I have completed the first phase of the carousel project by getting all the animals to the point where they are ready for sanding and adding the decorations. Before I go any further, I want to do some work on how the mechanics are going to work. (It was cold and we have been having rain and snow, so I was not inclined to go outside to do some sanding.) I have the basic idea but need some insight into just how the animals will be mounted on the poles, how much distance between the animals, how much space I will need for the track they will be running on and how large the base of the carousel needed to be. So, my task this week was to start working on that part of the project.
Long story short, I wasted most of this week trying to draft it out on graph paper. Let's just say that drafting is not my strong suit. The difficulty was that I have oblong animal shapes that I was trying to represent going around a circular track. I worked on the first sheet until I had so many erasures on it that I could not keep track of what I was supposed to be looking at and what was erased. The same thing happened with the second sheet. Clearly, I needed a different way to figure this out.
I decided that it might be easier for me to comprehend it if I was working on a circle that was the anticipated size of the base of the carousel. To that end, I decided that I would create a paper circle the anticipated the base to be and place the animals on it so I could have a real idea of what I needed. To that end, I pulled out a tool that I have not used in a long time: a huge compass.
My husband made this compass for me years ago for another project. I was painting Pennsylvania Dutch Hex Signs. In case you are not familiar with them, these were large signs generally painted on barns around three hundred years ago. Most of the signs were for protection and luck. Other symbols were for health, love, and friendship. Over time, the signs moved from barns to smaller round designs that were displayed over doorways or in the kitchen. The signs were also painted on wooden chests that were given for blanket and clothing storage as wedding gifts.
Anyway, as you can see from the photo, there is a large difference in size between the standard size compass and the wooden compass. The wooden pieces in the center has a nut and bolt. You loosen the bolt to expand the compass and tighten it to hold it in place. I think it actually does a better job of keeping its place and not slipping compared to the mechanics of a regular compass.
This week I will get started on the circle and working on the placement of the animals and the pieces that will make the animals go up and down.
Check back next Monday for Tuesday for the latest update.
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