does north on a sundial point to north to work.?

http://www.wsanford.com/~wsanford/exo/sundials/hor...

here's how

A horizontal sundial consists of the dial plate, marked off in hours, and the gnomon (including the style) that sits on the meridian (noon hour line) and sticks up from the dial plate at a right angle relative to the plane of the dial face. Place the sundial on a horizontal surface (hence the name, "horizontal sundial") and align the gnomon with true north (on the dial face, 12 noon should point north).

Finding the Direction of True North

Use a compass (compensate for magnetic declination).

Align with Polaris, the North Star.

The easiest way would be to take out your sundial and an accurate watch on a sunny day and position the sundial so that it reads the correct time!

Yes they arrow has to face north for the sundial to work.

Um, the sundial has to be set up the right way to actually tell the time properly. It also, by the way, needs to be set up at the proper latitude, or it will be off.

Yes, but it has to point to *geographical* north, not to magnetic north. Magnetic north varies depending on where you are on the earth's surface, and compasses don't always point to geographic north due to magnetic declination. Check out the link below, and then search on the 'net for the magnetic declination for your location so you can point to "true" or geographic north.

it has to point exactly in a direction i know...i just don't know what that is...aer you making it decorative o functional...if it's going to be functional...i know where you can get a clock for about half a dollar....wal mart...hel if it's decoprative, nobody's going to care if the time is off a little...