copal 222 running fast

[jrose78]

I recently acquired a copal 222 clock. It was almost new in box and it came from Russia. I checked to make sure it was 60hz and it is. When I plugged it in it started telling time fast and before to long it was already 4 minutes fast!. I took it apart and the motor has a sticker on it that says 60hz. I tried a different outlet and put another flip clock on same outlet and it was still running fast while the other clock was fine. Any clue on what could be the cause?

[Mackey]

Have you had it running continuously for a while?
If not, set the time, plug in and run 24 hours and report back, if you don't mind.

I'm really interested in this. It's possible someone, somehow changed the gears to account for the 50Hz used in Russia.
I believe that if the clock is geared for 50hz you should lose exactly 4 hours in 24 hours. Exactly!
Or, just time it for 30 minutes. You should lose exactly 5 minutes.
The reason I would hope you'll run it is so that we can see if it settles out.

So if it doesn't lose exact minutes as described, it's got to be something else.

Possibilities?
The clock is dropping too many tiles (poorly adjust tine - that's what I call the think that holds the numbers back).

[jrose78]

Ok Mackey I am going to wait till the clock flips a tile and unplug it. Next I will wait until real time reaches the clock time then plug it back in and wait 30 minutes. I will report back Real time vs Clock Time.

[jrose78]

Here are some pics of the clock:

[jrose78]

Ok results are in (started at 3:00)

Real time 3:30 FlipClock TIme 3:35

I noticed about 2 seconds after I recorded the Flipclock time that it changed to 3:36. I will let it run some more and edit this post with the updates

Real Time 5:30 Flipclock Time 5:59

Real Time 7:00 Flipclock Time 7:47

[oldclockradios.com]

I'm with Mackey on this one. Sounds like a 50HZ motor to me. I have several flio click cks from Europe and this is how they all behave when on 60Hz power.

[jrose78]

I agree with the 50HZ theory its just:

Box says 60hz
Sticker on bottom of clock says 60hz
I took the cover off and the motor has a sticker that says 60hz
This clock looks like it has never been touched

Almost like the factory made a mistake

[Mackey]

I agree with the 50HZ theory its just:

Box says 60hz
Sticker on bottom of clock says 60hz
I took the cover off and the motor has a sticker that says 60hz
This clock looks like it has never been touched

Almost like the factory made a mistake

Now that's a possibility. Have you timed it?

[jrose78]

Just an update. I got another 222 off of Ebay an used the motor for my new in box one. It now tells the time spot on. I had to clean the old motor with alcohol and it really did need a cleaning. What a pain though as the old clock light bulb was bad so I could not just outright swap them as its all wired together.

[Mackey]

Thanks for the update!

[azimuth989]

Thanks, as well! Always great to hear of other member's experiences!!

[Wouter]

Hi everyone. So I am new to this forum, but I have had my copal model 222 for over 10 years. Unfortunately it stopped working the other day. Unfortunately I just can't figure out how to open the clock to see what's wrong with it. After getting the two screws out the back still seems to be stuck on the adjustment knob. Any thoughts on this?

so the light is still working and the tiny transformer (?) makes a nice buzzing sound when you hold the clock against your ear. Any idea what could be wrong? Dead motor? :'(

Thanks in advance!!

[Mackey]

I'm pretty sure you need to pull that knob straight off the clock. .
as far as the clock not running, it's likely that the motor needs cleaning. Let me know how getting it apart goes.

[Wouter]

There we go! That did the trick! Unfortunately I don't have a tiny spanner this size, I'll need to go to find a shop here (I live in Kenya) where they sell specialized tools like this or wait for my trip to the Netherlands (where we have a lot more random little shops) Is there any other tool I will need and probably don't have? And yeah the cleaning lady dropped the clock half a year ago and chipped a bit of plastic. I still have the piece though.

BTW the engine looks really solid not sure if I'll be able to open it.

[Wouter]

Guess i found out what was wrong with the clock: it looks like the flywheel (the steel bit covered in the red and white tape) took a bit of a beating when the cleaning lady knocked it over. It was running into the electrical motor and since the motor is relatively weak it stopped the clock from starting up. With a bit of wiggling I managed to get it free from the motor and relatively straight (trust me it's not easy and you don't want a massive wobble because that will result in your clock making noise.

I'll keep an eye on it for the next 24 hours and see how it goes. Thanks for the help Mackey!

W