By Dan Beard
Fig. 166.
Top of Ammunition Sled.
[Note: at the time this was written, barrels were as plentiful as cardboard boxes are now. In place of barrel staves, try using old skis. Old pairs of skis, or single skis can be found for free, or almost no cost.]
To make the sled, begin by knocking the barrel apart, being careful not to split the head-boards, as they will be needed afterward. Pick out the four best staves, as nearly alike in breadth and curve as can be found, and saw two or three of the other staves in halves. Take two of the four staves first selected and nail the half staves across, as shown in Fig. 166/ These must be mailed upon the convex, or outside of the staves; this will be found impossible unless there is something solid under the point where the nail is to be driven, otherwise the spring of the stave, when struck, will throw the nail out, and your fingers will probably receive the blow from the hammer. To avoid this, place a block, or anything that is firm, under the point where the nail is to be driven, and there will then be found no difficulty in driving the nails home.
When this is done you will have the top of your sled as shown in Fig. 166; on this you will need a box or bed to hold the snowballs; this you can make of two pieces of pine board and two staves, thus: Take a board about the same width as, or a little wider than, a barrel-stave; saw off two pieces equal in length to the width of the sled; set them upon their edges, reversing the top of the sled; place it across the two boards and nail it on securely, Then take two staves and nail them on for side boards, and you have the top portion of your sled finished.
The two staves remaining of the four first selected are for runners. Fit on first one the then the other to the staves of the top. Nail-holes will probably be found near the ends of the staves where the nails were that held the barrel-head in; through these drive nails to fasten your runners; to do this you must rest them upon some support, as was done before; this will hold your sled together, but to make it stronger take four wedge-shaped blocks of wood and slide them in between the runners and the top, as shown in Fig. 167, and nail these firmly in place from above and below.
Fig. 167.
Ammunition Sled Finished
If all this has been properly done, you now have made a sled which it will be almost impossible to break; and, with a rope to pull by, one boy can haul snowballs enough for a dozen companions.
