Small Clock

This clock holds a secret—and its construction involves a few secrets, too. The case is made from 1/2" thick mahogany plywood, which you won't find at most lumberyards. The secret is to make your own by gluing together two layers of 1/4" plywood. Another secret is to glue the moldings to the plywood case material first, so you can miter everything at the same time. It simplifies the building and sure beats mitering all the molding parts individually. Gold painted trim adds sparkle to the finished clock.

Tool and Materials

To build this clock, you'll need a tablesaw, a planer, a router in a router table and a drill press. You'll also need a couple of special router bits: a classic bit and a 1/8-in. round-over bit. An adjustable circle cutter is used to cut the round clock opening (see Sources). The clock is made from Honduras mahogany plywood and lumber, as well as wenge (pronounced Wen-gay or wenj). Wenge is a dark-brown tropical hardwood that nicely complements the mahogany's reddish-brown. For the clock case, you'll need 1/4-in.-thick mahogany plywood. It doesn't take much, so buy a partial sheet unless you plan to make several clocks. You'll also need a 3/4-in. x 6-in. x 48-in. piece of mahogany lumber and a chunk of wenge. Buy a piece of wenge that's at least 3 in. wide by 32 in. long. It's more than you actually need, but it's easier and safer to cut the parts from a piece this size, rather than one that's smaller. The battery-powered clock mechanism is a one-piece insert, which is simply friction-fit into a hole in the clock front. This makes it easy to change the batteries or the time. The total cost to make this clock is about $65 (see Sources).

PHOTO 1:Make your own 1/2-in. mahogany plywood for the clock case, because finding it at a lumberyard can be difficult. Use several bricks as clamps and a piece of cardboard to protect the plywood from getting scratched.		PHOTO 2: Cut two 1/8-in. dadoes in the face of the plywood panel. A thin molding that goes all the way around the clock will later be fit into the dadoes. Use a push block for safety and to maintain even pressure while sawing

Laminate Plywood First

Cut two 32-in. x 8-in. pieces of 1/4-in. mahogany plywood (Fig. B). Notice that the grain runs the short dimension on these parts. Glue these together to form the 1/2-in. mahogany plywood needed for the clock case (Photo 1). After the glue has dried, rip the 1/2-in. plywood to 7-1/2 in. wide on the tablesaw. Take about 1/4 in. off both edges so they are straight and parallel. Next, cut the two 1/8-in. dadoes in the face of the plywood (Photo 2, Fig. A).

PHOTO 3:Glue and clamp the flat trim pieces onto the plywood panel. Put a 1/8-in. x 1/4-in. spacer strip into the dadoes (without glue) and push the flat trim up against it. Remove the spacer strip after you've attached the clamps.		PHOTO 4: Rout the top and bottom moldings with a classic router bit. Use feather boards to hold the molding against the fence and table for the smoothest cut.

Attach the Molding and Trim

Make the upper and lower flat trim pieces (C, D, E and F). Place spacer strips in the small dadoes in the panel to provide a stop for the flat trim to push up against, and glue the flat trim to the 1/2-in. plywood panel (Photo 3). Remove the spacer sticks before the glue dries to prevent them from getting stuck. Next cut a strip of mahogany for the top and bottom moldings (G, H, J and K). Use a classic router bit to shape them (Photo 4). Note that the top molding is 1/8 in. thinner than the bottom molding and they are attached to the plywood so they mirror each other (Fig. A). Glue and clamp them to the plywood (Photo 5). The edge of the molding and the plywood should be flush. If they're not, wait until the glue has dried and trim the parts flush on your tablesaw. Complete the 1/2-in. plywood panel by cutting a rabbet at the top and bottom on the back side (Photo 6, Fig. A).

PHOTO 5:Glue and clamp the classic molding tight against the edge of the flat trim. The molding's outer side should be flush with the plywood edge. Trim off any molding or plywood overhang with your tablesaw.		PHOTO 6: Cut two rabbets in the plywood panel for the lid and bottom. Put a temporary wooden fence on your saw so you can push the fence right up to the dado blade.

Miter the Sides

Set your tablesaw blade to 45 degrees and miter some test boards. Then use a tablesaw sled to miter the clock's four sides. Start by cutting the sides about 1/4 in. oversize (Photo 7). It's OK to leave the extra material on one edge. It will be cut off when you cut the parts to final width (Photo 8). Cut slowly to avoid chip-out on the moldings. Wenge is particularly prone to chip-out, but cutting at a slower rate helps avoid that problem. If you do get a chip, save it and glue it back on. Use a toothpick to apply the glue and masking tape to hold the chip in place. Drill the opening for the clock insert into the clock case front (A, Photo 9). The clock insert is centered vertically on the case front between the two gold half-bead trim pieces (L).

PHOTO 7:Cut one miter on all four case sides with a shop-made saw sled. Cut the sides a little extra wide at this step. Pushing more slowly than normal helps reduce chip-out on the moldings.		PHOTO 8: Miter the sides to final width. Hold each piece in place with a toggle clamp. This ensures a straight cut and keeps your hands out of harm's way.

PHOTO 9:Drill the hole for the clock with a circle cutter. Set the drill press to its slowest speed and hold the part with two toggle clamps. Secure the backer board to the drill table with a couple of clamps.		PHOTO 10: Assemble the sides with glue and masking tape. Pull the masking tape tight and check that the miters align tightly.

Assemble the Case

Apply glue to two sides first and hold them together with masking tape. Add the other two sides one at a time. Stretch the tape, so it pulls the parts tightly together (Photo 10). Then glue in the bottom and add the four feet (S, Photo 11). Next make the lid (N). Cut the rabbets on the bottom of the lid (Detail 1). Check that the lid fits easily into the rabbet in the top of the clock case. Now make the half-bead trim (L, M, P, Q) that goes around the case and the lid. This trim is very small, but is easy to make using our step-by-step cutting sequence (Fig. C). Miter the half-bead trim that goes around the lid and attach it to the underside of the lid (Photos 12 and 13). You'll need some small spring clamps to hold these trim pieces in place while the glue dries (see Sources). Set aside the strips of half-bead trim (L, M) that go around the case. They will be used later.

PHOTO 11:Glue the bottom into the rabbet that runs around the sides. Then attach the feet. Set the feet 1/8 in. in from the edge of the molding.		PHOTO 12: Miter the half-bead trim using a small handsaw and mitering jig. The jig is simply two mitered boards glued to a piece of plywood.

PHOTO 13:Glue the half-bead trim into the small rabbet on the bottom side of the lid. Remove one of the jaw covers from the spring clamp to provided more pressure on the small trim. Leave the other jaw cover on to protect the lid's top from getting dented.		PHOTO 14: Stain the clock case to even out any differences in wood color between the solid lumber and plywood parts. When the stain is dry, apply a clear finish.

PHOTO 15:Apply three coats of gold paint to the half-bead trim that goes around the clock case. Sand between coats to remove any roughness. Install the trim after the paint is dry.		PHOTO 16: Install the clock mechanism. It's simply a pressure fit, requiring no fasteners.

Finishing Touches

Sand the entire clock case and lid with 180-grit paper and stain it (Photo 14). A red mahogany stain gives the mahogany a deep rich tone and helps even out any color difference between the plywood and the lumber (see Sources). After the stain dries thoroughly (24 to 48 hours), brush on a satin polyurethane varnish (see Sources). While the stain and finish dry, paint the half-bead trim gold (L, M, Photo 15). Miter it to final length and glue it into the dadoes on the clock case. All that's left now is to install the battery in the clock mechanism, set the time and insert it into the clock case (Photo 16). Oh, yeah, don't forget to add the candy.

Getting Cutting List
Sources
Woodworker's Supply, (800) 645-9292, www.woodworker.com, Circle cutter, #829-757, $18 each
1-in. spring clamps, #125-033, $2 each.

MLCS, (800) 533-9298, www.mlcswoodworking.com, 1/4-in. classic router bit, #6491,
$26 each, 1/8-in. round-over router bit, #6350, $11 each. Rockler Companies, Inc. (800) 279-4441
www.rockler.com, Clock insert, #23995, $11 each.
Jo-Ann Stores, (800) 525-4951, www.joann.com, Liquid Leaf Classic Gold, $5 per 2 oz.

Woodworkers Source, (800) 423-2450, www.woodworkerssource.com, 3/4-in.-thick wenge, $15 per bd. ft.
Wood & Shop Inc. (314) 731-2761, www.woodnshop.com, 1/4-in. mahogany plywood, 48-in. x 24-in., $20 per piece.

Minwax Co. (800) 523-9299 (for dealer locations), www.minwax.com, Satin Polyurethane Varnish, $12 per quart, Red Mahogany Stain, #225, $8 per quart.