|
| Gnomon |
|
| After
the gnomon was removed from the shop it needed to
be sandblasted to remove the mill scale and
expose the raw steel. This would bring all the
steel surfaces to a common starting point. There
would be no impediment to oxidization and as soon
as water touches the surface the formation of
rust would occur immediately. |
 |
 |
| These
photographs show the gnomon in the process of
being sandblasted. The 12 inch square hollow
steel section upon which the gnomon is mounted
was also sandblasted. A medium grade of silica
sand was used. The air compressor was a portable
diesel powered unit. The sandblaster was a very
old one and required a little tinkering to get
going but it did an excellent job. There were a
few us who got to dress up in the space suit and
have a little fun. |
|
 |
Here
the sandblasting of the gnomon has been completed
on one side. The mild steel has a very nice mat
gray finish. Before we finished the second side
it had rained. It was amazing to see how quickly
the rust formed. The variation in the colours was
excellent and made a very unique and interesting
finish. |
|
 |
 |
| Once
outside we no longer had the use of the overhead
crane. In order to flip the gnomon over to
sandblast the other side it was time to call upon
the "GALION". With its extendible boom
and large lifting capacity it did not take long
to turn the gnomon over. Progress was impaired
slightly after this as it rained for a few days.
The gnomon was finally sandblasted and ready to
be moved to the site. |
|
