Seth Thomas chime clock

[mclark3617]

Yes, im working off Joe Collins plans

[arutha]

The Joe Collins winder is a good one, the only issue I had with it was you could not do barrels that were the other way around on the arbor meaning the winding end of the arbor protrudes from the bottom of the barrel as opposed to the cap. the only way around this is to make up or find an assortment of barrel arbors with the tang facing the other way, you can then remove the spring on the winder as you would normaly do. You will find these types of “reverse” barrels in carriage clocks and on the chime train of some chiming clocks.
Paul.

[mclark3617]

What a coincidence,,,i have both. I guess ill have to figure out away around that. Ill let you kniw if i get it to work

[mclark3617]

Mainspring winder complete,,now i just have to make a capture tube,,i figure ill just make those as i need them, I still gonna have to come up with an idea for the backward arbors

[Bob Tascione]

You did a beautiful job on that Mclark!
Thanks for posting it.

Bob

[david pierce]

McLark,
That is great looking and extremely innovative. I don’t think you would have any problems building a clock movement from scratch. Nice job.
david

[arutha]

If you have done any bushing then check you dont have a tight one or that you have moved a hole centre. A bent pivot will also cause this issue.
Paul.

[mclark3617]

Arutha, this is how i handeled the backwards barrels

This is the barrel facing backwards so i cant remove the spring after winding it

I dont know if they all do this but on mine the main shaft comes out and leaves the winding arbor inside

Soi just took it out and inserted it in the other way,,now its facing the correct direction to remove the spring, you just have to wind it the opposite way.

[mclark3617]

Well i got all the springs cleaned and oiled and back together, i reassembled the clock and wound it up. Its running but no better than before, barely a 1/4 turn on the balance, if i give it alittle manual preasure on the train it seems to pick up, so either there is still some binding in the train or the main spring is very week. I cant see were it may be binding but i do remember thinking the mainspring didnt expand much when i took it out. Is this a simptom of a week mainspring?

[arutha]

If the mainspring doesn’t expand much then it would point to it being “set” i.e. it has lost most of its elasticity but even so when fully wound it should easily be able to run the clock.
I did ask in an earlier post if you had done any bushing to the clock? If so check the bushes are not too tight. Also, if you have excessive wear to any of the pivot holes this will allow a wheel to lean so much that the wheel or pinion from the following or previous wheel is unable to mesh correctly and could cause it to lock up.

Nice job on the chime arbor and no, they are not all like that one. Again in a previous post on this thread I did suggest you can make arbors but with the tang/hook the other way around so you can insert them from the open side of the barrel and treat it as a standard barrel when removing the mainspring on your tool.
Very nice job on that spring winder, if you don’t want to buy a set of sleeves http://timesavers.com/c-325976-tools-equipment-related-supplies-clockmakers-watchmakers-specialty-tools-equipment-mainspring-winders.html it is worth trying your local repair garage for old sections of exhaust which can be cut up and put to use.

Paul.

[bernie weishapl]

Paul is spot on. Mainsprings seem to set after years of service in the barrel units. The time mainspring if it doesn’t measure 4″ or more across when let down I change them out. You can get them at Black Forest Imports, Timesavers, etc. Also check all of the pivots in the time train. If you did/do bush it they need to be dead on. If you get them off center as Paul said you can have meshing problems with the wheel of one and the pinion on the other. If you had it apart and any wheel leans more the 5 to 8 degrees it probably needs a bushing. If you can give it a slight bit of help then something is still amiss.

[willofiam]

excellent job on the winder and yes, just putting the arbor thru the sleeve the other way is how to do that, but as Paul said not all are like that. I made a winder similar (not as nice) when I first started (I use the ollie baker now) I bought copper pipe fittings from the hardware store and modified them for capturing the mainsprings.

It does sound like its a binding issue of some sort, just like Paul and Bernie suggest. When I do a movement I test each train (wheels only) as I go thru the movement. using my finger to turn the train I can easily “feel” any resistance while closely watching how all the teeth and pinions mesh. if it does not turn freely then something is amiss, doing it this way allows me zero in on any binding issue quickly and address it without spending all the time in reassembly or possibly disassembly. William

[mclark3617]

I didnt bush any of the time train pivots but ill have to go back and look at those again. I tried to upload a video but it didnt work.
But i did already make some sleeves out of solid 316 stainless, its what i had available, ill just make them as i need them

[bernie weishapl]

Those look good. Yes since you didn’t bush I would go over the time train again. A worn pivot hole can be as much of a problem or worse than a off center bush. I do the same as William does and put the wheels in each time train one at a time (no mainsprings). I will give the wheels a good spin and watch. If runs for a second or two then it comes to a abrupt halt or slows rather quickly then there is something wrong. If it runs for a few seconds and comes to a slow halt then it is probably ok.

[mclark3617]

I cant believe i didnt see this at first but i just noticed the bottom jewel on the floating balance is loose, i tried popping it back in place but it wont go, am i gonna have to take this apart and press it in place?
I just had another look under a microscope, love that thing, and discovered half the jewel still in there, is it worth trying to get the broken jewel out and replacing it, or just buying a new balance?

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