Shinier

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In our last episode I was not so much cleaning as completing the disassembly of Ted's Adamantine. 

Historically I have cleaned clock movements with a product called DEOX-007. 

Super spy name. 

Ammonia is a key ingredient that is especially good at cleaning brass. It's water-based and I like it but it does involve a lot of hand scrubbing.

This go round I tried a new solution and process to clean the clock movement parts. It's a non-water based ammoniated cleaner as water can be a scourge to the steel in clock parts, not that I had any real problems with it before.

I tried the new solution in my ultrasonic cleaner for the first time as well. Much faster and quite a bit easier than scrubbing.

The results were good but it left a residue that I didn't like. I'll have to tweak this somehow.

Overall though a vast improvement.

After parts are cleaned I reassemble portions of the movement to do tests.

So in this case I've put the striking train wheels in the plates just to confirm the meshing of the gears and to check the pivot holes. That's the mainspring wheel there at the bottom without the spring itself.

Everything meshed and turned nicely. A few slightly loose pivots but nothing needing bushing.

But what's that...?

Is that...?

Time for a closer inspection.

Is that...?

Rust!

What the hell!

OK, ok... the cleaning could have revealed rust that was already there but hidden underneath dirt.

Ahem.

I do have a solution. Literally.

And I went back to my trusty James Bond solution for an additional cleaning, just to be sure.

Got rid of the residue and no more rust.

Now back to testing trains.

A slightly blurry time train test.


It's moving and meshing well and I can confirm that the pivot hole highlighted above does need bushing. That's the fourth wheel, time train, front plate pivot to be precise.


I wrote a treatise on bushing a few years back but suffice it to say that oval holes can cause serious friction and slow or stop clocks. This oval hole is not severe but it ain't good.

I get to try another new (old) device for bushing.

More on that soon.




Comments

  1. SaknussemAugust 14, 2023 at 8:51 AM

    Is there anything more attractive than polished brass? Yes, polished brass clockworks.

    ReplyDelete

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