This circle will be the sundial’s face. Coat both sides of the wooden circle with primer. As the primer dries, think about what you want your sundial to look like. You will need to choose a number style, such as Roman numerals, standard numbers, and so on.  Pick out the colors you want to use and, if you like, a drawing or illustration to put on the face. Sketch out a few different designs until you’ve settled on something final. You will be using this as a stencil to transfer the design onto the wooden circle, so draw it to scale. Now you need to put the numbers onto the design, which will require some precise measuring. Use a straightedge and a protractor to do this.  Start with the number 12 at the very top, like a clock’s face. Measure where the center of the circle is, then use the straightedge to draw a precise line from the 12 to the center. Mark the number 1 there. Use the straightedge to draw another hour line. Continue marking the numbers exactly 15 degrees apart. Move in a clockwise direction and use the protractor to continue marking off the numbers. Work your way around until you get to the number 12. This will be directly across from the first 12. These represent noon and midnight.  Then start over with 1 again until you end up back at the original 12 at the very top. The numbers are now accurately marked onto the paper. The full 24 hours is represented for the most precise accuracy. When seasons change, so does the position of Earth. In summer, days are longer. In winter, they are shorter. There are days in the summer when there are more than 12 hours of daylight. Use your paper as a stencil so that the numbers and hour lines match what you’ve measured out precisely. Use paint markers to put the numbers onto the wood, since they will involve fine detail work. Paint markers are preferable to permanent markers, since they’re more resilient to the elements. The gnomon is the part of the sundial that will cast the shadow. It is a length of threaded pipe, and you’ll need it to be approximately two or three inches long. Its diameter should be a half inch. Make sure the diameter of the gnomon is slightly wider than the pipe itself. Improvise a conical tip.  The length of the pipe and the gnomon tip should be no longer than three inches total. Paint the gnomon in whatever color you’d like. This will keep it from rusting. The post is what the sundial’s face, the wooden circle, will be mounted on. You will need a 4x4x8 pressure-formed wooden post that has been outdoor-treated. It needs to be perfectly straight and have no large cracks in it. To mount it correctly, the top of the post must be cut with a precise angle.  To get this angle, subtract your current latitude from 90 degrees. For example, if you are located at 40 degrees N. latitude, you would draw a 50 degree angle on the 4x4. Draw a line at right angles using a carpenter’s square. Draw this line six inches from the top of the post. The line is the bottom side of the angle. Use a protractor to measure it, then cut the angle with a table saw.  Then measure the center of the sundial’s face and drill a hole there.  Test the attachment of the post to the sundial face with a 5/16-inch lag screw, just to make sure everything fits together properly. Find a sunny spot for your sundial and dig a hole for the post. Be sure you aren’t disturbing any buried cables or lines underground. Put the post in the hole. Test to make sure it’s no taller than five feet off the ground when standing erect. Use a compass to make sure the angle you cut into the post is facing north. Use a carpenter’s level to make sure the post is standing exactly vertical.  Permanently put the post in place by pouring and setting it in cement. Allow a few days to go by before mounting the sundial face, so that the cement has dried completely. Use a 5/16-inch by 2-inch lag screw to attach the face. Tighten the screw enough so that it holds the face in place, but you are still able to turn the face easily. Place the flange directly over the sundial’s face.  You should be able to see the lag screw in the flange’s center hole. Use your right hand to screw the gnomon pipe into the flange, which you should hold in your left hand. Then align the gnomon so that those same lines look like they are going straight through the center. Make sure the line at 12 noon also looks like it is going directly through the gnomon. You must set the time during Daylight Saving Time to read accurately. Hold the flange steady with your left hand. Use your right hand to turn the sundial face. Check the current time. Keep turning the face until the shadow of the gnomon shows the same time on the sundial. Use a pencil to mark where the four flange screws are and then take the flange away.  Now tighten the lag screw. Do not move the sundial face as you do this. Drill holes for the four screws and then screw the flange onto the sundial. Lastly, screw the gnomon in.
اقطع دائرة قطرها ٥١ سم من الخشب الرقائقي (الأبلكاج) بسُمك ١٫٩ سم. ارسم التصميم النهائي لك على ورقة دائرية كبيرة. استخدم المنقلة لتحديد النقطة على بعد ١٥ درجة إلى اليمين. ارسم تصميمك على الدائرة الخشبية. احصل على عقرب لساعتك الشمسية. ابدأ في تجهيز القاعدة التي ستثبّت عليها الساعة الشمسية. اقطع الزاوية داخل القاعدة. احفر ثقبًا للقاعدة. ثبّت الساعة الشمسية إلى القاعدة. لف وجه الساعة الشمسية بحيث يكون خطا السادسة صباحًا والسادسة مساءً أفقيين، ثم ضع العقرب بمحاذاة هذه الخطوط بحيث تبدو وكأنها تتجه نحو المنتصف. حدد الوقت وثبّت العقرب.