If you’ve ever read my bio on these posts (down below), you know that I’ve got a lot of interests. And while I never considered clock making all that interesting—only because I never put much thought into the subject—an Aussie named Chris has completely transformed me.
Chris, who says he’s an amateur clockmaker and machinist, proves to be anything but an amateur in the absolutely mesmerizing videos that he posts on his YouTube channel, ClickSpring. Even if you have zero interest in clock making, the videos alone are simply astonishing—the flow, narration, close-ups, time-lapse sequences, lighting… it’s all just fantastic. Here’s a look at his channel intro video:
According to his website, ClickSpring Projects, Chris earned his degree in mechanical engineering, though he’s never been a mechanical engineer. After bouncing around various [mostly] IT gigs and learning to hate the big city grind, Chris settled in a small town in northern Australia and discovered that he wanted to be a machinist and make clocks after a trip to a local hardware store for some paint. There, he toyed around with a mini-lathe, and as Chris puts it:
“That night I found myself thinking about my high school manual arts (shop) class. Which was odd, because I hadn’t thought about it in years. The projects I’d made, my teacher, the tools and machines. When I left high school I went to university, and followed a number of professional career paths; none of them involved using my hands. And I kind of missed that. The feeling of messing around with tools and metal. Of making something.”
A few times each month, Chris posts a few 5-15 minute videos covering one very complex clock that he’s in the process of making. And while they are educational for sure, his videos aren’t produced like traditional, [usually boring] tutorials. Rather, we’re taking a really cool journey with Chris, even creating tools to make clock parts for the clock itself.
If you’ve ever considered getting into something but never thought you could pull it off, Chris will be an inspiration.
