(Conducted ~Nov 2024)

There is a popular Escapement Desk Toy on Thingiverse (https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3364860) I have been wanting to print. With the printer now functioning well, I got about printing the parts.

Improvements With Remixes

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3408585 has a pallet fork holder that is not as wide, attempting to place the pallet fork more in line with the escape wheel. And the original impact pin house has square edges and the pallet fork gets caught on it. The remix adds chamfers which reduces the amount it gets stuck.

This remix https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3753245 tweaks the angles of the pallet fork to help it release from the escape wheel. In the original Desing they are prone to bending.

These remixes helped but the biggest issue I found in my print was the pallet fork’s axis was too low causing it to bind. The lower fork was too far in and would impact pin wouldn’t move it far enough out to let the escape wheel move and the upper pallet fork was too far out and would often not stop the escape wheel, instead letting it skip. Lifting up the balance wheel and pallet fork sub-assembly with a couple of washers between the frame and the base got the mechanism acting more symmetrically on the escape wheel, and letting the mechanism run more reliably.

Remaining Issues

The mechanism is still pretty finicky. It can run for 5-10 seconds, but eventually something catches. There are other larger issues with the design. The biggest of which is the impact pin (and thus the balance wheel/spring) are in contact with the impact fork as the impact swings up. This is not desirable in a watch mechanism because the free oscillation of the balance wheel is what allows for accuracy (un-impeded oscillators have a constant period well without friction) and efficiency (i. Its operation is more like an early clock mechanism called a verge escapement which still has a spring, but each oscillation it jams into the escapement instead of swinging freely and leaving the pallet fork behind to hold the escapement.

I am not sure how much further I will take this build. For the moment, I have fulfilled my goals of having a toy mechanism I enjoy and is fun to show off, and to learn more about how escapements work. It might be fun to continue to tune this build to test my knowledge or start from scratch with my own design, or pick one that is better already published. For now, I will probably turn my eye towards other projects I have been wanting to try.