Many clocks run just fine without lubrication, but sometimes they stop for no apparent reason. The thread Silk PLA issues | Steve's Clocks (stevesclocks.com) describes the issue. I have been using lithium grease because it stays in place. A very small drop of oil applied to the pinion teeth with the tip of a toothpick might be just as effective.
if I had to do a 15 day rutin, I would have to use a weight of 5 kg, I will have to add another 2.5 kg of weight but I would have to use more lead, because the bb shots are too light ...., what did you use in your watches? , because I saw that you used the largest container with only one extension as I used, but I did not reach the weight I needed with the BB pellets.
The weight filler needs to be a relatively dense metal. Copper, iron, or lead are common choices. I use BBs with a steel core and copper plating. They are the traditional BBs that have been used by kids for over 100 years.
Airsoft guns may also label their small plastic pellets as BBs, but they are way too light to be useful.
for the weight, I am using a weight of 2.5 kg, with BB pellets I could not have a weight of 2.5 kg because they are too light and the container was needed too long, I printed the container for the Mini prusa version and I added an extension, I filled with BB shots, but the weight was only 750 grams, so I had to melt some lead I had and I made some cylindrical lead weights to put inside the container, I managed to have 2.5 kg with the largest weight and with only 1 extension.
Hi Steve, I have some questions to ask you, first of all I want to congratulate you on the beautiful project you have done and it works very well ... .., the clock is running one day and I am adjusting the pendulum because the watch is more accurate. the first question: how can I increase the Tic Tac noise?, second question, right now I have the 7 days rutin with a weight of 2.5 kg, the clock is fine, in your opinion should I decrease the weight or can I leave it like this and if you ever print the 15 day rutin?, third question, would you recommend that I lubricate the gears with Wd-40 oil?, last question, the pendulum rod is connected to a threaded pin that you call gear 0 , it can be moved forward or backward, I have positioned it in the center as you indicated in the instructions, I wanted to ask you what is the use of moving it forward or backward. A thousand thanks.
The noise will get louder with more drive weight. The larger versions of my clocks with larger escapements will also be louder. Switching to a 15 day runtime with the same size drive weight will give less energy per tick, so it would make the clock quieter. Doubling the drive weight would keep the clock approximately the same volume.
Traditional WD-40 would make a really bad lubricant. It penetrates rusty bolts and provides some lubrication until the solvent evaporates, then it leaves a sticky mess that makes the clock run worse. There may be other lubricants under the WD-40 brand name, but I would stay away from them. I have been using white lithium grease on the pinions and the clock has been running for several months. I added some food coloring to help match the color of the gears.
The spiral notch on the pallet shaft can be used to adjust the angle of the pendulum shaft relative to the pallet arms. It only works if you use both mounting screws to hang the clock on the wall. If you use a single mounting screw, then it is easier to just tilt the clock frame slightly to adjust the beat. You may need to re-adjust the beat if the clock position shifts when winding.
what weight do you recommend to print to contain 2.8 kg?, in the prusa mini I saw that I can only print the 2p4 version with extension, is that enough?, I tried to print but then I stopped because it seemed to me a small diameter to contain 2.8 kg of material, which model do you recommend to print?. A thousand thanks.
@Massimiliano Molinari A half height top portion plus extensions is like the full sized weight shell. It loses a tiny bit of interior volume, but you can always add more extensions if needed.
Hi Steve, I did the weight test as per your indication in the video, I saw that the watch runs well with a weight of 710 grams, to make the watch go do I have to increase the weight four times? final of 2.8 kg?. A thousand thanks.
could you explain to me what the piece attached to the support that I have highlighted in red is for?, I can't understand, is it by chance the crank support to wind the watch? where is the clock placed? A thousand thanks !!!
You may have to sand them slightly. They are designed to be tight, but printers have different tolerances. They are less likely to break if they are tight.
You could also try scaling the inserts slightly smaller.
the 2 inserts (inserts 9), struggle to get into the gear 9-56, usually like you do ?, do you sand the pieces or hit them with a hammer to get them in ?.
The top portion of gear 6 is similar to all other gears. If the other gears printed good, then look for something that changed. Partial clog, bad section of filament, loose bowden tube, etc.
You could also try increasing the minimum print time per layer or slowing down the top layers to around 50%.
the gear 6-54 with what parameters did you print it?, I have a mini prusa, the gears I printed I made them with 4 perimeters as per instructions on layer 0,15 and they came out fine, but the gear 6 -54 I have problems on the tree where he makes all the seams (random setting), but they ruin the tree, how did you print it?.
hello Steve, to make the frame instead of using the light brown filament, can you use the wood-based filament?, or does it have too much friction?. thank you
The 7 day mode will be the most reliable. Or it will allow the clock to have the same reliability using a slightly smaller drive weight. It is what I use. I wind the clock once a week at the same time I wind a traditional grandfather clock.
To make the watch frame, I have a filament of the Sunlu wood color, could it be fine?, Or do you prefer a normal pla filament?, What color and brand do you use?.
Embedded wood fibers (sawdust) might be OK for the frame, but would be too rough for the gears. I tried it once and was not impressed. It was stringy and tended to clog a lot. The resulting surfaces were not very smooth.
Nei file che ho scaricato, ho visto che ci sono gear 7-38-ratchet-7day, 10day, 15day,21day,32day, devo inserire nell'orologio solo uno di questi gear ?, tu che configurazione mi consigli ?, ci sono altri gear che vanno al posto di altri ingranaggi in mezzo ai 67 file ?
Steven, tomorrow I should start printing the pieces, yesterday I bought the 32 Day Clock Easy Build model for Prusa Mini, I wanted to know how you recommend me to print the gears with the Prusa Slicer, at 0.15 / 0.20 without supports ?, filling?, perimeters?, and the other remaining pieces I mold them at 0.20 with 2 perimeters?.
@Massimiliano Molinari Sorry, I missed this. I only get one notification when there are multiple questions in a row. The manual specifies the print parameters. Most designs use 4 perimeters, 0.15mm or 0.2mm layer heights, and 20-30% infill. Some of the larger clocks use 5 perimeters for the gears.
All clocks except the "Large" clocks can be printed on a Prusa Mini.
I have a Prusa MK3S and typically design to fully utilize the 210x250mm print area, keeping in mind that an Ender 3 is very popular and has a 220x220mm print area. Most designs have an approx 75% scaled version that can be printed on a Prusa Mini. They are still very impressive clocks. My living room clock that I keep running all the time is the 32 day easy build clock that can be printed on a Mini. My office has the small clock that has been running for a few years. It can also be printed on the Mini.
Yes, there is a small charge for most of the clock designs, about as much as half a roll of filament. I consider the cost to be quite reasonable, considering the effort that is needed to create and document each design.
I was just wondering why for the smallest clock the files were downloadable and for the largest no, I saw after that to get the stl you need a donation, there are no problems for this, I just wanted to understand the parts outside the 3d printing if I can buy them easily and if you have links where to buy the pieces, I wanted to know if you need particular pieces, for example the 608 bearings I have them, I did not understand if other smaller bearings go there or if you do everything with the stl files clock.
Before making the purchase, I wanted to understand what is needed.
The smallest clock was released a long time ago on Thingiverse. It has been downloaded nearly 25K times and has received about 10 voluntary tips. I leave it available as a free design, but decided that I want to at least cover the cost of materials used to develop each design. That is why I moved to MyMiniFactory.
The bill of materials for each clock is listed in the assembly manual that can be downloaded from the descriptions on this web site. This lets you see if you can find the parts before purchasing the design. Each design uses a slightly different collection of bearings, screws, and steel rods. The "Easy Build" series uses the smallest number of non-printed parts.
ok for the fat,
i will search on amazon for a lithium grease,
I wanted to ask you if I do not use grease and do not give anything, could the watch have problems over time?.
Thank you so much for the great job you have and are doing !!
if I had to do a 15 day rutin, I would have to use a weight of 5 kg, I will have to add another 2.5 kg of weight but I would have to use more lead, because the bb shots are too light ...., what did you use in your watches? , because I saw that you used the largest container with only one extension as I used, but I did not reach the weight I needed with the BB pellets.
Ok thanks a lot Steve,
for the weight, I am using a weight of 2.5 kg, with BB pellets I could not have a weight of 2.5 kg because they are too light and the container was needed too long, I printed the container for the Mini prusa version and I added an extension, I filled with BB shots, but the weight was only 750 grams, so I had to melt some lead I had and I made some cylindrical lead weights to put inside the container, I managed to have 2.5 kg with the largest weight and with only 1 extension.
Hi Steve, I have some questions to ask you, first of all I want to congratulate you on the beautiful project you have done and it works very well ... .., the clock is running one day and I am adjusting the pendulum because the watch is more accurate. the first question: how can I increase the Tic Tac noise?, second question, right now I have the 7 days rutin with a weight of 2.5 kg, the clock is fine, in your opinion should I decrease the weight or can I leave it like this and if you ever print the 15 day rutin?, third question, would you recommend that I lubricate the gears with Wd-40 oil?, last question, the pendulum rod is connected to a threaded pin that you call gear 0 , it can be moved forward or backward, I have positioned it in the center as you indicated in the instructions, I wanted to ask you what is the use of moving it forward or backward. A thousand thanks.
Hi Steve,
what weight do you recommend to print to contain 2.8 kg?, in the prusa mini I saw that I can only print the 2p4 version with extension, is that enough?, I tried to print but then I stopped because it seemed to me a small diameter to contain 2.8 kg of material, which model do you recommend to print?. A thousand thanks.
Hi Steve, I did the weight test as per your indication in the video, I saw that the watch runs well with a weight of 710 grams, to make the watch go do I have to increase the weight four times? final of 2.8 kg?. A thousand thanks.
Hi Steve,
I found this thread, do you think it can fit?.
Thank you.
SeaKnight W8/S9 8/9 Fili Lenza da Pesca trecciato 300M/500M Filo da Pesca alla Carpa Acqua salata Pesca in Mare 15-100LB : Amazon.it: Sport e tempo libero
So should I use the frame back left hook instead of the frame back left?
ok thanks a lot Steve.
Hi Steve,
could you explain to me what the piece attached to the support that I have highlighted in red is for?, I can't understand, is it by chance the crank support to wind the watch? where is the clock placed? A thousand thanks !!!
Ciao Steve, dalla tua esperienza, la cornice centrale posteriore si stampa meglio con le cuciture impostate su (CASUALE) RANDOM? MILLE GRAZIE !!.
Hi Steve,
the Front frame how do you recommend to print it, at 0.15 or 0.20?
Hi Steve,
ok i managed to print the gear quite well 6-54,
I had to put 0,20 instead of 0,15 because with 0,15 it was printed badly.
I also adapted the 2-piece gear 9 and inserted everything ok. A thousand thanks !!
You may have to sand them slightly. They are designed to be tight, but printers have different tolerances. They are less likely to break if they are tight.
You could also try scaling the inserts slightly smaller.
Hi steven,
the 2 inserts (inserts 9), struggle to get into the gear 9-56, usually like you do ?, do you sand the pieces or hit them with a hammer to get them in ?.
Thanks so much.
The top portion of gear 6 is similar to all other gears. If the other gears printed good, then look for something that changed. Partial clog, bad section of filament, loose bowden tube, etc.
You could also try increasing the minimum print time per layer or slowing down the top layers to around 50%.
Hi Steve,
the gear 6-54 with what parameters did you print it?, I have a mini prusa, the gears I printed I made them with 4 perimeters as per instructions on layer 0,15 and they came out fine, but the gear 6 -54 I have problems on the tree where he makes all the seams (random setting), but they ruin the tree, how did you print it?.
thank you.
steven, I found a 3mm brass bar instead of the steel bar, do you think the octet bar is fine too?. thank you
hello Steve, to make the frame instead of using the light brown filament, can you use the wood-based filament?, or does it have too much friction?. thank you
Ok thanks Steve,
then I print the two gears:
gear4-54-28-7day and gear7-38-ratchet-7day.
The 7 day mode will be the most reliable. Or it will allow the clock to have the same reliability using a slightly smaller drive weight. It is what I use. I wind the clock once a week at the same time I wind a traditional grandfather clock.
Steve
Hi Steve, do you advise me to print the clock with the setting at 7 days or at 10?
To make the watch frame, I have a filament of the Sunlu wood color, could it be fine?, Or do you prefer a normal pla filament?, What color and brand do you use?.
A thousand thanks.
Nei file che ho scaricato, ho visto che ci sono gear 7-38-ratchet-7day, 10day, 15day,21day,32day, devo inserire nell'orologio solo uno di questi gear ?, tu che configurazione mi consigli ?, ci sono altri gear che vanno al posto di altri ingranaggi in mezzo ai 67 file ?
Steven, tomorrow I should start printing the pieces, yesterday I bought the 32 Day Clock Easy Build model for Prusa Mini, I wanted to know how you recommend me to print the gears with the Prusa Slicer, at 0.15 / 0.20 without supports ?, filling?, perimeters?, and the other remaining pieces I mold them at 0.20 with 2 perimeters?.
OK, thanks a lot !!!
Steve, could NITRO thinner be fine to clean the bearings instead of the degreaser?
Hi Steve,
the springs for the pen to put on the watch, are n ° 4 and must be 30 mm long, I found them 25 mm long, are they okay anyway?.
thank you.
Ok Steve, now I have seen the mid size watches and I have seen the 32 day watch what you have is very nice, tomorrow I buy the stl.
thank you.
Ok, could you please, give me the link where I can find the models that I can print with Mini Prusa, to choose and buy?.
Also the model you have in your living room that is easy to build and which works for 32 days, could you show me?.
Thank you.
I also wanted to know if with a Mini Prusa +, I can print this type of watch.
Thank you.
Yes, there is a small charge for most of the clock designs, about as much as half a roll of filament. I consider the cost to be quite reasonable, considering the effort that is needed to create and document each design.
Thanks
Steve