LumberJocks Woodworking Forum banner

Project Information

I present to you, Serpentine Wood Gear Clock. This is a clock that is designed by Jeffrey Schierenbeck and is offered as either plans with a hardware pack or a complete laser cut kit. A couple years ago, I bought the plans from Jeffrey and had planned on building the clock eventually. Well, two years later I was still knee deep in three other clock projects that must be finished before I start another. Well luck would have it… A friend of mine contacted me asking me if I could assemble a laser cut kit she bought online for a friends birthday present, I immediately responded with a "Yes". Not knowing what the kit she had bought was, when I got the kit in the mail, I was pleasantly surprised to see it was Jeffrey's Serpentine Clock kit. Having thumbed through the construction manual a few times over the last two years, I was familiar with this clock so building it was going to be a blast. The kit comes as three sheets of laser cut parts all ready to be cut free and sanded up. The laser cutting, though nice for making accurate parts, leaves a nasty charred edge of everything it touches. This was not going to be easy if I wanted to make an attractive clock with a decent finish, so sanding began. I'm certain anyone who's had to deal with laser cut parts will appreciate my pain and the work that went into the clock pictured above. The finish on the clock is Bullseye Sealcoat to seal the birch plywood for staining and final finish. I stained the gears and pendulum bob with general finishes gel stain and am glad I sealed the wood before applying. I tested a piece with out the sealer and the wood blotched so bad it would have looked horrible. Once the stain was on and everything was dry, I put on five coats of wipe on varnish to seal the wood and give it a nice satin luster. All in all, I am pretty happy with the outcome and know she is going to love the clock very much. It's kind of nice knowing a clock I made will finally adorn someone else's wall other than my own.

Gallery

Comments

· Registered
Joined
·
7,502 Posts
Wow! I mean, Wow!!
 

· Registered
Joined
·
632 Posts
Fantastic! I mean, Fantastic! ;-)

oh, and I Love your signature line. Made me laugh.
 

· Registered
Joined
·
21 Posts
Nice job.
I'm getting mentally prepared to make a clock myself and thought about the finishing of the Baltic Birch gears. Not wanting to have stark light contrast of ply, staining seemed to be called for. I suspected blotching could be a problem as you just claimed. Applying stain after sealing can be a challenge too; getting an even coating. Looks like you mastered it.
Did I see correctly that the wall mounting is a slotted key hung on a screw? Interesting. I am thinking of a french cleat.
When making a table, success is if nothing rolls off and it doesn't wobble. With a clock, that sucker has to run and keep time.
You did it. Very nice!!
 

· Registered
Joined
·
1,833 Posts
Way cool I have looked at his website and thought about taking the plunge! Great work.
 

· Registered
Joined
·
615 Posts
That's pretty cool.
 

· Registered
Joined
·
47 Posts
I love these things. It's always amazing to me what you can do with wood and patience. Great build!
 

· Registered
Joined
·
581 Posts
This encompasses all my fears in taking on all the hours needed for a project such as this. I have been wanting to take on a project of this magnitude. Soon, I will post such a project.
 

· Registered
Joined
·
186 Posts
Way cool, I love clocks
 

· Registered
Joined
·
2 Posts
Thanks for posting your Serpentine clock photos. You did a really nice job with the construction and finishing!
Jeff Schierenbeck
Wooden-Gear-Clocks.com
 
Top