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Mainspring winder

Willow

By Willow
in All Things Clocks

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Willow WRT Addict

Willow

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Hi, i am trying to buy a winder that does barrel and open springs why is it so hard to buy one in the UK ,cousins is having trouble getting hold of Ollie Baker Style winder and to get them from US are expensive i have tried searching the web with no luck , can anyone recommend a company in UK that does them.

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wls1971 Distinguished Member

wls1971

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Build your own as stated above, The Ollie Baker supply issues are a bit of a joke they have been continuously out of stock at Cousins for years they occasionally become available but if you dont spot them on the day they go on the site you wont get one they go that quick.

The Ollie Baker is a pain to use anyway with small barrels and very large barrels anything in between is o.k very large Fusee barrels are a real struggle and a feat of strength because you have to grip the barrel as you tighten the spring up to get the sleeve into the barrel and they are even worse when trying to get the spring back in the barrel , I have a Bergeon winder that I use for putting fusee springs back in.

 

 

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Willow WRT Addict

Willow

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31 minutes ago, wls1971 said:

Build your own as stated above, The Ollie Baker supply issues are a bit of a joke they have been continuously out of stock at Cousins for years they occasionally become available but if you dont spot them on the day they go on the site you wont get one they go that quick.

The Ollie Baker is a pain to use anyway with small barrels and very large barrels anything in between is o.k very large Fusee barrels are a real struggle and a feat of strength because you have to grip the barrel as you tighten the spring up to get the sleeve into the barrel and they are even worse when trying to get the spring back in the barrel , I have a Bergeon winder that I use for putting fusee springs back in.

 

 

wls1971 you surprised me with Ollie Baker i thought they were supposed to be one off the easiest and safest to use, thanks for that

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Willow WRT Addict

Willow

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14 minutes ago, watchweasol said:

Hi Willow   have a look under "identifying clock" by Mechanicmike the whole plans are there just had a look,  its in six parts giving measurements etc... It will be in the clock corner.

yes i will a search for that thanks for trying anyway

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wls1971 Distinguished Member

wls1971

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35 minutes ago, Willow said:

wls1971 you surprised me with Ollie Baker i thought they were supposed to be one off the easiest and safest to use, thanks for that

They are good mainspring winders but there are some glaring faults in the design, you have to grip the barrel in your hand to tighten it, they supply a jubilee clip that you are supposed to put round the barrel and tighten there is a bar on the winder that you wedge onto the jubilee clip to hold the barrel as shown below:

2.jpg.387136b4a6fdf59fd400549844221cb3.jpg

This is a very bad idea you are putting strain on the clip in the very place it is not designed to be strained the strength in a large spring would cause the clip to fail. I have spent my working life in the chemical industry and Jubilee clips used to be a fairly industry wide way of connecting hoses we stopped using them in the early 90's because of high failure rates.

The hooks on the Ollie Baker for holding the hole end of the spring as supplied are too straight you have to be very careful they don't slip out the hole when tightening the spring up to remove a spring from the sleeves.

Some times the opening for the barrel is on the opposite side of the barrel to the one shown in the picture that leaves very limited room to get the sleeve in the barrel.

I would just say they are good but not perfect.

 

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Willow WRT Addict

Willow

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3 hours ago, wls1971 said:

They are good mainspring winders but there are some glaring faults in the design, you have to grip the barrel in your hand to tighten it, they supply a jubilee clip that you are supposed to put round the barrel and tighten there is a bar on the winder that you wedge onto the jubilee clip to hold the barrel as shown below:

2.jpg.387136b4a6fdf59fd400549844221cb3.jpg

This is a very bad idea you are putting strain on the clip in the very place it is not designed to be strained the strength in a large spring would cause the clip to fail. I have spent my working life in the chemical industry and Jubilee clips used to be a fairly industry wide way of connecting hoses we stopped using them in the early 90's because of high failure rates.

The hooks on the Ollie Baker for holding the hole end of the spring as supplied are too straight you have to be very careful they don't slip out the hole when tightening the spring up to remove a spring from the sleeves.

Some times the opening for the barrel is on the opposite side of the barrel to the one shown in the picture that leaves very limited room to get the sleeve in the barrel.

I would just say they are good but not perfect.

 

Can i ask your opinion on Bergeon 4126 are they any good they are a lot cheaper, i would prefer to buy one then make one put if thats the only solution i will have to go down that route 

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watchweasol Distinguished Member

watchweasol

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Hi Willow As wls1971 said holding the barrel in your hand using a jubilee clip on a stop is a dangerous. The Ollie Baker pattern is the same but no stop just your hand. The DIY uses a clamp to hold the barrel so no hands, and the attachments for loop ends and hooks are made to suit your own tastes. Of course there is also the webster mainspring winder see attached, but its get from America.

webster design.jpg

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MechanicMike Super WRT Addict

MechanicMike

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Hiya Willow

I'm currently(I should say we!)working on an anniversary clock and came up against the mainspring problem. Unless you're dismantling and repairing clocks exclusively, the winders are very very expensive and hard to find, but they are out there. The 'Bay has a few, and I actually found a Keystone, and a Bergeon out there when I looked a few minutes ago. But soooo expensive. So, when I get the time I'm going to build my own, as I don't see myself doing just clocks. They are fun tho. 

IMHO.

good luck! 

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MechanicMike Super WRT Addict

MechanicMike

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BTW Bergeon 4126 apparently would work. Hippie uses one.

Hiya Willow

I'm currently(I should say we!)working on an anniversary clock and came up against the mainspring problem. Unless you're dismantling and repairing clocks exclusively, the winders are very very expensive and hard to find, but they are out there. The 'Bay has a few, and I actually found a Keystone, and a Bergeon out there when I looked a few minutes ago. But soooo expensive. So, when I get the time I'm going to build my own, as I don't see myself doing just clocks. They are fun tho. 

IMHO.

good luck! 

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Willow WRT Addict

Willow

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2 hours ago, MechanicMike said:

BTW Bergeon 4126 apparently would work. Hippie uses one.

Hiya Willow

I'm currently(I should say we!)working on an anniversary clock and came up against the mainspring problem. Unless you're dismantling and repairing clocks exclusively, the winders are very very expensive and hard to find, but they are out there. The 'Bay has a few, and I actually found a Keystone, and a Bergeon out there when I looked a few minutes ago. But soooo expensive. So, when I get the time I'm going to build my own, as I don't see myself doing just clocks. They are fun tho. 

IMHO.

good luck! 

MachanicMike yes they are expensive i think I will give a try and build one, the anniversary clock I am working on has been put to one side while i work on a case of a 1950s time only clock that's seen better days good luck to you whatever you do 

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MechanicMike Super WRT Addict

MechanicMike

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On 1/26/2021 at 4:44 AM, Willow said:

Hi, i am trying to buy a winder that does barrel and open springs why is it so hard to buy one in the UK ,cousins is having trouble getting hold of Ollie Baker Style winder and to get them from US are expensive i have tried searching the web with no luck , can anyone recommend a company in UK that does them.

In the 'Bay today

 

Screenshot_20210129-124956_eBay.jpg

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MechanicMike Super WRT Addict

MechanicMike

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19 hours ago, watchweasol said:

Hi Mike That was designed for the 400day/anniversary clocks but with the right retainers will remove other clock springs, The DIY versions of which I have built two and moose has built one do the job admirably, Fusee clock springs need a beefier version

My bad. I thought he was looking for that specifically. I remembered you built some that were well done.

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MechanicMike Super WRT Addict

MechanicMike

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19 hours ago, watchweasol said:

Hi I forgot to mention there is a full set of plans on the site (supplied by Joe Collins) for you to make your own should you choose to do so.   If you cant find them I have then stored on the laptop.

Yup. I posted them and have them saved on my laptop as I plan to build one myself. 

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LittleWatchShop Distinguished Member

LittleWatchShop

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41 minutes ago, MechanicMike said:

Yup. I posted them and have them saved on my laptop as I plan to build one myself. 

Another shiny object!  LOL.  I could not resist pondering a 3D printed solution for some of the parts.  I don't have the plans...just taking a SWAG at what I see on the youtube videos.  Here is one of the slides.  The mate for the slide is a trivial design and print as well.  I just quickly laid out this piece.

2021-01-30 09_33_14-FreeCAD 0.18.png

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LittleWatchShop Distinguished Member

LittleWatchShop

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1 minute ago, watchweasol said:

Hi  There is no reason why some of the parts cannot be done on a 3Dprinter all you have to remember is the strength the spring has when coiled.

True.  I print exclusively with PLA.  It is extremely strong.  ABS is stronger, I think.  I can print ABS, but puts of vapors that are not office friendly. 

Are the plans posted on this forum?

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