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32 Day Easy Build Wall Clock

Hello Steve, I built the clock you designed (32 Day Easy Build Wall Clock 10.1 days) last year and I am thrilled with this clock. It has been running without problems since October 2021 with a deviation of about half a minute a week. So far it has only stopped once, which was certainly caused by external influences. I printed with PETG because I rarely use PLA. I want to thank you for your excellent work. Everything is very well constructed, and everything is perfectly described in the instructions. Your new clock (Electromagnetic Pendulum Desk Clock) is already in the works.

I hope there will be something new from you soon, do you already have a new project in the works.

Thanks again

and many greetings

Joachim

3 comments

3 Comments

Ken Beyea

Mar 10, 2022

Hi Steve, I just wanted to share my completed clock 32 day clock. I’m still pretty new to 3D printing (~6mo) so this project really helped stretch my wings with the tight tolerances and filament/color changes. I was so proud when I first put the clock together thinking that it will run perfectly the first time then reality set in, and I started the debugging process. Even with all the concerns over the silk filament I really like the way the copper silk gears look so I took the chance that I could still make it work.

I’m happy to report that I have a perfectly running 10 day clock that continues to run with 5 degrees of pendulum swing! =). I’m curious how the 15 day or 21 day options will work but I also know that it will start the debugging process all over again.

Products used:

· HATCHBOX Matte PLA

· HATCHBOX Brown PLA

· Enotepad Marble PLA

· DO3D Silk Metallic Shiny Copper PLA

· 3.2” weight shell w/1 extension = 10.68#

· 65# braided fishing line

Additional Tools:

· Fusion 360

o I learned how to use Fusion 360 to modify the serpentine hands as they seemed difficult to see without the black outline

o Added text to the pendulum (I know Cherrio is spelled differently, it’s a family thing)

· Cuckoo Calibration app on my phone to aid with leveling

· Slow-mo video recording to see full pendulum swing

From the detailed assembly notes to the how to videos and debugging tips, this was VERY WELL DONE and a really fun project to build. Seriously, Great job Steve!!

I look forward to seeing what you have in the works for your next project, one with a chime or an actual cuckoo would be fantastic!

Ken

Steve

Mar 10, 2022

Replying to

Great job. I like the extra touches. The border around the hands looks good. The hands are much more visible in a traditional clock with a solid dial, but I prefer seeing the gears.

The pendulum amplitude is really strong. There is plenty of margin to change to a longer runtime with the same weight. The amplitude will reduce a bit. One quick test is to reduce the weight in proportion to the increase in runtime. If the 10 day gears run with 5 pounds, then the 20 day gears should run with 10 pounds.

There are always a few projects in the pipeline. Hopefully, an electric rewind clock in a few months and a chiming clock in a few years. :)

Steve

Feb 27, 2022

Thanks Joachim,

I am always happy to hear about the success stories. It is good to hear that PETG makes a good clock. I always suspected it would.

There are always several projects in the development stages. Some take months or even years to fully develop. Others fizzle out after a few experiments.

I am planning a motorized rewind clock, possibly a desk clock similar in size to the electromagnetic desk clock. It could happen in a few months.

A web site on wind chimes at http://www.leehite.org/Chimes.htm got me interested in building a chiming clock. It has only progressed to the point of testing hardware store copper pipe and electrical conduit. Copper pipe looks good but sounds horrible. Conduit has a really nice ring. It is also around 1/3 the price of copper. This is a really long-term project.

And I want to build a few wooden gear clocks to see how they compare to 3D printed clocks. The gear teeth need to be completely redesigned. And the frames need to be re-considered to be built using flat boards.

Steve