THE CAVENDER DIARY

Target is amazing.

You know it is.

Their latest offerings of over 3,000 new home products fall under the Threshold name.

Too much to love in this line, but we narrowed it down to this galvanized metal clock from the “Urban Farm” collection.

It was inevitable……..He just had to come home with us.

20 inches is pretty big, but not nearly as big as some of the 4 foot +  inspiration clocks we posted about a few weeks ago.

Great clock….

Just so…..”New” looking.

I think I can change that.

Galvanizing is a chemical process used to coat iron and steel with zinc. Galvanizing is done to minimize corrosion; the zinc prevents oxidation of the metal and protects it by forming a protective barrier from moisture and corrosives.

I just need to break through that barrier with a sandpaper scrub.

First I removed the clock mechanism by pulling the center pin carefully out.

The arms just slip off gently,

I store all my clock parts in a ziplock bag.

Genius tip here….these screws are small.

Then I sand the entire clock with 80 grit sandpaper.

This removes most of the protective coating and will allow my acid to reach the metal.

I read several suggestions online…..sea salt, vinegar, bleach, and even gel toilet bowl cleaner.

I started with white vinegar.

….and spritzed the entire surface.

Then set my clock in the sun.

I let it bake in the sun for a couple of hours with minimal results…..so I went a step further and sprayed it with bleach.

Whoa Momma, did that work……..and fast too.

Nicely aged, and in just a few hours. All the “rivets” around the edge even rusted.

I was planning on painting the numbers black so they would stand out more…..but not now.

The darker areas around them makes them much more prominent than before the bleach.

Now to age the hands just slightly with some sandpaper.

I carefully reassembled everything…..

…….and this is what we have now.

Pretty Cool. Am I right?

Of course I’m right, I usually am.

(look closely and notice that I painted that single brass pin in the middle of the clock hands with black paint……Why, oh why would it be brass?)