back check, a magical mystery tour.

Stephen Birkett sbirkett@real.uwaterloo.ca
Tue, 17 Aug 2004 12:08:11 -0400


Isaac wrote:
>High speed analysis should certainly be interesting for that matter, 
>but a simple time spectra analysis can yet show us things. The 
>device used for the test blows at the PTG seem a good one for that 
>kind of test.

I'll add something to our roster of experiments to target this effect 
and see if we can get to the bottom of it.

>I am persuaded also that the stiffness of the wire being stiffer 
>with a lower backchecks the checking stroke is firmer.
and Andre wrote:
>According to him (Tsuji-san), there should be a space of 2 mm after 
>drop between hammer tail and back check.

There's still quite a few parameters that can be changed while 
maintaining this 2mm space, e.g.:
- (as Ed suggested) relative angle of backcheck and hammer tail 
surfaces on checking (tall angled check vs shorter more vertical 
check = same height of top)
- stiffness of the backcheck wire and leather etc.
- strength of the rep spring (how much does the hammer tail impinge 
into the 2mm space during its journey to "caught" position, at which 
the 2mm space is measured)

If there *is something special about the 2mm spacing per se, then the 
effect must presumably be indepedent of these other factors. So, when 
faced with a non-kosher arrangement, what process exactly is done to 
adjust the backcheck position?

Andre again:
>I got out my Japanese tool to change the height of the back checks 
>and I started twisting and turning the back checks to the desired 
>height.

This sounds like: a simple change in height only. Is it certain that 
that special tool doesn't affect anything else, even accidentally, 
like the angle of the wire? What is the effect of screwing the 
backcheck, on the final resting checked height of the hammer, as 
compared to the backchecking position of the original "incorrect" 
arrangement?

Sounds disrespectful talking about 2mm thingies, compared to the 
devastation we've been hearing about from our FL friends.

Stephen
-- 
Dr Stephen Birkett
Associate Professor
Department of Systems Design Engineering
University of Waterloo
Waterloo, Ontario
Canada N2L 3G1

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