this is the first build I’m posting here.
It’s been a while since I had this project in mind, but I was willing to make it totally coherent.
I couldn’t find a dial to perfectly match the brass patina, so I decided to do it myself.
It turned out to be a long chemistry experience, but I learned a lot.
CASE (Aliexpress ) came with a shiny golden look, not my cup of tea…
First I’ve slightly repolished/brushed, then I went into a forced patina process (ammonia fumes)
Result was … a deep green pebble! With a gentle sanding, I just kept the green color/patina in recesses.
DIAL is home made from a brass plate, acid etched (PCB process).
First finishing step: forced brown patina with ammonia fumes, then polished the turtle.
I didn’t want to use paint, all colors are natural verdigris patina. (salt+ammonia fumes)
Some areas were still to dark brown, so I’ve scratched verdigris from another dial and applied with a mat acrylic varnish.
I’ve applied the varnish stamping with a brush to create a water texture.
HANDS (Aliexpress): removed lume, sanded and relumed.
I’m not totally satisfied with these hands: hour and minute hands are not made from the same metal, so once sanded, color is slightly different ☹
Awaiting to receive a new set of hands to swap these...
