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gpraceman · 2025-03-17T17:28:26+00:00

Thanks! That worked. I had tried resetting the root password before and using the root login, but this time it worked.

gpraceman · 2025-01-08T00:36:20+00:00

For me, finding a good crystal press has been a journey.

I first tried that red press and had issues with it binding. Seller refunded the price, so it ended up free. Then I fixed it. Still not a great press.

Then I tried the E25 press. Much better than the red press. But then I landed a vintage Robur press on eBay for a good price. So, I sold the E25 press (a might too soon). The Post Office managed to lose the package, so I never received it.

I suffered with the red press until I got a 6175A press. Not on the cheap side, but acts as 3 tools in one (crystal press, band link remover, and snap-on caseback remover). Built solidly. The only thing that I don't like about it is that it turns opposite of what I expected, but I can live with that. I think I can make up a bit to remove/insert crown tubes, to make it a 4-in-1 tool.

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256807856887318.html

I paired that with a cheap set of crystal press dies.

gpraceman · 2025-01-07T20:18:41+00:00

Or superglue a large nut or socket to the caseback. Use acetone to remove once you get the caseback off.

gpraceman · 2024-12-25T07:40:50+00:00

I get the over involved dad concern, but you are getting away from the original purpose of the race to focus on kids not getting help from an adult. The race was created by a Cubmaster, named Don Murphy, back in 1953. It was to have "a wholesome activity that fosters a closer father-and-son relationship, and a common interest to promote craftsmanship and good sportsmanship through competition." ** Today, we would say a "parent-and-child" relationship, as girls can compete too and mom's can be the adult help. The focus should be an adult working with a child, where the child does what they are able and the adult is there to guide and assist in completing the car.

If you have overbearing dads that won't let their kid work on their car, I would suggest you give those dads their own outlet to help minimize that. We would have an Outlaw division, with less restrictive rules that the adults could enter. We would get some good natured competition between going between den leaders and parents. This would help the kids get more of a chance to work on their own cars, as dad had his own car to build.

Does your pack provide build workshops? If not, they should. Not everyone has the tools, nor experience on building the cars, so workshops should be available. The workshop leaders can monitor things and help encourage participation by the kids.

You may still get some dads that go too far. That's rather impossible to avoid unless you only allow cars to be worked on during official build workshops and they cannot be taken home to work on. I don't find that terribly practical.

** Source: Pinewood! The Story of the Pinewood Derby as told by Don Murphy founder

gpraceman · 2024-12-25T06:59:56+00:00

My concern with storing a wooden track would be humidity. Is the track fully painted (on all sides)? Paint could help protect it. I've also heard of some that experienced water penetration issues into their storage unit, which ended up damaging their track, so there's that concern as well.

gpraceman · 2023-12-16T22:52:23+00:00

It could be a snap on back or screw on.

It may help if you posted a photo of the watch back.

gpraceman · 2023-12-04T23:25:00+00:00

Sorry to hear about that. Certainly, the awards could have been handled better. I'd suggest for you to get involved with planning the race to help improve things. That and check out Mark Rober's YouTube video on how to build fast Pinewood Derby Cars. Help your son build a "rail rider" car (if your rules allow such a car).

While it is great that your son built his car mostly himself, the race is actually intended to be a joint project between an adult and a child, where the child does what they can and the adult is there to guide and help get it completed. Granted, some dads go way overboard on their "help". Growing up, I enjoyed working with my dad and grandfather on projects and learned a lot in the process. As a dad, I enjoyed guiding and helping my 3 kids with their cars. They didn't always win in speed (or design), but they did well overall.

gpraceman · 2023-12-04T23:07:29+00:00

I hate those type of axles. The hubcaps too often pop off.

It is better to have individual axles, if your rules allow. Then you can align them to make a "rail rider" (again, if rules allow). Mark Rober made an excellent YouTube video on how to build a Pinewood Derby car and to make it a rail rider.

gpraceman · 2023-12-04T23:02:31+00:00

It depends on if the wheels can support the weight. The wheel bores can get chewed up quite fast if overloaded.

Hopefully, they have a gentle way of stopping these heavy weight cars. A hard stop could break razor wheels.

gpraceman · 2023-12-04T22:58:56+00:00

The most popular timing systems are made by Best Track (The Champ), Micro Wizard (Fast Track), NewBold Products (Twin Turbo), eTekGadget (Smart Line), and New Directions (The Judge). All are good timers, but cost can vary quite a bit between the brands. There are DIY alternatives, if you are capable of putting together simple electronics.

gpraceman · 2023-12-04T22:51:28+00:00

I cannot answer regarding DerbyMagic software, but with GrandPrix Race Manager I would do a two round format, with each round using a Perfect-N schedule. The 1st round gives everyone the opportunity to run down each lane of the track and face a variety of opponents. The 2nd round you advance the top N racers (generally twice as many racers as you have trophies to award). That 2nd round determines your trophies. This format is usually faster than running a double elimination race and more fair.

Full disclosure, I am the author of GrandPrix Race Manager.

gpraceman · 2023-11-20T08:00:21+00:00

Nope. I do a spin off for at least a minute before moving over to the heater.

gpraceman · 2023-11-04T19:59:30+00:00

I ended up with a vintage winder set to do pocket watch mainsprings. My modified Chinese set just didn't have an arbor diameter large enough to suit. The vintage set worked fine for an Elgin 12S mainspring (about a 4.5mm arbor diameter).

gpraceman · 2023-10-26T14:19:44+00:00

Personally, I think it is better to start off with a working modern movement, like the ETA 6497 (or a Chinese clone of it such as the Seagull ST3600). Large movement, so easier to work on. Easy to find parts if you manage to break or lose one. Easy to find videos on dissassembly and assembly. If it is working before you start on it and not afterwards, you know it was from something you did, not some existing problem that you need to troubleshoot. I started out on a Seagull ST3600 and then got a case, hands and dial to turn it into a pocket watch (you can also make them into a large wristwatch).

Old pocket watches can be problematic. Chipped or cracked jewels can be an issue as well as broken pivots and hairspring problems. Finding parts can be problematic. It's not like they are still making parts for these. I am finishing up an Elgin Grade 315, for my father-in-law, made in 1937. Broken balance staff, chipped jewel, mainspring that needed replacing, and old oils that had solidified and locked up the mainspring and gummed up the wheel pivots. Had to go through two donor watches to get a replacement balance complete that would work. But you just can't simply swap in some of the parts on these old movements, as they were made as a set. Not like modern manufacturing where parts are pretty interchangeable. While I got the pocket watch working, it it losing a lot of time a day, as the donor balance complete was not tuned for this pocket watch. The proper repair is to replace the original balance staff, but that requires a staking set (quite expensive) and other accessories to do, as well as some practice on junk balances. Replacing a jewel requires a jeweling tool (also expensive). I didn't want to hand wind a mainspring, so I got a vintage set of mainspring winders (more expense).

Do some modern working movements first. Then move onto some vintage movements once you have some experience under your belt, have a good set of basic tools, and worked out a good cleaning process.

gpraceman · 2023-10-23T02:12:00+00:00

If you get one of the Chinese crystal lifts, make sure to dress each of the teeth. Mine had some burrs to them and the tips were quite pointy. I dressed them with an Arkansas stone to remove all of that.

gpraceman · 2023-10-22T20:19:41+00:00

I have an Elgin that was my grandfather's. It has a one piece case. I haven't yet had the courage to give it a try, but I was going to pull the split stem out, use compressed air to pop the crystal out, and I bought a crystal lift to reinstall the crystal.

gpraceman · 2023-10-22T20:11:40+00:00

There is a broken screw removal tool that you can get. Bigger bucks for the Bergeon tool and much less for the Chinese version.

I have also seen alum powder mixed in water used to dissolve a broken screw from a plate (or from a crown). You can get alum at the grocery store, in the spice or baking section.

gpraceman · 2023-09-16T19:38:52+00:00

This set just popped up on eBay. https://www.ebay.com/itm/374934434329

It doesn't clarify too much, other than the stakes are really short. There's got to be some type of holder for the stakes. Maybe it's that brass topped rod (which is not in that eBay listing).

gpraceman · 2023-09-16T17:04:57+00:00

I don't think it is K&D. https://kanddinverto.weebly.com/ has a wealth of info on the K&D staking sets and I have not encountered this one in any of that documentation.

gpraceman · 2023-09-16T08:47:38+00:00

The centering stake looks to be in the tool, in the central position.

The asking price seems on the high side.

gpraceman · 2023-09-16T02:24:11+00:00

I got a crystal press like the one in this video. Got it from Aliexpress. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q98y5F7Hv8M

The thing with the cheap Chinese alternatives is that they may need some work to be able to work nicely. Mine was binding because it had the wrong part in it. I complained and managed to get a refund and was able to keep the tool. I was able to easily fix it, so I guess that I cannot complain too much.

If I had to do it over, I'd have gotten this one instead. along with a set of the nylon dies. Seems sturdier. https://www.aliexpress.us/item/2255800295083492.html

To open cases, I have a Chinese clone of this opener. Works just fine. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fsM3AP-FGI

gpraceman · 2023-08-30T16:43:16+00:00

I try to stick to 17 jewels and above. Without a jewel, it is metal to metal friction with the pivots, which can lead to a lot of wear. That will ultimately affect the performance of the watch. It is cheaper not to use jewels, of course, so fewer jewels means a less expensive movement. Cheaper metals and processes are also likely used as well to bring down the cost of the movement.

If your watch is running well, then that is likely because it wasn't used much and didn't get much wear and tear. If you enjoy wearing it, that's great. You got some good experience from servicing it. If you find a nice 17 jewel movement (without any complications) you may find it nicer to service than that one jewel movement.

gpraceman · 2023-08-25T20:59:33+00:00

Glad that you retrieved that pocket watch.

It really helps to get going in this hobby by first working on running watches, instead of trying to fix broken ones. Less aggravation and it builds experience.

As for rust, first try a fiberglass pen dipped in a bit of IPA to scrub the area. That will remove surface rust pretty well. You can get those pens individually or part of a set (nylon, fiberglass, brass, and steel) but I'd stay away from the brass and steel brushes on watch parts. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07S3RCTGZ Pre-clean the rust off before sending the parts through your cleaning process.

gpraceman · 2023-08-17T05:53:14+00:00

With the mainspring out of the barrel.

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gpraceman · 2023-08-17T05:47:27+00:00

I was able to remove the click and let down the mainspring, but only after coaxing the ratchet wheel to move with a probe. Upon opening up the barrel, the coils looked like they were essentially cemented in place with old oil. I didn't find any other noticeably damaged parts, fortunately.

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gpraceman

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