Assembling Big Clock Hands on a Small Motor

December 2, 2016

20101105clockWhen I sell one of my titanium handed clocks, I’ve learned the hard way to ship it disassembled. The hands weigh several ounces, and when a shipping box is dropped from 48″ (seems to be the standard handling practice I see when watching them load luggage onto a plane) the heavy hand tears the stem right out of the motor. I’ve tried many very careful methods of shipping it assembled, fool proof. The service sector has been creative in supplying me with improved fools.

So some assembly is required.

First step, unpack everything onto a reasonably clear surface. Preferably a smooth, flat area large enough to rotate the shipping box around.

clipboard

Take the base, and make sure all the needed parts are removed from its protective cavity. If you opted to get the nut wrench (highly recommended) it will be stored in here with a retaining magnet. Probably the tiny minute hand nut in a bag, as well.

Set the base face up on the table, with the top (12:00 position) away from you. Note the flat sides of the minute hand axle, and make sure they are pointing up to 12:00 for ease of alignment.

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On the first hand, the Hour hand, align it with the 12:00 position, slide it over the axle, and simply press it down.

Put pressure on the elevated mounting bracket rather than the hand itself.

 

 

Pick up the minute hand nut by placing it on the surface, pressing the top of the wrench to open the bottom, place vertically over the nut, and letting go of the button.

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Note the direction of the hole and of the axle. slide the hole over the axle until it drops into place. There should be no pushing; it just drops down when aligned.

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Take the nut wrench, vertically, place the nut over the axle, and gently turn until you feel it catch, thread, and then stop. If it doesn’t start, back it off and try to make the wrench more vertical. Gently does it. If you use force, you are probably stripping the threads.

How tight? Enough to turn the minute hand, and then a bit more (block the hand from turning with a finger; don’t grip the hand.

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Once the nut is in place, squeeze the release button on the back of the wrench (pressure between palm or thumb and fingers, don’t press down on the clock) and lift it away.

img_1642aAnd on to the third hand, the second hand. Gently place its stem over the axle, feeling for when it is in place. Once it seems to be centered, then gently press it down. There is less clearance for the second hand because it is not likely to collide wa-ay out there like the heavier hands on these not-so-rigid axles.

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And the final steps are to put in the battery and hang it on your hook or nail. Handle the clock by the base, and note where the hanger is to help you place it.

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Once it is on the wall, set the time by pushing the minute hand around from outside the radius of the hour hand with a finger or pen or some such. Take care not to lift or depress the hand, nor to bump the hour hand.

Instructions on how to tell time precisely to 5 minutes are on the  MrTitanium.com Clock Page. With practice, you can accurately interpolate to the minute.

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Posted by Dan Klarmann

Trouble with Dimmer-Based Circuit outside of the U.S.

February 19, 2014

Tod from the U.K. said:

I have noticed that my dimmer anodizer won’t go below about 35v, even if I go above then come down. Would a different wattage bulb help do you think? Or is it down to the dimmer?

My discussion and solution:

I used to have trouble getting the dimmer to work below about 15 volts, coming from 110vac. So trouble below 35v at 220 vac seems about right. And most of the world has 220 instead of 110 vac.

One solution may be to modify the original circuit (discussed here) with a voltage divider: Put the two light bulbs across the capacitor with a tap for the output voltage in between to get at lower voltages more easily.
Voltage divider

The output voltage will then be Cap Voltage x R2/(R1 + R2).
But bulb wattage is counter intuitive here:

  • Power (watts) is proportional to the inverse of the resistance.
  • Also, the actual bulb resistance depends on the brightness of the bulbs. But we can pretty much ignore this because we are measuring only the output voltage.

So using P for the wattage (rated bulb power) the good-enough formula is

V= Vcap x P1/(P1 + P2)

Simply, if R1=R2, then P1 = P2 and it comes out half.

But to get even lower voltages, try 100 watt R1 and 200w R2 to get V = Vcap x 100/(100 + 200) = 1/3 x Vcap
Play with the ratios until you get the range and stability you want.

And note that the output resistor is still there between the cap and the electrodes; we just moved it to the other side of the original dimmer load bulb to put it in series.
Thus the smaller the R1 wattage is, the slower the anodizer will work.

And remember that this only works for filament or halogen bulbs, not CF nor LED bulbs.

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Posted by Dan Klarmann

Q: How do I choose a resistor when building an anodizer?

September 17, 2012

Daniel asks:

I just built an anodizer as you described, but used an old Variac I got from eBay. I used a light bulb as a resistor across the capacitor, and wanted to replace it with a resistor. You specify a 100 ohm 200 watt resistor, but since you can use different light bulbs, I imagine I could use a resistor with different ohm rating as well. What would be the difference if I used a different ohm rating and what range would be acceptable?

Well, Daniel,

If you have a variac (instead of an unstable and load-determined dimmer) then the only function of the resistor/bulb in parallel with the capacitor is to drain it, to reduce the voltage.
It is only needed when you turn the voltage down. My schematic shows the resistor with a series switch (use a momentary, normally open).
The resistance does not matter much, as it is dependent on the power produced and the time it takes are really the only things of interest.
Given up to 120v, you need to be able to handle the power of whatever the resistance is: (P=V2/R)
So a 120 ohm resistor needs to have a 120 watt rating at 120 volts.
But a 240 ohm resistor needs only 60 watts at 120v. Or 30 watts at 60 volts.
Also, as a momentary device you can use a lower power rating than if it were on continuously. The voltage (thus power) drops quickly, and the time to drain grows with the resistance (V2=V1 x e-t/RC) .

So my design suggests some middle-of-the-road options for resistors that are easy to find at electronics salvage places. And light bulbs are great because their resistance increases as the voltage does, so they drain faster than a fixed resistor. But they break.

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Posted by Dan Klarmann

Q: Can I make my DC anodizer an AC source?

May 9, 2012

Dwayne asks:

I have a home made power supply that a friend built for me a long time ago that I use for anodizing titanium liners and bolsters on pocket knives I build, I don’t know much about electricity but I’m trying to learn, I just finished putting another unit together by looking at the one my friend made me. It has a variac, a full wave bridge rectifier, a light, a fuse link, a on/off switch, a momentary switch, an ammeter and a volt meter. Is it possible for me to add a switch somewhere to change the electricity coming out of my leads from DC to AC and Back. I’m wanting to acid etch my logo in the blades with the same unit if possible, DC etches the Stainless Steel deep and the AC blackens it. If possible, can you explain how to add a switch and what type of switch I need in layman’s terms, as a lot of the schematics look Greek to me. Thank you for your time.

The short answer is: This is a non-trivial change. One problem is that you need a different type of voltage and current meters for AC than for DC. So either you need high end meters that can sense the difference, or a duplicate set of meters and thus a separate set of output leads.

The simple solution would be to simply add another pair of leads from the variac output (before the rectifier) through another fuse and pair of meters to a separate pair of external jacks or leads that are clearly marked AC. And always make sure that only one set of leads actually leads anywhere or connects to anything. Use a separate 3pst switch (and signal light) to turn on the AC leads (presumably like the switch and light that connects the DC leads).

Basically, you can share the power cord and variac, but everything else would have to be be a separate circuit.

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Posted by Dan Klarmann

Q: What common materials can be used to etch titanium?

August 9, 2011

To niggle the semantics, it depends on what is common in ones world.

Any chemistry lab would have hydrofluoric acid, the fastest way to etch titanium. Its helper molecule sulfuric acid is available everywhere (battery acid or some drain cleaners). The combination of the two makes for a smoother etch, but you’ll have to ask a chemist, why?

I’ve found a blend of oxalic acid (HCO) and sodium bi-fluoride in a grocery store laundry section bottled as a rust remover. This etches the titanium, but can leave a carbon residue, that is easy to remove.

Supposedly, concentrated oxalic acid by itself could do the job. But I don’t see how from an entropy standpoint. Also, there is the risk of carbon monoxide fumes (oxalic acid is carbon-monoxide-acid).

ABF (ammonium-bi-fluoride) is common due to its high-volume use in the nuclear industry. I’ve used this by itself at high temperatures. It behaves like weak hydrofluoric acid; essentially buffered.

The key ingredient for etching titanium is loosely bonded fluoride ions. This means that anything that will eat titanium can kill you if it gets into your system. Some people are sensitive enough that a splash of HF on the skin can kill.

Some other suggestions and cautions are here: http://www.finishing.com/134/32.shtml

But my usual recommendation is to order Multi-Etch, a balanced blend of sodium-bi-fluoride and ammonium-sulfate, shipped dry and ready to mix:  Visit http://multietch.com

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Q: Can I anodize titanium with my 12v Power Supply?

June 19, 2011

Christopher asked:

I want to do a large piece of titanium (28″ x 3″ x .5″), around how many amps would I need to push through it, or how long would it take?

I have a power supply that is 12V @ ~19A, could I use this to color my titanium if I just leave it on for a long period of time?

If I color my titanium and dont like it, can I do it again and will I get around the same results? I’m scared that I will try to color it blue and get a terrible result and be stuck with it.

Okay, three questions, but the most critical one is in the title. Titanium colors are voltage controlled. A twelve volt power supply (or battery charger) would work for electroplating or aluminum anodizing, but not for titanium. More precisely, you can get the fingerprint-prone bronzes and deep purple at or under 12 volts. But not any of the other colors.

Because the final color is voltage limited, the current is less critical, in theory.  In practice I find that to reach well saturated colors beyond about 50 volts you need a supply that can support an initial surge of at least 0.1 amps/sq.in. This can be done with lower rated supplies by charging a large capacitor in parallel with the electrodes. Your total piece is 184.5 sq.in, so 19 amps should be enough.

Burrs or sharp edges can have a negative effect on your final color.

If you don’t like your color, you can subsequently anodize to higher voltages, but not lower. The best color results appear on a clean and freshly etched surface. If you overshoot a color, or get a hazy or gray result, the only recourse is to grind, polish, or etch the color off and start over.

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Posted by Dan Klarmann

Q: What role does pH play in electrolyte solution when anodizing titanium?

April 20, 2011

This question from Jack is a good one. I hadn’t really considered it before, and finding information on it online is either tricky or expensive. In short, I don’t know.

I have used electrolytes with a wide range of pH (acidity and alkalinity) but had not been looking for the differences. Some of my favorites are phosphoric acid (pH = 1.7), ammonium phosphate (4.2) , and tri-sodium phosphate (12). Quite different pH’s, but all slam that phosphate ion against the titanium anode and drop off an oxygen atom. Borates work fairly well, too. I’ve read that alkali sulfates can be used. But personal experience says, stay away from nitrates and chlorides.

According to some guidelines/requirements for anodizing titanium medical implants, a strong alkaline should be used. I suspect that this is to guarantee that nothing living can be in the solution.

According to one for-fee article from 1985  (Studies on anodizing of aluminium in alkaline electrolyte using alternating current) found “Electrolyte pH was found to affect the growth of anodic films considerably.” But I didn’t buy it to see how. This article is not quite to the point because it a) was about aluminum, b) they used alternating current, and c) it focused on only part of the pH spectrum.

If anyone has played with pH in anodizing titanium, please let me know if you notice any anodizing differences by pH.

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Posted by Dan Klarmann

Can I Color Titanium in an Oven?

March 22, 2011

Kathleen asked:

Is it possible to color titanium in an oven (to control the temperature)? If so, what temperature does the oven have to have?

Assuming a kitchen oven, the answer is, No.

If you have a laboratory oven, a kiln, or some such, then the answer is, “Probably”.

Titanium colors by heat are controlled by temperature much like anodized color is controlled by voltage. The temperature at which you should start seeing the lowest tan/bronze is about 640°F. This is easy to reach with a direct flame, but not in a household oven.

I have not found a color/temperature scale, but would love to publish one. If anyone with a lab oven wants to play with this, please share your results.

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Posted by Dan Klarmann

Black or Gray Titanium

March 4, 2011

John Asks:

I’m trying to get a black or dark gray finish on the face of a titanium driver head. What voltage achieves that color?

Sorry, John. Anodizing produces a particular spectrum of colors limited by the first two octaves of optical interference. I explain it here.

Black and gray are shades, not colors. One cannot make titanium black by anodizing.

So, how is black titanium made? Everyone who does it is keeping the actual process a tight secret. But my  educated guess is that it is produced by implanting nitrogen into the titanium using an industrial vacuum effusion furnace. This produces a relatively thick layer of titanium nitride in a similar chemical manner that titanium dioxide is made by anodizing. But nitrogen implanting cannot be done in an oxygen rich environment, like air or water. Air is 21% oxygen by volume, and water is 33% oxygen by atoms, or 88% by weight.

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Posted by Dan Klarmann

Anode vs. Cathode Terminology

January 25, 2011

A reader named Scott suggested that I may have made an error:

“On your Anodizing page,  point #3 & #4 are backwards. The anode is negative and the cathode is positive. The work goes on the negative side (the anode) and we are ‘anode-izing’

“Just the first few words of each line are backwards.”

His contention is that the “Anode” should be the negative side. I guess that he is familiar with batteries or sacrificial anodes, where the polarity is opposite that of the electrolytic process that I use.

Rather than just calling him “wrong”, I thought that I would explain it here, in case it comes up again:

The anode is the side of an ion exchange that supplies positive ions.

In the case of an electromotive source (like a galvanic cell, “battery”) you would be correct. The immersed source of positive ions into the solution (anode) produces the negative voltage by pumping electrons around the circuit to balance the positive ions lost to the solution. So in a battery, the anode is the negative side.

But in an electrolytic cell, like an anodizing or plating bath, the anode is where the positive external voltage pumps positive ions into the solution. So the anode is the positive side.

For my purposes, I need to bond oxygen to titanium. Oxygen is a negative ion (2-), pulled toward the positive electrode by the external power source.  The anode simply absorbs electrons from the solution and oxygen is split from the water to keep the accounts balanced. Titanium loves oxygen, so sucks it up as long as there is current. Hydrogen (+) bubbles off at the cathode (negative electrode).

Here’s the Wikipedia article on Anodes, if you want to corroborate what I’m saying and follow to even more authoritative sources.

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Posted by Dan Klarmann

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