Arts and Crafts Wall Clock

By Derek Richmond April 24, 2024

My mission to create a Craftsman clock on the table saw

The Arts & Crafts (or Mission) style has always appealed to me. I find myself drawn to its typically simple, clean lines and unobscured wood grain. So, when my wife requested a striking clock for our living room, I had a good idea of where to start my design. I also had just acquired a new table saw and wanted to take advantage of all that tool has to offer. Several sketches and a mock-up later, I had developed the clock shown here. True to the Arts & Crafts style, it’s made from quartersawn white oak and, while not a reproduction, incorporates a lot of key A&C elements.

What’s more, it can be built entirely on the table saw, from its beveled crown and base to the case and door joinery. Perhaps the most challenging part of the build is creating the coved panels that make up the case sides. See p. 26 for more information on cutting coves. The through-slots in the sides reflect the style and provide sound holes for the chimes. They also allow light to reach the mechanism’s day/night sensor, which prevents chiming at night. The electronic mechanism (see Buyer’s Guide) also features a pendulum and several chime options.

Functional, elegant, evocative

The coved and slotted side panels are joined to the case top and bottom with rabbet-and-dado joints. The glass-paneled door is assembled with half-lap joints and is flanked by two face stiles adorned with saw-kerf shadow lines. The partial back panel allows easy access to the interior for battery changes, while the French cleat under the crown makes for secure hanging.

Order of Work

Make side panels
Construct case
Build door
Apply finish
Install glass and mechanism

Make the coved and slotted sides

For grain consistency across the finished side panels, start with two 1 × 6 × 193/8" blanks. After coving the pieces down the center, rip and crosscut each blank to yield the parts shown in the drawing below, making sure to crosscut the spacers from the ends of their strips. Before gluing up the panels, sand what will be the internal edges of the slots. After glue-up, trim the panels to final length and rabbet their back edges to accept the back panel and French cleat.

Glue up. By reassembling the panel parts in their original orientation, you’ll preserve the impression that each panel is made from a single piece.

Dado the ends. Use a standoff block and dado blade to position and cut a 1⁄4" dado in each end of the panels.

Multi-part panel. The side panel slots are created with spacer blocks glued between the outer strips and the coved panel. Mark the ends of the rear face of each panel blank with reference lines, numbers, or letters, before ripping it into strips to make orienting and reassembling each panel easier.

Construct the case

Cut the rabbets on the ends of the case top and bottom to create tongues that fit the dadoes cut in the side panels. Sand all inside faces before gluing up the case. Pre-drill clearance holes through the dial panel cleats before gluing them to the back of the dial panel. Then install the dial panel assembly as shown. Shape and install the French cleat in the back of the clock. Finally, bevel the crown and base as shown, then attach them with glue.

Install the dial panel. Wedge two 1⁄4"-thick scraps in the front slots to create a platform for installing the dial panel assembly. Then guide a bit through the previously drilled clearance holes in the cleats for screws to attach the assembly.

Install the French cleat. Rabbet the top edge and the ends of the French cleat to fit into the side panels’ rabbets and against the rear edge of the case top. Then bevel both the cleat and its mate at 45˚.

Bevel the crown and base. With a saw blade tilted to 23˚, use the same fence-rider trick for the bevel cuts on the ends of the crown and base pieces. You won’t need the added support for the long-grain bevel cuts.

Make the door

Cut 1/8"-deep × 1/4"-wide rabbets (for the glass) in the inside edge of the door stiles and the top and bottom rails. The center rail gets two. Then dado the stiles for the middle rail (see drawing, p. 33), and rabbet the ends of the pieces to create the half-lap joints. Cut a shallow kerf on the face frame stiles to create a shadow line and add visual interest. Then mortise the inside of the left-hand face stile for the hinges. After mortising, glue both face stiles onto the carcass. Mark, then mortise the door and pre-drill for the hinge screws. With the door temporarily hung, lay out and pre-drill for the latch.

Glue up the door. After test-fitting all the joints, glue up the door. Pressure in all planes makes for tight joints and square corners, but do double-check for square after clamping up.

Mortise for the hinges. Mortise the face frame stile for the hinges, setting the cutting depth for a hair less than half the thickness of the hinge barrel. A standoff block and fence stop set accurate limits for the mortise length.

Mark the door. Transfer the hinge mortise locations to the completed door, then mortise the door stile in the same manner as the face frame stile, with the door standing on edge. See onlineEXTRAS for tips on hanging the door.

Finish and hang

Sand and finish the clock body, door, dial panel assembly, and glass retainer strips. See OnlineEXTRAS for a simple way to duplicate an authentic Arts & Crafts style finish. I opted to finish the back panel the same way, though a soft gray or green milk paint would add contrast while keeping with the Arts & Crafts style. Secure the glass in the door with the retainer strips. If your glass is a little too loose, tuck a snipped length of rubber band into the rabbet before tightening the retainer strip. Then attach the latch and hang the door. Install the speaker and light sensor as shown, then install the mechanism, securing it to the back of the dial panel with double-faced tape. Hang the pendulum and attach the hands. Then set the time, and enjoy the chimes!

Add the glass. Pre-drill for the retainer strip screws, then install both panes of glass.

Hang the cleat. Mount the mating French cleat to the wall with appropriate hardware for a 15 lb. clock. On drywall, it is ideal if you can get at least one screw into a stud.