General News
5 June, 2026
Clocktower gets recreated in steel
A CAMPERDOWN steel metal artist has put over 200 hours into creating a small-scale model of an iconic Camperdown landmark.
The Camperdown clocktower has been recreated by Ash Lucas, who has between 15 and 20 years of experience with welding and creating steel sculptures and scrap art.
He said the idea began as a combination of his interest in collecting and repairing pocket watches and being part of the group who maintains the clocktower.
“I have been passionate about welding and metal tinkering in the shed from a young age in my dad’s shed,” Mr Lucas said.
“Starting an apprenticeship in mechanics developed the love of combining both over the years.
“The love of old things grew stronger, eventually turning into combining weld with rust. I made a lot of garden art and sold it to local businesses and friends, eventually leading to smaller technical builds as requested by friends.
“This led to the growth of skills leading to current builds.
“My mind constantly ticks over with future possible builds – I love looking at a piece of junk and wondering what possible things it could be made into.”
The clocktower work is an 80-centimetre recreation on a bluestone foundation, weighing in at 24.5 kilograms and including the Australian flag on the crows nest flagpole.
Mr Lucas said the model itself is hollow, with all welds inside the body.
“It is made from steel panels with three-millimetre black steel,” he said.
“Every individual brick and panel has been etched into the steel using a rotary multitool and ground with multiple different types of carbide tools.
“I originally started out using a small punch ground to a V-point using a hammer to punch in every single line of the bricks.
“This got old very quickly, so I switched up to rotary tools.
“Hours of thought and planning went into the original layout, trying different tools and techniques until I found the rotary tool worked the best.”
Mr Lucas said the build included the use of a variety of tools to capture the landmark.
“The upper sections behind the clock faces were all done by lathe as well as tunnels and pointed hops crosses next to the face, filed in with a small round chainsaw file,” he said.
“The rest had been done with an angle grinder, sanding pads and a steady hand.
“Once polished with sand pads on the grinder, a wire brush at high speed on Dremel gave that last polished look.
“A coat of clear was then sprayed on to give that final shine.
“Local businesses and work colleagues helped with prints and suggestions throughout the build.”
The clocktower model is on display at Camperdown Showcase Jewellers (187 Manifold Street), just metres from the inspiration in the avenue.
Mr Lucas expressed his gratitude to the team at Showcase Jewellers, who have supported him throughout the project.
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