Latitude Specific Acrylic Sundial

Made on a Glowforge
,
1

When I first got my GlowForge, I over-stocked myself on thick, white acrylic and I’ve been trying to figure out designs for my needs that are worthy of this material. With summer approaching, I decided to try my hand at a parametric sundial and this is the result:

IMG_20250427_181208425_HDR_AE~2
IMG_20250427_181208425_HDR_AE~21920×2023 257 KB

IMG_20250427_154941825_AE~2
IMG_20250427_154941825_AE~21490×1473 278 KB

For those who are interested, the design is posted at:

https://cuttle.xyz/@LENgraving/Sundial-pTe2oSK7LR62

40 Likes
2

Nice clean design.

14 Likes
3

The insets in the center are so sharp! Unless they’re paint rather than inlays, in either case they’re sharp :grin:

12 Likes
4

This turned out great!

10 Likes
5

Very nice! Nice design, nice execution.

Thanks for letting us see it.

8 Likes
6

I love this! I did a 3D print of a sundial last year for my sister, that gave a digital read for the time in the shadow.

9 Likes
7

Great design and execution. Simple elegant and beatutiful.
Thank you @ladd0405 for sharing your design and related info.
One more rabbit hole to explore.

9 Likes
8

I’m betting paint. Well done paint :slight_smile:

We’ll see if we get an update, place your bets!

9 Likes
9

Winner, winner… chicken “something” for bets related to paint. :slight_smile:
(I didn’t have the ambition to attempt an inlay).

  1. I left the proofgrade tape on the cut pieces,
  2. I spray painted the gold color into the cardinal directions, let dry and then taped over them.
  3. I spray painted the black color into the rest of the design and let dry.
  4. I carefully removed all the tape.

In hindsight, it would have been much smarter of me to first cover the cut edges of the design with petroleum jelly prior to any painting so I wouldn’t have to deal with over-spray… a simple wipe-down afterwards would have made for a much cleaner look.

10 Likes
10

Awesome job. I love sundials. Maybe someday I’ll make one.

6 Likes
11

If it were me I would have:

  • Made a jig and placed my material
  • Do the engrave
  • Remove material and do the interior painting, let the paint set, fully curing shouldn’t be necessary.
  • Place the material back into the same jig and do the final cuts

Let the paint cure then remove the masking. Same result. :slight_smile:

9 Likes
12

That looks terrific, you always make such cool stuff.

8 Likes
13

Nice work!

9 Likes
14

Wow, most impressive!

8 Likes