Brass thickness
We use only the best quality engraving brass to make our sundials.The prices within this web site refer to dials made from our standard brass which is 2.00mm. thick. This is sufficiently thick for the smaller garden sundials, but you may wish to upgrade and order a dial made from thicker brass.
| Diameter of Dial | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 200mm | 250mm | 300mm | |
| Baseplate thickness | Additional cost | ||
| 2.6mm | £72.00 | £85.00 | £125.00 |
| 3.25mm | £80.00 | £100.00 | £140.00 |
Finishes
Sundials can be suppled bright, matt or patinated.
BRIGHT : the brass has a polished mirror finish. Although the sundial looks nice ie bright and shiny, ( and if the dial is being given as a gift then this may be important )....this is not a very practical finish! In bright sunshine you can see everything on the dial including the clouds and your face..but not the shadow! Well the shadow is there of course but it's not very well defined. You have been warned!
MATT : a dull finish, the brass is still yellow in colour but no longer reflective. A more practical finish than the bright and the dial is easier to read in bright sunshine.....quite important!!. Our most popular finish.
Note: both the bright and matt finishes are not lacquered and will naturally weather over time. The brass will take on a dark patina. As brass is non-ferrous so no damage is actually done to the material, it's just a harmless ageing process. The speed of this process will depend on many factors. One of my customers used his sundial as a platform for letting off fireworks and it went dark quite quickly!!
If you order a sundial in the bright or matt finish it is best if you can to avoid touching the front surface and only handle the plate at the sides and back.
This will avoid finger and thumb marks which can have a devastating effect on the lovely finish.
If you do find you have left fingerprint marks on the plate wipe off immediately with a soft cloth to restore the finish.
Note finger prints left on the plate for any time can leave marks which can be difficult to remove. ( This is due to the acid content found in peoples fingerprints. )
PATINATED: the dial face is weathered chemically and a finish of dark brown and verdigris green is produced. Example below. This is my favourite finish, and if you talk to me on the phone you will find me encouraging you to go for this one...sorry!
Patinated sundial
This is sundial RD16 made in brass of thickness 3.25mm
Distance/bearing pointers
If the layout allows room why not include bearing and distance indicators incorporated around the compass rose......POA
Choose a different font!
A nice example is to use a script font for part of the design.
Add a ladybird!
or any other creepy crawly you might fancy!