Clock Movements and Hands

Ah, I almost forgot. The meat and potatoes of the clocks.

I ordered these clock movements and hands online --- knowing nothing about clock movements or hands. I thought the movements would be much larger.

I ordered 4 sets of hands because I'm not sure which ones are going to go on what clock yet. Also, I included a bottlecap in the photo to show how truly massive the 12" (from center) large hands are.

Other supplies

I've got most of my supplies. The only other thing that I think I'm waiting on is the LEDs.

This is what $46 of phosphorescent paint looks like.

Now, for some electronics. Here are the cathodes--

And we're obviously going to need switches for all of these clocks! Also from xoxide.

That's it for now. I think I may put a layer of white on two of the clocks later tonight after I'm sure the primer is dry.

My Master Plans (MSPaint edition)

Here are my "Master Plans". For the record, I don't expect anybody to understand these designs--at all--if they haven't seen 12oz Mouse. If you have, however, you'll recognize them all immediately.

The large clock I'm going to make is going to test my patience, as I am not an artist at all. But it should be fun.

The size is 2x2'. It is going to depict the number of scene's at Rhoda's bar. Rhoda is going to dominate the upper part of the image, her hands will be the hands of the clock, and several characters will be painted below.

The green bars are 8" cold cathodes and the purple bars are 12" cathodes that will be on the front, but hidden by hoods that I plan to craft out of the air duct.

The next clock is the one I really wanted to do before I convinced myself the above idea was way cooler. This clock has become a major part of my life, and I can't go anywhere without seeing the number 2:22. If I'm on the bus and my stop comes up at 2:22, I'll ride that thing until I see 2:23. The transition from 2:22 - 2:23 is beautiful and reminds me that things are never as bad as they seem.

Anyway, here it is. The clock---The motivation for this all.

^ The purple dots will be UV LED lights driven by batteries on the back of the clock. The red 2:22s are sort of my artistic twist on 'the clock'. At night, they will light up bright red as they'll be done with phosphorescent paint.

Lastly, is the clock that's going to test my knowledge in circuits. It's the stars.. the asprind stars.. They'll also be lit up --- between 12-20 yellow LEDs on a black/gray background.

Trip to Menards

I went off yesterday to Menards to pick up 6 sq.ft. of 3/8" particle board. Luckily for me, I brought my grandpa along to help me make a better choice.

We ended up coming home with a 4x2 ft. piece of 1/2" MDF board. It is awesome.

Because I know nothing of woodworking, I let my grandpa teach me a thing or two. I cut out a big piece for (2x2') for my main clock, and 4 1x1' squares for others.

I forgot to take pictures of them right away, but here they are getting their first layer of primer.

Since the clock movements I bought are only 3/8" long, we needed to rout out a 2x2" area to rest the movement behind each board's center. I never knew this type of tool existed. After my grandpa did the first, I carved out the other two.

Other purchases from Menards included a $3 soldering iron (thankyou, clearance!) and a piece of air duct that will be used as a hood for some of the lighting on the main clock.

Figured that I ought to photoblog about my 12oz Mouse clock making

I'll give this a shot. I'd like some way to document my first adventure into something creative in a long time.

Hopefully by the end of this I'll have a much better understanding of woodworking, painting, and soldering/wiring up circuits.

Many updates to come in the next week or so.