I'm going to be documenting the repair of this Artin 3500. This is my first flip clock that I bought back in 2020. It was broken, parts only. What were the problems?
- A flip card had a broken leg, so it wouldn't stay in place.
- Broken gear. The main spinner gear (I don't know the name) was broken into pieces.
I discovered this after opening it up. The flip card, I had no clue.
To gain access to the gearbox, I had to drill out the brass rivets. There's where I discovered the pieces of gear. I glued it back together as best as I could but there's so little torque from the motor, it's not enough to overcome even a tiny imperfection. This this was dead.
So, discouraged, I put it away until I could think of something better.
In the meantime, I got into 3D printing. I started off downloading models, then started making my own, then began reverse engineering stuff and making it for myself.
A few days ago, I put 2 and 2 together and dug out that old clock.
The first order of business was the flip card. I took some careful measurements and printed out a couple quick samples. The original cards are quite thin, so I had to print these at 0.04 mil layer height (VERY THIN!).
I think I have the size just right for this clock. I popped it into place and it works perfectly. Flips, flops, doesn't interfere with the wheels on the side... In the right light, it's a little shiny. I may try it with a matte filament.
For a more clean look, I'll try it with the resin printer at some point. That could give a much smoother surface and potentially make numbers easier to do.
The gear has been tricky. It's so tiny that it's difficult to get measurements. I a couple models I'd like to print, but my .4 mm nozzle is too big.
According to my slicing software, a .2 mm nozzle SHOULD be able to print this tiny gear adequately, so I'm going to order one. That opens the door to printing it in nylon like a proper gear. I may also do up some samples in the resin printer.
I reckon I'll go ahead and model the time adjustment knob while I'm working on it. You never know when/if something happens and it cracks/breaks/disappears. It'll be awful handy to have a backup file so I can just print up a new one.
Overall I'm happy with the progress so far on this. Being able to model and print these parts has made all the difference in the world. I honestly didn't have a clue how else to repair them - aside from buying a junk clock. I'll post any updates and pictures here.
- A flip card had a broken leg, so it wouldn't stay in place.
- Broken gear. The main spinner gear (I don't know the name) was broken into pieces.
I discovered this after opening it up. The flip card, I had no clue.
To gain access to the gearbox, I had to drill out the brass rivets. There's where I discovered the pieces of gear. I glued it back together as best as I could but there's so little torque from the motor, it's not enough to overcome even a tiny imperfection. This this was dead.
So, discouraged, I put it away until I could think of something better.
In the meantime, I got into 3D printing. I started off downloading models, then started making my own, then began reverse engineering stuff and making it for myself.
A few days ago, I put 2 and 2 together and dug out that old clock.
The first order of business was the flip card. I took some careful measurements and printed out a couple quick samples. The original cards are quite thin, so I had to print these at 0.04 mil layer height (VERY THIN!).
I think I have the size just right for this clock. I popped it into place and it works perfectly. Flips, flops, doesn't interfere with the wheels on the side... In the right light, it's a little shiny. I may try it with a matte filament.
For a more clean look, I'll try it with the resin printer at some point. That could give a much smoother surface and potentially make numbers easier to do.
The gear has been tricky. It's so tiny that it's difficult to get measurements. I a couple models I'd like to print, but my .4 mm nozzle is too big.
According to my slicing software, a .2 mm nozzle SHOULD be able to print this tiny gear adequately, so I'm going to order one. That opens the door to printing it in nylon like a proper gear. I may also do up some samples in the resin printer.
I reckon I'll go ahead and model the time adjustment knob while I'm working on it. You never know when/if something happens and it cracks/breaks/disappears. It'll be awful handy to have a backup file so I can just print up a new one.
Overall I'm happy with the progress so far on this. Being able to model and print these parts has made all the difference in the world. I honestly didn't have a clue how else to repair them - aside from buying a junk clock. I'll post any updates and pictures here.
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