In 2017 Robert Kellogg configured the Sunquest Sundial design into a modern 3D printed replica, which is offered for sale as a fundraiser for the North American Sundial Society. This Schmoyer Sunquest is a 3D‐ printed 1/3‐scale plastic version (5½” diam.) of Schmoyer’s original design. It comes as a kit that is easily assembled and adjusted
Precision Sundials, located in Burlington, VT, offers aluminum and bronze sundial castings made from the original wooden casting molds designed by Richard L. Schmoyer, as well as finished sundials. Price points vary depending upon the materials that are used. http://www.precisionsundials.com/schmoyer.htm Note from the webmaster: Precision Sundials is not affiliated with this website. However, I have
Elizabethtown dialist Ken Clark has created a template that can be submitted to your local printer that serves as a guide in the placement of marks on the time scale and latitude crescents of your Sunquest sundial. Click Here to download the PDF template (updated Jan 2018). The template should be printed on large format
Richard L. Schmoyer designed the Sunquest sundial to be easily adjusted between standard time and daylight savings time. Simply loosen the wing-nuts that hold the horizontal and vertical crescents together and slide the aluminum plate to the opposite end of the bracket. The daylight savings time plate allows for a 1-hour time change without making
To establish an accurate reading, the Sunquest sundial must be adjusted to the exact latitude and longitude of the location where it will be used. Adjusting the latitude crescent enables the gnomon to be precisely parallel to the north-south polar axis of the earth, also placing the time-scale crescent parallel to the earth’s equator. This
The Sunquest sundial should be oriented towards True North so that the axis of the gnomon is exactly parallel to the axis of the earth. Find True North and set the direction of the Sunquest sundial after the latitude and longitude settings are finished. Setting via the North Star (instructions by Richard L. Schmoyer, 1983).
The coordinates of your latitude and longitude are easily determined by consulting a globe or topographic maps. Many online mapping systems and cellphone apps today will also enable you to easily the exact coordinates of the sundial’s location. Google Maps Type the address in the search field. Zoom in to get a more detailed view
The Sunquest sundial itself can be used to determine latitude and direction from the sun. Start with an approximate north orientation and latitude setting. Early in the day, turn the gnomon on its axis until the sun shines broadly through the slot, falling upon the time-scale between two shadows. Observe which portion of the gnomon
This vertical sundial was originally designed by Richard L. Schmoyer for the front of his home in Landisville, Pennsylvania in ~1969. It was recovered and preserved by Ken Clark.
The first publication to feature Richard Schmoyer’s Sunquest sundial was Scientific American, in October 1959 in the Amateur Scientist section of the magazine. Click here to download a pdf of the article. Discussion of the sundial begins on page 190. In this article, Mr. Schmoyer describes the sundial’s design and his efforts to create an