Wall Clock

Advanced Hand Props, with Tom Fiocchi
Ohio University, 2016

The original clock was most likely several feet tall despite being a wall hanging. I downsized my clock to roughly 27”H x 11″W x 8-1/2″D.

The first thing I made were the spindles. I used rock maple for it’s strength in turning something both narrow and complicated. They measured around 1-1/2” at the widest diameter and stood at around 13” tall.The trunk was constructed from pine, poplar, ply, and some leftover moulding. The height of the trunk wasn’t determined until the spindles were cut to size. The spindle attachment points were left accessible during construction so they could still be removed.

The base was made from planed and shaped scraps of poplar and a wooden finial found in stock. The thick black paint was sanded off, and its detail returned with a dremel. The trunk was assembled after the base was constructed. The screws that held the bottom of the spindles in place were eventually replaced with the dowels used to create the lower finials.

The plinth was created using a base of pine and embellished with scraps of trim moulding, pressed wood appliqués, poplar, oak, and other findings. The plinth and base both had a set of small decorative finials. They were too delicate to lathe, so I used beads, knobs, and other wood findings to create similar shapes. The best shop finding was by far a perfectly sized lion brooch in the Costume Crafts Shop!

The back plate and pendulum insert were left removable so the clock itself and a plexi window could still be accessed for changing the time and cleaning purposes. The pendulum was of poplar and a pressed wood appliqué. The whole thing was coated in epoxy create a glossy surface for the paint. Small bits of coat hanger wire were brazed to create the fret and epoxied into the top of the pendulum. The source clock had a decorative plate with the model name “Gloria” engraved on it. I found a drawer pull with no mate in stock and shaped it with the dye grinder and dremel. As an homage, I christened this clock with my own initials.

Because so many varieties of wood were used, I chose to paint the clock in order to unify the piece. It was sealed with a polycrylic semi-gloss. The clock rim, pendulum, lion pendant, and name plate were all hit with the same gold spray paint and FEV treatment.