Art deco desk clock

 

 

Contrasting species highlight the
clock's shapely figure. Here we
chose spalted maple and walnut
for a blond-over-brown variation.

We all have 'em: wood scraps too little to be of much use, but too beautiful to toss out. Now you can fashion those exotic or figured castoffs into a handsome timepiece.

As a convenience to allow you to view this free woodworking plan before downloading it, we offer a page-by-page review. If you like the plan, you'll find a Free Downloadable Plan link on the last page of the plan. The downloadable plan will have larger, easier to view illustrations than the online preview. Thanks for viewing, and enjoy the build.

 

 

With a stopblock and feather board in
place, cut a groove in each side of the
body (A). Slide your hand on top of the
fence for safety.

Form the body and wings

1 Cut a 3/4 x 3 1/4 x 3" blank for the body (A). (We used lacewood and curly maple for the clock previous page, top and spalted maple and walnut for the one previous page, bottom.) Photocopy the Body Pattern, and adhere it to the blank with spray adhesive, aligning the bottom edge of the pattern flush with the end of the blank.

2 Using a 1 3/8" Forstner bit in your drill press, bore a hole 3/8" deep in the body (A) where marked on the pattern.

3 Bandsaw or scrollsaw the body (A) to just outside the pattern lines, then sand the edges to the lines.

4 To cut the stopped grooves on the sides of the body (A), install a 1/4" straight bit in a table-mounted router. Adjust the fence to center the bit in the 3/4" stock. Now set a stopblock so when the body is pushed across the bit, it stops at the indicated mark on the pattern, shown in photo. Rout the grooves on both sides of the body.

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Use a starter pin and a push pad for
safety when freehand routing the
chamfers on the front and back of the
body (A).

 

Rout small parts safely

5 Using a 45° chamfer bit in your table-mounted router, cut a 1/16" chamfer around the front and back faces of the body (A), shown in photo. (You'll use the same setup to chamfer the base [C] shortly.) Remove the pattern, and finish-sand the body to 220 grit.

6 Cut two 1/4 x 1 3/4 x 3 1/4" blanks for the wings (B). Make two copies of the Wing Pattern and adhere one to each blank, with the long, straight edge of the pattern flush with the edge of the blank. Bandsaw or scrollsaw the wings to shape, then sand away any saw marks on the cut edges. Remove the pattern, and finish-sand the wings to 220 grit.

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Now make the base

1 Cut a 3/4 x 2 1/4x 10" blank for the base (C). Resaw the blank to 5/8" thick. (We used a tablesaw.) Then crosscut the blank to 6".

2 Photocopy the Base Pattern and adhere it, centered, to the blank.

3 To form the mortises in the base (C) to receive the wings (B), chuck a 1/4" bit in your drill press. We prefer the flat bottoms produced by a Forstner bit, but a brad-point bit also will work. Adjust your drill-press fence to center the bit over the marked mortises on the pattern.

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With the base aligned to cut the
mortises, lock the drill-press fence in
place, and drill overlapping holes with
a Forstner bit.

Fence ensures a straight mortise

4 To make the mortises, drill overlapping holes 1/4" deep in the base (C) where shown on the pattern in photo. Use a chisel to clean up the edges and square the corners of the mortises. Bandsaw or scrollsaw the base to shape.

5 Rout the 1/16" chamfer on the bottom of the base (C) using a starter pin, as you did earlier. Change to a 1/4" round-over bit, leave the starter pin in place, and rout the top of the base. Remove the pattern, and finish-sand to 220 grit.

 

 

 

Assemble and finish

1 Apply glue to the grooves in the body (A), and insert the wings (B). To hold the parts in position, use masking tape as a clamp. Next apply glue to the mortises in the base (C), insert the body and wing assembly (A/B) into the base, and clamp.

2 After the glue dries, apply a clear finish. (We sprayed on three coats of aerosol satin lacquer, sanding between coats with a 320-grit sanding sponge.)

3 Install the clock movement, put the clock on your desk, and enjoy watching time pass.

Copyright Meredith Corporation 1995, 2011

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