March 23rd, 2025
The previous version of the gargoyle system did not work well. In the first place, the clever system with the waggling heated resister worked fine until winter came. In freezing temperatures, the resister just wouldn’t get warm enough to get the attention of the IR sensor. Moreover, every time I needed to service the gargoyle, I had to climb 16 feet up a ladder, and the arrangement just wasn’t safe enough for my taste. So I decided to redesign the system.
The starting point of the new design was the trunk of a huge old oak tree that died some decades ago. I had cut it down and used most of the wood as firewood, but the trunk was just too big to cut up. Besides, it seemed that I just HAD to do something creative with it.
Here’s a photo of the trunk after I had set it up in a concrete base. As you can see, it has the stubs of three main branches near the top. Each of these provided the base for a gargoyle, so I decided to get three gargoyles. One would be the big gargoyle already in the old position. I already had a small gargoyle I had placed elsewhere. I purchased a medium-sized gargoyle. I then installed the new red LEDs that would serve as their glowing eyes.
I had decided that the three gargoyles would comprise a gargoyle family: Daddy Bear, Mommy Bear, and Baby Bear. In accordance with this, I decided to have their eyes brighten and dim at different rates. Obviously (to me), Daddy Bear’s eyes should brighten and dim slowly, while Baby Bear’s eyes should brighten and dim quickly. Momma Bear’s eyes should brighten and dim at a rate betwee these two. Moreover, Daddy Bear’s eyes should be the brightest, while Baby Bear’s should be the weakest. This was to cause me endless difficulties.