Safe for Chewing

[jimbobspants]

I have 5 month old twins that are in the "it's in my hand, it's in my mouth" phase. I want to start making some simple toys out of wood for them which leaves me with three questions:

1. Are there any types of solid wood that I shouldn't let them chew on?

2. They make paint that kids can eat (you can get it at Michael's) but what other finishes are safe?

3. Not really about wood but what's a good scroll saw for less than $200 or what should I watch out for when buying a used scroll saw?

Thanks for your help!

[paoloberno]

1) Few woods are so toxic to be dangerous but for toys i would use the same woods used for kitchen tools: maple, beech, poplar, alder, ecc

2) The same as above: food grade oil or beeswax

[tdale51@yahoo.com]

you could use pine and probably applewood as well. I hear food coloring makes excellent "food safe" dyes if you want to color a light colored wood.

[Bombarde16]

I'd be less worried about toxicity than about splinters. Maple, perhaps?

[theapprenticeshand]

There are tons of kids toys made out of beech. It's a good wood for toys because it's hard and won't dent or break as easily as some other woods. It's relatively cheap and it also has fairly closed pores which will help keep it from looking dirty as stuff clogs up the pores.

--Brian

[thewoodwhisperer]

I'd go with hard maple. They even sell teething rings made of maple: http://www.amazon.com/Waldorf-Maple-Teether-Natural-Teething/dp/B000VLR178

[Boatworks Today]

I've made quite a few things out of both maple and birch (yellow) and they both work really well.. Hand held items like rattlers, teethers, etc I finished with bees wax and mineral oil. Larger items like push carts, cribs I used a finish made by Crystalac. It's water based and marketed as "toy / baby safe". I am sure there are other finishes out there but for "toys" those are the two finished I stick with.

[CessnaPilotBarry]

Shellac is non-toxic when dry, and often used on food and pills.