing, the top strip (H & I ) is placed in position on the top of the frame while it is sitting against the back. Then the other strip is placed against the back, butting up to the top strip. You want this fit to be snug. Now glue only to the front frame. When dry, fit it over the back of the machine. Now you can glue the two pieces together and then glue the top piece to the top of your frame. Now, in the future you can lift the frame away from the back. Step 5. Showing detail of painting. Don’t glue legs in place until the very end. Step 6. Step 8. Step 9. Step 10. frame Step 10. Baseball artwork for the side decoration. Some optional artwork, perhaps for the front.