Ball Bearing Clock

Yes, it is a bit of a beast alright. One thing about it, those large pieces go together quick! I started this morning and now looking at maybe having it trying to run tomorrow!!

Doing the swing test so a chance to see what it looks like with the numbers on ...

Thought all the gears were there until I changed the page and discovered I somehow forgot to do a gear. Gear is printing and testing will start tomorrow.

Steve put up a quick video on various filaments and how they differ in friction.

https://youtu.be/AiaUDGX-JlA

This just helped me in another way.  For the moon clock, I used that silk PLA which seems very slickery.  Good, right?  The only problem was with the friction clutches as they kept wanting to slip even using the biggest spring that would fit from my little spring set.  Steve must have a thousand clicky pens to harvest for springs. 

The solution was to lightly sand the mating surfaces where I needed more friction.  Just a few swipes and you could feel the difference and then I was able to get the clutches working as they should.

Quote from: KryptoFor the moon clock, I used that silk PLA which seems very slickery.  Good, right?

I used silk PLA for my SP14 Moon Phase Clock and it worked great for about 3 months. Then the friction seemed to increase, and I needed to add more weight to allow reliable operation. I have heard similar reports about the friction increasing for silk PLA.

I have not really sorted out the exact problem at this time

Gene

The Silk PLA is known for friction problems. One solution is to put on a clear coat (lacquer, varnish, etc) on the surfaces where it mates to other parts. Problems stem from the additives they put in for the surface look.

Making all the right noises and almost keeping time.

Congrats wagnmkr!

On this silk dual color PLA, I have no doubts that it will work fine for the wheels on this clock as the same roll of material presented no problems on the Coup Perdu which ran for around two years.  That clock could still be running today but I'm sick of replacing the reed switch.  The problem with this clock was the arbors were so slippy they wouldn't grab each other, like making a clutch pack out of teflon coated plates.  Most of the bitching about friction and silk PLA is about trying to get the raw filament through a Bowden tube but I removed that feature on my Ender years ago.

Here's the large moon clock on the wall.  It's been running on 4 pounds of weight (direct) for a day now without issues.  Tomorrow I'll remove a pound and see how it goes. 

Good looking clock Krypto. Fingers crossed it keeps running and keeps good time.



Tom

Thanks!  Took apart the clock today and added some lubrication: powdered graphite in the wheel holes that run on the arbors, some lithium grease at the tips of the winder's ratchet pawls and grease at the pads of the back frame where they might hit an arbor spacer if it's not centered.  The back frame was printed with wood PLA and has quite a bit of friction hence the lube.  Hopefully this is the last time the clock needs disassembly.  Also removed a pound from the weight pack so I'm down to three pounds (direct).

The clock is on the other side of the wall from the bedroom and I was getting a bit of "The Tell-Tale Heart" syndrome so some of the fuzzy side of Velcro was added to the stand-offs at the clock's back.  Between that and losing some weight the clock has quieted down a good bit.

Nothing to do now but let the clock run awhile with the new weight.  I've been working on adjusting the pendulum bob and it's getting in the ballpark.

Beautifully done, Tom!  Did you have any problem getting the escapement to run consistently?  That took me a bit of adjustment but not hard.

Krypto, the moon clock looks great!
Kim

Thanks Kim!

Yes, the escapement is being a bit finicky. I am getting two and three hour runs and then it will stop, but just the slightest touch gets it going again. I feel the problem is in the tall gear #8 which printed a bit rough. I have sanded it down and lubricated it but it is still inconsitant so I am currently printing a new one at different settings to see if I can get a smoother one.

I love the clock and all the noises it makes whilst it runs. Very interesting and quite different from the normal stuff.

Thanks Kim!  I'm growing fond of it and also have a bit of artwork to place in the dead spot at the bottom of the dial whenever I get around to order some laser sticker paper.  It's a good runner as it's been clicking strongly on just two pounds of weight for days now.  I think I could keep it running on just 1.5#'s, but won't bother and will just print a weight shell for ~5.5 pounds of weight which should work well long-term.  You need twice the direct weight because of the pulley system which is the price you pay to double the run time.

I'm happy to report that after 4 or 5 days of on / off fiddling, and the reprinting of the long gear #8, the clock is running well and keeping good time. I will do some fine tuning over the next while but the clock is a runner.



Tom