I built this from plans around 1969 shortly after I got out of the Air Force. I didn’t have much money, at the time, so I went to the lumber yard to buy the wood needed to make the clock. I wanted walnut, which is my favorite wood, but it cost $66 at the time. I didn’t have that much so I bought mahogany instead, as it only cost $33. It is solid 3/4 inch stock, and I stained it with walnut stain and put three coats of polyurethane on top.
I spent about six months building it, and didn’t really finish it at the time. I decided to order the clock parts as inspiration to get it done. It took about a year all together. It was in my parents house until 1975, when they moved to Florida, so it was down there for 27 years. My Dad passed away in 1994. We had to move my Mom to an assisted living place in 2002, so I brought it back to New Jersey then. The movement was shot, so I bought another one from Klockit, and had to modify the case a bit, but got it to work. It is now with me in Alabama, and still working great.
I made everything, including the cove moldings, except the fluted columns, the brass ends, and the knobs, eagle, hinges, etc. I spine mitered all the joints, so they have all held together over the years with all the moving, and climate changes. It was my first project of this magnitude. I added the cast designs after moving to Alabama. Thought it needed something. It seemed too plain.
– Earl Kreiser
Foley, AL
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