Cuckoo Clock Test Hands

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Joel Cox
5 years ago
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Cuckoo Clock Test Hands by Lloyd L. Lehn PhD, CC Purpose: The purpose of this article is to describe the fabrication of a set of test hands I use when servicing cuckoo clocks.

1 Cuckoo Clock Test Hands by Lloyd L. Lehn PhD, CC Purpose: The purpose of this article is to describe the fabrication of a set of test hands I use when servicing cuckoo clocks. Scope: The test hands made for Regula cuckoo movements but can be used for others. Effort/Skill Required: Basic Test Hands: My original test hands are shown here. I simply used standard cuckoo minute hands and painted them red so that I knew they were test hands. I used them so that I would not have to put my fingers all over the clock s actual hands or run the risk of accidently breaking one as I reach around from behind to turn them. They worked just fine. I have to paint them again every once and awhile. Page 1

The Challenge The difficulty I found with these hands is that using them requires four individual pieces: 1) square hole washer, 2) test hand, 3) round hole washer and 4) the hand nut.

My goal was to create a new test hand assembly that would eliminate some of the parts so that I would not lose them nor have to keep track of them. The Goal/Result My goal/result is shown here.

2 The Challenge The difficulty I found with these hands is that using them requires four individual pieces: 1) square hole washer, 2) test hand, 3) round hole washer and 4) the hand nut. Most are so tiny that I frequently drop them and they re hard to find. My goal was to create a new test hand assembly that would eliminate some of the parts so that I would not lose them nor have to keep track of them. The Goal/Result My goal/result is shown here. This test hand assembly has only two parts: 1) the hand nut and 2) the test hand. This is the first test hand I made. It was made from a single piece of brass the width of the hand. I simply soldered the square hole washer into the hand. The brass is thick enough (but not too thick) so that the round hole washer was not needed. This hand and the hand nut worked very well. I should point out that the hands will not necessarily line up with 6 or 12 o clock when the clock cuckoos. For test hands, this is no problem for me. One could heat up the solder and twist the square hole washer to the correct position if desired. It worked so well that I decided I needed several more. Page 2

I went looking in my supply bins and found a 2 inch wide piece of brass of about the right thickness.

3 Mass Production My first inclination was to use the same sized brass that I used for the first hand. However, I had only enough for one more hand. I went looking in my supply bins and found a 2 inch wide piece of brass of about the right thickness. I put on a light coat of bluing and laid out the hands. Then I did some chip cutting with a drill press and a metal band saw. Here you see the result. The hands are nominally a half inch wide. Cut Them Apart Then I cut them apart. Page 3

A Bit Smoother Here is the result of the deburring operation.

4 Deburring I have a small belt/disk sander which is a very useful tool to smooth off the rough edges produced by the band saw. A Bit Smoother Here is the result of the deburring operation. You can see that I did not try to make accurate hands - the holes are off center but good enough for test hands. Page 4

5 The Soldering Station This is a portable soldering station that I place on my workbench. It s a simple device made from five fire bricks (from a local fireplace store), an aluminum plate (the black anodized piece on the bottom), some aluminum angle iron, and some brass screws. There are also two pieces of angle iron on the bottom for plate feet. This assembly is heavy. But it provides the protection I desire. To solder the hands, I used the small butane torch shown. The hands and the square nut are very small so it took only a couple of seconds to heat them to soldering temperature. Page 5

Finally the solder melted and flowed under the head of the square hole washer. I should point out that I tried to place two corners of the square hole in line with the major axis of the hand.

6 Soldering I laid out the hands to solder them. First I put flux on the area of the interface between the hand and the washer. Then I placed two small pieces of solder (about 3 mm long) 180 degrees apart on the edge of the square washer. Then I applied the torch by moving it in a rotary pattern. Finally the solder melted and flowed under the head of the square hole washer. I should point out that I tried to place two corners of the square hole in line with the major axis of the hand. That might not be the correct location but at least it was consistent with the position of the first hand I made so when using them they will all be about the same. Soldering Done Here are the four washers soldered in place. It should be noted that one of the pieces of solder flowed in the wrong direction so I had to use another piece of solder and re-heat it. I didn t bother to take off the extra solder since it made no difference to me. Page 6

The drier I use for clock parts is an ordinary hot air popcorn popper.

7 Wash and Dry At this point, the hands have flux on them. They need to be washed and dried. I used the hottest tap water we have with ordinary hand soap. The drier I use for clock parts is an ordinary hot air popcorn popper. I took off the top half of the housing and added a table with a fence around it using a screen mesh. This device was described in an article I wrote for the Clockmaker s Newsletter edited by Steve Conover. Page 7

of model paint - and then on to the drying booth as

8 Painting and Drying After drying the water off the test hands, I moved on to my painting booth - a tube of model paint - and then on to the drying booth as seen below. After an hour or so they were ready for use. Page 8

Final Result Here is the final result - a

9 Final Result Here is the final result - a test hand with only two pieces. I still have problems of dropping the small hand nut but I only have to contend with only one small part. I hope you will find these test hands as useful as I have. Enjoy Lloyd Page 9

10 Epilogue About a week after making the four test hands described above, I was working on the clock movement shown below. The original hands were very delicate and I thought I d use a test hand. So I tried one of the hands I ve described above. Sure enough it worked just fine. Page 10

More Clock Repair Uses of Superglue

More Clock Repair Uses of Superglue By Lloyd L. Lehn PhD, CC Author s Comment: Portions of this article have been published in at least two publications. The content appears here so that others may benefit