MAKING THE FULL-BODIED PUTT PUTT BOAT
Note: If you are reading this it means you have come via a direct link ( particularly Wikipedia). In addition to the instructions below, you might want to check out the pop pop (putt putt) boat introduction page as well.
I go into detail about what makes the steam engine work in the explore page. But before you begin making the engine, you should at least have some idea what you're about to do. It is deceptively simple looking.
After cutting the top and bottom off an aluminum soda can, you will fold the middle part into a rectangular "pocket", creased shut on three edges and open like a pocket on the fourth edge (the blue part in the illustration at right). The top side of this flash boiler--where droplets of water are heated into steam--is arched, the bottlom flat. The flat bottom flexes like a canning jar lid, which gives the boat its distinctive sound. Into the open fourth edge of the boiler you insert the ends of two flexible plastic straws (green in the picture). The whole thing will be glued and sealed airtight with quick set epoxy glue and silicone rubber caulk. Between two of the gluing steps you will have to wait about 15 minutes, and overnight for the last. During that time you can create the body of the boat from milk cartons, make a candle holder, and read ahead to the next steps.
Some of the following instructions might sound weird and finicky. I try to explain the "why" of the steps, but in the end you'll have to trust me that each detail is important. Do the first boat my way and get a boat that works. Then you can innovate and experiment.
Materials:
Soda cans, 12 oz. 355 mL
A cut up soda can forms the boiler of the steam engine. The water/steam pushing in/out of the boiler bulges the aluminum several times per second. This also gives the engine its cool sound. The process is similar to when a canning jar lid is pushed to make a noise, though the sound is different.
Important: The soda can must not be dented. Have several on hand to start over when you make errors. Rinse out the sticky soda inside.
Plastic, flexible drinking straws, approxamately 193mm long by 6mm diameter (7 5/8" by 1/4")
The straws become the jets from the engine.You ought to be able to get these at a grocery store where the beverages or paper cups are. You can also get them in department stores. There is a slightly thinner kind imported (usually from Thailand) and that works, too.
Quickseting or 5-minute epoxy
Epoxy is a very strong, two-part (which you mix together) adhesive actually used to glue real jet plane parts together. You will use it to seal the boiler airtight and glue the straw exhaust pipes. You can get it in any hardware store and most building centers. Important: Whatever the brand, get the kind that indicates that it sets fast: 5-minute, quickset, etc. or you will be waiting long periods between steps for it to harden. Even 5-minute epoxy only begins to thicken in five minutes. It takes at least 15 minutes to attain most of its strength. Putting the mixed epoxy in a warm place makes it set faster. Usually it comes in a double syringe which will help you dispense it evenly.
Although you cannot accidentally glue your fingers together the way you can with "super glue," epoxy is extremely messy. I try to keep it from getting on my hands in the first place (I never completely succeed). To get it off, I wipe as much off with a dry rag first, and only then try to get the last bit off with soap and water. By the way, epoxy smells like a moldy tuna fish sandwich.
100% silicone caulk/bathtub sealer
The silicone does two useful things. First, a thin layer of silicone spread over the epoxy seals hidden leaks. Even a pinhole leak can keep an engine from working, so silicone can gives you an extra layer of insurance. Because it is flexible, it maintains the seal even when bumped enough to crack epoxy. Secondly, though I mentioned that epoxy smells, high temperatures (such as those found at the boiler) really make it stink. So that same layer of silicone that seals hidden leaks also seals in the epoxy smell. Silicone also helps to make the candle holder.
You can buy silicone where you get the epoxy. If you don't need it for other things around the house, you can get a little tube of it since this project will only use a couple of dabs for each engine. If you get the 300ml cartridge pictured, find out how to use it and the dispenser. You have to cut off the tip and poke to puncture the seal at the other end of the tip. A nail stuck into the tip keeps the silicone from clogging when not in use. Don't get a mix of silicone with anything else. It has to be 100% silicone. It smells like vinegar as it cures. It cleans off like epoxy, above.
Utility knife (or any sharp-tipped knife or single-edge razor), good scissors, ball-point pen, pencil, tape, and a ruler (or at least a straightedge).
You will use the scissors to cut up the aluminum soda can. This will not harm the scissors. Although I show clear tape in the illustration, masking tape is better: stronger yet easier to remove.
juice or milk carton(s)
This is make the body of the boat. The cardboard from beverage cartons is waterproof, easy to cut and can be painted. In the U.S. a standard size is half gallon, or 1.819 liters. I think a similar size would work. You will need a second carton if you make the top of the boat.
aluminum foil and birthday candles
This is the stuff that is not actually the engine. You will only need a 4" strip of aluminum foil from which you make the candle holder. The birthday candles are available in department stores and grocery stores.
Step 1
Cut apart the soda can for the boiler.
Cut the top off where the can reaches its its full diameter, or just inside (up to 1/2" toward the middle). Although it is possible to start the cut with the sharp end of a pair of scissors, it is easier to start the cut with a utility knife, single-edge razor, or a sharp tipped knife. After cutting for an inch or two, switch to scissors because the can starts to collapse It is impossible to make this cut smooth. Don't worry, it will be easy to trim once the metal is flattened. Just don't cut your fingers on the jagged edge! Recycle the top. We will not use it in the project.
The next cut is straight to the bottom where the can
starts to get smaller again.
. Once the cut reaches
almost to where the can diameter again becomes smaller again--at the bottom--
make a sharp turn (left if you are right-handed) and start cutting off the bottom.
If you pull the middle part of the can out of the way as you cut, it will be
much easier to cut the bottom off than the top. You are also likely to be able
to cut a smooth, straight line
Recycle the bottom. You will use the middle. You can go back and trim the long side where you made your first cut. If you look closely at what was the inside of the can (it will be silver color), you will see some scratch lines left over from when the can was formed. You should be able to find one that guides you to make a straight cut. Try not to make the strip any narrower than 50 mm (2") wide.
Gently sand the silver side of the aluminum with sandpaper. This helps glue to stick and make the boiler airtight.
Step 2
Start folding the aluminum "pocket."
Use care when folding the aluminum in the following steps because applying force unevenly or creasing too hard can cause cracks and leaks. Even a tiny leak can keep a steam engine from working.
Fold the aluminum strip in half so the so it is only about 103mm long (4")
rather than 207mm (8") long. The print side of the can should be outside.
First hold together the ends as shown.
Continuing to hold the ends together, make the fold with a ruler or similar
object so that the pressure is applied evenly accross the aluminum.
With the ruler still on the fold, tap the ruler with as much force as would be required to break an egg. Hitting to hard could cause it to split in step 6 .
Even though the edges do not line up perfectly, do not trim the edges ( you
will see why in step 5).
On the end opposite the fold, tape the two aluminum flaps together with a piece of tape (masking tape is easier to get off). This keeps the ends locked together, not shifting around.
Step 3
Cut the aluminum on the pattern.
This is a PDF pattern for the boiler. After you click the "Print" button on your browser, but before you click "ok" to actually print it, make sure that the "scale" is set to "none". Once printed, measure the distance between the lines of the "SCALE CHECK". They should be about 102mm (4") apart. If you are not able to print out the PDF, click here and print it out. As with the PDF, measure the "scale check" and make sure the scale was not distorted. . Print it out and measure the scale checks to make sure the size was not distorted. Alternately, just draw the pattern. The dashed lines are exactly one inch apart. The solid lines that define the flaps and the edges of the pattern are an additional 1/4 inch farther on.
Rough-cut (bubble-cut) one of the patterns. The faint outline around the pattern
shows approxamately where to cut out, if you do not know what I mean by "rough-cut."
On the non-print side of the pattern, stick on two "tape donuts" with
the sticky side of the tape out. 
Turn
the pattern over and stick it onto the aluminum.
Caution! It is very important to stick
the pattern on as shown below.
Cutting accurately on the pattern might be a little easier if you eliminate the part hanging out over the ends. You can cut it with scissors if you are very careful not to cut into the aluminum. But I just rip the paper against the metal.
Carefully cut on the two solid, outside lines (NOT ON THE DASHED LINES)! You
will fold on those later). Save one of the scrap strips of aluminum for use
in Step 7.
Step 4
Fold on the dashed lines of the pattern.
I have to warn you that more of my students goof on this step than any other. I don't think that any one step is particularly hard, it's just that it has to be done very carefully and accurately.
You will need a table or something with a sharp (not rounded) corner. Stick a piece of tape on each end, in-between the dashed lines. Carefully align the dashed line closest to you exactly with the edge of the table. It is important to keep it lined up this way when you bend it.
With fingers on each hand placed close to the dashed line, start bending. Sorry about my dirty thumbnails in the picture--I was working in my garden. But notice that there is also some light color in my thumbsnails because I am pushing as hard as I can. This is important because you need to make a clearly defined bend in the aluminum, not a rounded bend. Continue across the dashed line. Then peel the tape from the table, flip it around and tape it so the other dashed line is on the corner. Because of the sprinyness in the aluminum, you will only be able to bend it to about 45 degrees.
The photograph below shows an end view of what it should look like when you are done. Notice that the fold lines are straight and clearly defined. Carefully so as not to bend the aluminum where it shouldn't be bent, remove the paper pattern and all of the tape.
It might seem a little strange to use a ball-point pen on the alumininum, but it is not for drawing--in fact, the pen can be out of ink. Put the aluminum on top of a magazine or catalog--anything a bit softer than the table."Draw" a line firmly (but not so hard that you punch a hole in it) with the ball boint three times, all the way across the fold in the aluminum. Notice that as you go back and forth, two things happen: The fold becomes even more clearly defined, and the fold angle actually increases from about 45 degrees to an angle closer to 90 degrees.
In the picture below, the fold on the right got the treatment with the pen. Do it to both folds.
Finish folding the flaps over flat. I do it by putting all my fingers on the edge and pushing it over. I have never cut my finger that way because there is no lateral (sideway) movement that would create a slicing action. If you are afraid to do it, though, wear gloves or protect your fingers with a piece of tape.
To completely flatten the fold, cover one edge with the ruler and pound it with your fist in two places, as shown by the green targets. Then cover the other edge and pound again in two places. As before, pound hard enough to break an egg. Now you have sort of a very flat metal pocket, folded shut on two sides and one end, and open on one end. Caution: Pound it gently and do not rub the aluminum with the ruler. That can cause cracks and curving.
Step 5
Measure and mark the straws.
Let's clarify some terminology before working with the flexible straws. Let's divide them into three parts: the long part, the bendy part and the short part.
Measure 24 mm (1") from the end of the bendy part into the short part and make a mark with the magic marker.
Put another straw beside the first--oriented the same way-- and line up the ends exactly. Use the first mark as your guide to mark the second straw in exactly the same place.
Turn one of the straws around 180 degrees. With the straws side by side and the ends lined up, use the existing two marks to mark the same distance from the end of the big part of the straw. Each straw should now have 2 marks exactly the same distance from each end.
Insert the straws into the end of the boiler.
Although one end of the aluminum pocket is not folded shut, it is hard to get the straws into the flat boiler. The best thing I've found for opening up the end is a sharp pencil. Stick the point and the taper into the end into the end, but not more than 1/2" of the full-width pencil body should go in. Inserting the pencil far into the aluminum will dent it and ruin it.
With the tip of the pencil holding open the end, insert the long part of a bendy straw in a couple of inches. Take out the pencil and insert the long side of another straw in, too.
Step 6
Form a convex top and flat bottom in the boiler.
After lots of experimentation, I found that shaping the top and bottom of the boiler a particular way makes the best engines. To create that shape, first push the two straws together into the engine until you feel them start to bottom out, about 100 mm (4").
Make enough tape donuts to cover the bottom of the aluminum boiler (the bottom
is the side that does not have the narrow fold-over flaps). Masking tape seems
to be stronger for this than clear tape.
Tape the boiler onto something rigid and flat that can get glue on it. I use a piece of juice or milk carton. In the picture below the tape donuts are hidden because they are on the bottom of the engine, which is now flipped over so the flaps are on top. Notice how the top is now domed and the bottom is flat.
If the top is not domed, bottom flat and silver showing, you can shape it by taping the flaps as shown below, but tape just the edge. Do not tape over the silver part.
Step 7
Start sealing the boiler.
This step also glues the boiler so it maintains its domed shape. Before mixing up the glue, read all the way through this step and know what you are doing because the epoxy will start to harden in 5 or 10 minutes. Make sure the long parts of the straws are pushed all the way in. Work on newspaper and have dry rags at the ready.
See the "Materials" section above about how to get epoxy off your skin. Dispense small, equal amounts of the two parts of epoxy onto a piece of cardboard or something. They should come out equally, but trapped air bubbles can cause more of one to come out. With a toothpick or nail or Q-tip with cotton removed, thoroughly mix the epoxy.
Using something thin, apply a skinny bead of epoxy to the edge of the folded-
over flaps. It's easy where you see the silver, but don't forget to get the
whole line, even on the other end of the engine where the silver gets narrow
and dissappears.
Find the strip of aluminum that you saved in step 3. If you insert it in beween the layers of aluminum as shown below, move it back and forth and around, you can get some of the epoxy in between the layers too. Getting the epoxy in there makes it much stronger seals up leaks that can keep the engine from working. It is easiest to get the stip of metal in between on the ends where the silver shows the most, but push the glue in all the was accross--even where the silver disappears--all the way to the end.
Step 8
Cut candles and make candle holders.
It usually takes about 15 minutes for quick-setting epoxies to set, so let's get the power source ready while waiting. We cut a typical 60 mm (2 1/4") long birthday candle into 4 equal pieces. Each will be about 15 mm (9/16") long. I know that sounds short, but they have to be that short to fit under the engine in the right place. Besides, even a quarter of a candle burns 3 minutes or longer. Cut them with a razor, knife or even scissors.
Although only one out of four of the cut candles has a wick sticking up, don't throw the other three away. It's very easy to nip off the wax at the end with your front teeth, a dull knife (a sharp one might cut the wick) or finger nails. The dashed blue line in the illustration is a "hidden line" representing the wick hidden in the wax.
To make a reusable candle holder, tear off a piece of aluminum foil 5" wide and how ever long it comes out of the dispenser, usually about 12". Fold the strip in half lengthwise, then fold it in half again so it has some stiffness.
Although you can just crumple the end of the aluminum strip around the bottom of the candle to hold it upright, using a dab of silicone to make a tiny cup that holds the candle works better. Squeeze a dab of silicone about the size of a pea on an end of the strip. Put the bottom of a birthday candle in the middle of the silicone and twirl it in between thumb and forefinger once. Twirling causes the silicone to stick to the candle. But don't worry, when the silicone is cured it will not stick. It will just be the perfect shape to hold candles. Leave the candle straight upright in the silicone as it dries. If you repeat this on the other end of the strip with another dab of silicone and candle--and cut the long strip in half--you'll have two. You can use the candle holder that turns out best and have a backup.
Step 9
Glue the straws into the boiler.
Going back to the boiler, when the epoxy has hardened (at least 20 minutes),
pull out the straws and the opening will maintain its moon shape. Cut off both
the straws where they are marked on the short part only.
For now, leave the long parts of the straws full length even though they too
are marked.
It's a good idea to scuff up the little end of the of the straws before gluing
them into the aluminum boiler. Use sandpaper to make little scratches in the
otherwise smooth plastic to give the glue something to grab onto. It could save
you from having the straw come out later on. In the illustration I am twirling
the straw with one hand while squeezing the end of the straw in sandpaper with
the other hand. Do not sand the bendy part. 
Mix up a small amount of epoxy. Then apply a thin layer of epoxy all the way
around the small section of straw that you just sanded. Try not to get it on
the bendy part of the straw. A little bit on the bendy part won't hurt. 
Push the glue end of the straw into the boiler. Repeat
the step above with the other straw. The bendy parts of the straws should not
be pulled so as to make the straw longer. Let them stay collapsed. Although
in the illustration the long parts of the straws (to the right of the bendy
part) appear short, don't be confused. The straws extend out to the right of
the bendy part.
Keep the assembly flat as the epoxy sets so glue doesn't run into or out of
the boiler. Laying it in plastic food wrap will avoid sticking problems. Let
the epoxy cure for 15 minutes.
Step 10
Seal the engine.
Although we have glued the engine with epoxy, it still has to be sealed. 100%
silicone sealer is flexible so it bends a littler where the epoxy might crack.
In the photograph below I have cut off the straws to show all the places on
the end that need to be sealed with silicone. 
Rather than applying silicone to the outside of the boiler, I have found that it is more effective to make plugs inside the boiler. Do this by pushing silicone into the holes where the staws go into the engine. Scrape off the extra and push more in. Do this 10 or 15 times. A little bit of silicone on the bendy part will not hurt, but scrape off large globs.
Use some more silicone to coat the flap area with a thin (about as thick as a coin) layer (shown as light blue in the illustration). This will seal any leaks that are likely to be there. Be sure to dab some on the corners, which is a common place for leaks to show up.
I apply the silicone directly from the dispenser. The silcone should not stick
out over the edge because it will burn.
If you have small leaks where the straws go into the aluminum boiler, such leaks should get sealed in a later step when you use a gob of silicone to glue the engine into the boat body. On the other hand, if there is any leak elsewhere it has to be sealed or the engine won't work.
Fortunately, boiler leaks are pretty easy to fix. Look carefully where the bubbles come from. Take the engine out of the water and try to find the hole. Gently pat the area dry and apply a silicone layer about as thick as a coin. Don't re-test right away! Of course the air pressure would blow out the still-soft silicone. Give the thin layer an hour to dry.
Step 11
Cut out the boat body.
Cut off the bottom of a half-gallon milk carton and open up the top. One of the corners of the carton is the seam. In this corner there is not just a fold, but also a strip of cardboard that overlaps. It is important that you cut open the carton at that corner. Don't cut through the double layer--that would be too hard--but cut on either side of it. Open up the carton so it's flat.
Click here and print out the hull pattern. Some browsers--especially Netscape--change the scale and the size of the printed pattern. If the printout says something like, "Scaled-60%" try another browser. Also, the printout has a scale check. It says 2" line to line or 5 cm line to line. Make sure it's accurate.Check the scale by measuring either 2 inches or 5 centimeters. Or click here for a PDF. After you click the "Print" button on your browser, but before you click "ok" to actually print it, make sure that the "scale" is set to "none".
Cut a strip off each side of the pattern, as shown. This will make it easier to line up the pattern to the right place on carton. Make four tape donuts and put them in the corners of the actual pattern. The location for tape donuts is indicated by light blue circles, but note that they get stuck to the non-print side of the pattern. You can see where the pattern is from the non-print side if you hold it to the light.
There are two important things to remember about sticking the pattern onto the carton: First, line up the dashed line (red in the illustration) with a natural fold in the milk carton. This saves up from having to fold there, and keeps the number of structure-weakening folds to a minimum. The instructions on the pattern, "Line up this dashed line with a fold in the carton." point to the line. Second, be careful not get the pattern onto the spout part of the milk carton that has lots of folds. Keep the pattern in the area with the four big rectangles.
Cut out carefully along the solid outside line of the pattern. Then, there are two short solid lines that actually cut into the shape. Finally, there is a tiny rectangle in what will be the bottom of the boat that needs to be cut out. This rectangular hole will be where the two straws from the engine go through the bottom of the boat. A razor is the usual way to cut it out, although you could stab a hole with pencil and shape it with scissors.
Step 12
Form the boat hull.
The hull starts to take shape when you fold on the dashed lines. Depending on which way you fold, the print side of the carton will be outside (where it would show) or inside (where it wouldn't). Generally--unless you have a strong desire to advertise milk--the print will go inside. Although I acknowledge that you'll deal with that later, you don't have to consider it as you fold the carton because once it is bent one way it is easy to bend it the other way.
Start on the two dashed lines in the middle that form a "V". Either fold using a ruler--as shown--or you line it up with a sharp corner of a table or something as the aluminum was folded. However you bend the milk carton, bending accurately will save headaches later.
Next, fold on the two parallel dashed lines near the edge. You can do this the same as the others, but some people find it harder because one side is so narrow. You can use pliers, as shown.
After you have folded carefully on all dashed lines, remove the pattern and tape from the cardboard.
I use a combination of staples, hot (or cool melt) glue and tape to hold the boat together. You could also stitch it together I suppose, though I've not done it. Staples are the easiest, and if you get it wrong they are pretty easy to pull out. Hot glue is a little less conspicuous but harder to apply. You can re-melt hot glue to reposition something with the tip of the hot glue gun.
Start with the narrow flaps on the outside. Now is the time to think about which side of the carton--print or non-print--shows. Assuming you are not passionate about displaying your milk brand, fat content, etc., fold them so you see the non-print (white) side of the flaps, as shown. The print side is indicated by light blue. Staple the middle, then staple at least two times more on each side. The staples are dark blue in the illustration. Alternately, you can glue the flaps with hot or cool melt glue. If you glue, be sure to scuff up the surfaces that will be stuck together with sandpaper so the glue has something to hold on to.
I think you have to use staples to hold together the front of the boat--glue isn't strong enough. Hold the two front edges evenly. It's a good idea to temporarily tape them together so you don't have to deal with that as you staple. Make sure the narrow side flaps are on the inside and the white non-print side is on the outside. Staple first at the top, as shown. The staple should be about 1/8" or 3/16" (3 or 4 mm) in from the edge. Because the top staple will take so much stress, turn the stapler 180 degrees and put in another staple at the same place, but coming in from the other side of the boat. After that, put in three more staples end to end to the bottom. Remove the tape.
The back of the hull will look better if the two smaller side-flaps are inside and the large bottom flap is on the outside. The flaps can be glued or stapled. Gluing is preferable because if you do it right it water can't leak into the boat. With staples you have to go back and seal the back. If you glue them, use sandpaper to scuff up the joining surfaces and spread a thin layer of the hot glue around the small flaps.
At this point, the boat looks like a narrow triangle. To make it more like a real boat, grasp the two sides and use your thumbs to pull out the sides, as shown. This will test whether the staples holding the front together will hold.
Bend it open forcefully enough that it stays somewhat wider. Not only does that make it look more like a boat, but it also makes it possible to fit the engine in in the next step.
Step 13
Mount the engine into the boat.
Hold onto the base of the aluminum boiler with one hand and pull and lengthen the bendy part of the straw. Don't pull it so hard that the whole straw comes out, though. If it does, scuff it up with some sandpaper and glue it back in with a tiny bit of epoxy.
Now it's going to get messy. Have some rags at the ready, as well as several pieces of tape. You will be putting on a huge glob of silicone around where the straws enter the aluminum boiler. The glob will do three things: seal the engine where the straws go in of any leaks it might have, glue the engine into the hull of the boat, and seal the hole where the straws go through the bottom. Apply lots of silicone. It should be on about 3/8" (1 centimeter) of the bottom of the aluminum boiler all the way around as well as on the bendy part of the straws all the way around. Remember back in step ___ we said that if there were leaks where the straws go into the boiler, we would get them in a later step. This is that later step, so make sure you seal them well.
Push the straws through the hole in the hull until the glob of silicone hits the bottom of the boat. IMPORTANT! As in the illustration, the narrow flaps that you folded over are on the other side, facing the front of the boat. The engine has to go in this way or it won't work.
Flip the boat over and tape one of the pieces of straw that you cut off earlier (or cut another). It will only be there temporarily as a spacer to hold the two straws away from the bottom of the boat. Place it as shown, about halfway between the hole and the back of the boat. The tape is not shown.
Put a dab of silicone against the straws, as shown with light blue in the illustration. When the straws are bent over it will be hard to get to that part if it needs more sealer to keep water from entering the bottom of the boat. The silicone there also helps glue the straws in place.
Bend the straws over against the spacer straw and tape them there. Make sure they are centered, not off to one side or the other. Put a thin layer of silicone over about an inch of the straws as come out the bottom of the boat. This will keep them positioned as they are now and seal any leaks. Make it as smooth as possible so it cuts through the water when the boat runs.
The aluminum boiler, too, is positioned temporarily with tape until the silicone hardens. It is shown in red in these illustrations. First center and straighten it. The engine in the illustration at left is neither centered nor straightened. In the most extreme case, you might have to loosen the tape holding the straws on the bottom so you can un-tilt it.
The end of the boiler should be about 52 mm ( 2") above the floor of the boat. Tape it there (the tape in the illustration is purple).
If you stapled the back flaps instead of hot gluing them, now's the time to seal them with a thin layer of silicone, or your boat will fill with water and sink. If you plan to paint the outside of the boat you should apply the silicone to the inside because paint will not stick at all to silicone. You might also have to seal the front. Again, a thin layer is best.
Well, the boat is like an accident victim in medical traction now, what with all that tape holding things in position. But give it overnight to dry and you can actually run the boat. Remove the tape when the silicone is dry.
Step 14
Wet, prime and test the boat.
Since you have made a steam engine, and steam is water in the gaseous state,
it stands to reason that you are going to have to get some water into the aluminum
boiler where the heat will be applied. Actually, the boiler will not be "full"
of water. It only needs droplets of water coating the inside so the drops can
be flashed almost instantly into steam. Unfortunately, just pouring water into
one straw until it comes out the other straw will only wet the straws, not the
inside of the engine. To understand why, imagine a cup turned up upside down
and pushed down into water. The inside of the cup does not get wet because an
air bubble is trapped inside. Similarly, an air bubble gets trapped in the aluminum
boiler, preventing it from getting wet.
To wet the engine, pour water into one straw until it comes out the other straw.
Then cover both straws with a finger and shake up and down violenlty and tip
it to different angles! That will splash some water into the boiler. Then shake
out the extra water. Fortunately, you only have to wet the engine one time--or
unless you haven't used it for a few weeks--because it tends to stay wet inside.
Now prime the jets. This puts water in the straws. Do not become confused about
this just because it starts out the same as wetting the engine. Pour water into
one straw until it comes out the other. But this time be careful NOT to tip
the boat in such a way that the water would come out as you set it into the
water. Ditto when you put the candle in. There is no shaking when you prime
the jets.
Light the candle and place the candle holder so the flame is about halfway
between the front of the engine and the back, or slightly forward of that point.
Now you know why the candles are cut so short. Hook the aluminum foil of the
candle holder onto the back of the boat. That will keep it from sliding around
when the boat starts putting. It should start to putt within about half a minute.
Still not working? Click here.
Step 15
Cut out the boat top
You don't have to make the top of the boat, of course. It might give the candle a bit of protection from drafts, but mostly it's for looks. And practicing turning two-dimensional shapes into three-dimensional objects.
Click here and print out the pattern. Some browsers--especially Netscape--change the scale and the size of the printed pattern. If the printout says something like, "Scaled-60%" try another browser. Also, the printout has a scale check. It says 2" line to line or 5 cm line to line. Make sure it's accurate. Or click here for a PDF. After you click the "Print" button on your browser, but before you click "ok" to actually print it, make sure that the "scale" is set to "none". Rough cut (bubble cut) out the 4 parts and use tape donuts to affix them to the milk carton. I used purple circles in the illustration to suggest where to place the tape donuts so the pattern doesn't start to slide halfway though the cutting. Stick them on the non-print (white) side of the milk carton. Notice that each pattern has its own section of the milk carton to itself. No folds in the milk carton run through any of the patterns.
Cut out the deck pattern as shown. Keep the pattern on! Later on you will cut out on the solid line the rest of the inner part, but not yet. Tape it on to
Straighten out a small paper clip. It will make the back of the deck strong.
On the print side of carton, which is also the side without the pattern, scuff
up the cardboard with sandpaper where shown in the illustration so the glue
will stick. Use two small pieces of tape (green in the
illustration) to stick the re-shaped paper clip on the end of the cardboard,
as shown.
This still leaves most
of the paper clip exposed. Squeeze out hot glue (red in
the illustration) over the exposed part of the paper clip. Don't be stingy
with the glue. Submerge the metal and make sure it won't come off. When that
glue has cooled, pull off the tape and get that part of the paper clip too.
Now turn your attention to the "cabin wall" part. It will curve, and that curve will be easier to shape if you grab both ends and rub the print side back and forth against a corner a few times until it takes on a bit of a curve. The
Next, there are two dashed lines that indicate where to fold. You can fold them with a ruler, corner or pliers. Bend them toward the pattern side. Now cut all 22 of the short, solid lines from the edge to the fold. This creates flaps to make strong connections with the deck on the bottom and the roof on top. You can take off the pattern and the tape now.
Attaching the cabin wall to the deck neatly is a bit tricky, so we'll break it into several steps. Put the deck and wall together so that one set of flaps bends underneath the deck. It's hard to describe--look at the pictures. Since it is symmetrical, it doesn't matter which bunch of flaps attaches to the deck.
Notice that there are 12 flanges on the top and the bottom of the wall. If
you have 6 flaps on each side you're exactly at the middle of the wall. 
That
middle point has to be right at the front. Tape the middle two flaps (tape is
purple in the illustration). Make sure they are right at the front and pushed
tight against the deck. Then tape the two flaps right at the end. Flip the assembly
over and make sure the wall is tight against the deck so you can't see parts
of the flaps from the top. If there is a gap, re-tape before proceeding.
Back on the bottom, hot-glue the flaps down that haven't been taped, then un-tape the rest of the flaps and glue those down too. Finally, apply a heavy bead of hot glue over all the flaps and also the space in between the paper clip and the flaps. This makes the assembly strong and resists the tendency of the hull to crush the it.
Attaching the roof is a similar operation. The key to success is making sure that the edge of every one of the twelve wall flaps lines up with the edge of the roof. Once again, temporarily tape the middle and the end flaps first, then glue. Make sure the non-print side is facing out. You could staple this instead of gluing since the roof doesn't take much stress. If you use glue, go easy. Too much glue will make the boat top heavy, which will result in listing (tilting). You can counter this by gluing paper clips or coins to the bottom of the boat hull.
Attaching the smokestack, too, can make the boat top heavy. The smokestack is optional. If you decide to put it on, cut it out and bend it around a corner just as you did to the wall. Cut the slot on one end where indicated, remove the pattern and push through the slot from the outside in (it looks better hidden). Notice that it has a slant. Usually a ship's smokestack slants back, so the seam would go in front. Put the smokestack where you want it on the roof. Cut a hole or just cut two slits in the roof, depending on whether you are really going to get smoke out of it.
8th grade student Brittany B. made a rudder with a paper clip and a little piece of milk carton stuck together with hot glue. Here is a short (5 second) video of it. Unless you have a fast internet connection you should right click and "save target as" and remember where you saved it. Boat with a rudder.
I got a wonderful tip about making a rudder for the boat from young Australians Elana (12) and Alex (10) who made putt putt boats with their grandad Les. Click here to see the PDF of the drawing of their ingenious rudder system (if for some reason your PDF reading program is not working, click here).
Step (experimental)
Create nozzles at the ends of the straws.
Sometimes it seems that by restricting the opening of the end of the straws, it forces the water coming out to speed up. This in turn causes the boat to move faster in reaction. The engine might go faster with a constriction, just as rockets constrict exhaust gases to go faster. The problem is, with the boat engines it works sometimes, while other times it doesn't work at all. Fortunately, it's easy to remove the constrictions if it doesn't work.
If you saved the 4 short pieces of straw, use those. If not, cut 4 pieces of
straw 1" long. Slice all the pieces lengthwise with scissors. 
Fit
one inside another (like the old-fashioned telescopes). Roll them firmly between
thumb and forefinger
to make them as thin as possible,
and insert them into the end of one of the straws on the engine. Push them in
until they are flush with engine straw. Repeat with the other two pieces and
the other engine straw. If it works, you can even slice up another short piece
of straw and narrow the jet even more. If they don't work, just pinch the main
straw in front of them and squeeze them out. Or, hook them out with a paper
clip straightened except for a hook on the end.
