Wall Clock

[Mike Hill]

Wanted to get some pictures on of a Regulator wall clock I built from plans. Not a favorite project, but I had the mechanism and wanted to work with a new wood. I used Soft Maple from Fine Hardwoods here in Austin. My first experience cutting and finishing Maple. Some problems with the Router Cove cuts making the wood fuzzy, but I learned to turn the speed up on the Router and it did much better. The finish is Antique Maple stain and Shellac sprayed on in three coats. I used an inexpensive HVLP electric Dewalt spray gun from the BORG and I think it looks about as good as I have done so far on a wood finish.

Mike

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[Ken Garlock]

Mike, you did a very nice job on the clock. I would be happy to have it in my house.:) The finish looks good and I like the color.

One quetion however, what is the black tab that sticks up on the top center?:confused:

[Corey Hallagan]

Nice work Mike! Nothing like a nice clock for a functional project!

Corey

[Mike Hill]

Mike, you did a very nice job on the clock. I would be happy to have it in my house.:) The finish looks good and I like the color.

One quetion however, what is the black tab that sticks up on the top center?:confused:

Ken: Good question and great eye! It is a picture hanger (very large) that I used to attach to a wire hanger on the back of the clock. Truth is, I need to figure a better way to do it! Just wanted to hang it and get some pictures. Thanks for your comments and the wife loves it. Fits very well in our new home due to the lighter color of the wood and finish.
Mike

[Bruce Page]

Very nice Mike, I love the color and the clean lines.

[Vaughn McMillan]

That came out real nice, Mike. Is the clock a true regulator clock, or electric? Either way, it looks good, and I like the finish. I've got a cheap HVLP gun that's been unused since I bought it on sale a couple months ago. I just need to do a smallish project like yours to try out the gun.

- Vaughn

[Bob Childress]

Very nice clock, Mike. Looks good on that wall. What does it weigh? You can probably hang it off a screw head in the wall behind using a good drywall anchor.

Great looking finish:) Wife must love it.

[Mike Hill]

That came out real nice, Mike. Is the clock a true regulator clock, or electric? Either way, it looks good, and I like the finish. I've got a cheap HVLP gun that's been unused since I bought it on sale a couple months ago. I just need to do a smallish project like yours to try out the gun.

- Vaughn

Vaughn: The clock is a quartz battery operated and chimes all the time! I actually shut it off last night to get some sleep :) Thinking of looking around for a traditional movement. This was a good project to try out the HVLP gun on and it was a success.
Mike

[Tim Solley]

Hey Mike that looks great. I'm a little surprised the finish came out as nice as it did considering you used an oil based stain on soft maple. That stuff blotches like crazy! Perhaps it helps that you did a very light color. Either way, it looks great!

I assume you're now hooked on spraying projects...I know I am.

Tim

[Frank Howell]

Nice work. I like the way the maple came out. Never worked with Soft Maple before. Any Tips?

[Tim Solley]

Nice work. I like the way the maple came out. Never worked with Soft Maple before. Any Tips?

Frank, I'm sure Mike will chime in, but I can tell you from my experience that soft maple is pretty soft stuff. It's considered a hardwood, but's it's SOFT. At least the wood I've used is. Whatever you do, don't drop a piece that's finished being milled, it WILL dent.

It burns too. It's good to be prepared for this so you can use the planer, jointer, or sanding to take off any burn marks. It smells great when you cut it too, at least to me!

Tim

[Mike Hill]

Hey Mike that looks great. I'm a little surprised the finish came out as nice as it did considering you used an oil based stain on soft maple. That stuff blotches like crazy! Perhaps it helps that you did a very light color. Either way, it looks great!

I assume you're now hooked on spraying projects...I know I am.

Tim

Tim: I tried the gel stain on a spare piece of Maple and it did blotch. Went to the BORG and got a "Pre-staining" agent that smelled like Turpentine (Minwax Product). Then left the Gel Stain on for a vey short period of time. It worked fine, but your right, if I had just done the stain it would have been a mess.
Mike

[Mike Hill]

Nice work. I like the way the maple came out. Never worked with Soft Maple before. Any Tips?

Frank: As you probably know, I am new at this, but here's what I found. Depending on the stain you are using, some type of pre treatment is needed for soft Maple to take the stain evenly. Second thing is, I was running my router at about 11,000 RPM cutting the cove on the door frames and and getting "fuzz" on the wood. When sanding later it would not sand smoothly. I re-cut some of the door frame and stepped the router RPM up to 24 or 26 K RPM and that really made a difference. Finally, soft maple does not absorb much of the stain, so go a bit darker and you wont be disappointed.

Mike

[Tim Solley]

Tim: I tried the gel stain on a spare piece of Maple and it did blotch. Went to the BORG and got a "Pre-staining" agent that smelled like Turpentine (Minwax Product). Then left the Gel Stain on for a vey short period of time. It worked fine, but your right, if I had just done the stain it would have been a mess.
Mike

I see, the Minwax "Wood Stain Preconditioner" or something like that. When I did a pair of end tables for my living room out of soft maple (mistake), I tried that preconditioner too. I guess since I was going for a darker color the blotching was just not acceptable. I've been using dyes on maple ever since and have been very happy. Like I said before though, the clock looks great. I've got to build one myself. That is once I finish the list of projects my wife wants :cool:.

We gotta get together and check out each other's shops one of these days. Maybe have a little get together of woodworkers from the north Austin area; there are a number of them who have expressed an interest in a gathering. My baby is due to be born this week (read scheduled C-section day after tomorrow), so I'll be a little busy for a while. But once things calm down (ha...right), I want to do something.

Tim

[Mike Hill]

Tim: I sure understand your current commitments! My # 3 child and her Husband just left to head down to Buda and were here with their 6 month old twins. Both were preemies (product of fertility treatments) which is more and more common these days. They are boys and both near normal weight now, so the visit was great.

I did Ribs on the Smoker using Oak, Pecan and Cherry. LOML did Asian Slaw w/peanut butter sauce and Boston Baked beans. Enough ribs so we could take some to the neighbors to make up for all the smoke :) . Must admit there was not much cherry since I only use scraps :) , but a bit for flavoring.

They liked both of my most recent woodworking projects and I now have orders from 3 daughters and a couple pf grandkids for Xmas!. Let's see, bread box, potato bin, jewelry box, entertainment center and whatever!

The woodworking club sounds great and I am "all in" on this one.
Mike