MicroSet consists of a small box with an LCD screen, a power switch with Level control, and five push buttons. It runs on a nine volt battery inside or on the included AC adaptor.
People are sometimes surprised at how small MicroSet is. Don't be fooled. Modern electronics make it possible to build sophisticated devices in small packages. We could even make MicroSet smaller but it would be hard to manipulate. We could make it larger and heavier but it would serve no purpose. MicroSet fits esily on the workbench or in a toolbox.
There are three or four jacks at the top end of MicroSet, as shown in this picture. The larger opening at the right side is for the AC adaptor. This jack is labeled "Power" on the LCD screen.
The small jack at the left side, on the bottom, is where you plug in the sensors. This jack is labeled "Sensor In" on the LCD screen.
The jack in the middle is where you plug in a personal computer or paper tape printer. This jack is labeled "Data Out" on the LCD screen.
The jack on the left side, on top, is optional. It's present only if you ordered the Rate Finder or temperature sensor.
Turning it on
To turn on MicroSet, turn the blue knob clockwise. MicroSet should beep twice and the LCD screen will tell you which model of MicroSet it is. There are two models: MicroSet 2 and MicroSet 3. MicroSet 3 has additional features. You can upgrade a MicroSet 2 to a MicroSet 3 if you want to.
The Keypad
There are five pushbuttons on the front of MicroSet. They're labeled RESET, MODE, BEGIN (options), PLUS and MINUS. MicroSet operations are divided into separate "modes". Each mode performs a basic operation, like measuring the rate of a watch or measuring the beat error. To step through the modes, press the MODE button.
To select a Mode, press the BEGIN button when that mode is shown on the LCD screen.
The PLUS and MINUS buttons are used to make choices to configure a mode.
You can restart the timer at any time by pressing the RESET button
Sensors
MicroSet measures a clock or watch by using various sensors. Each MicroSet comes with two sensors. The "acoustic sensor" picks up the sound of the tick and can be used on clocks or watches. The "optical sensor" is used to see the pendulum on a clock. The optical sensor is much more accurate than an acoustic sensor and you should try to use it when you can.
There are several optional sensors available as well, for watches and other special situations.
Positioning the sensors
When working with clocks you can clip the acoustic sensor to a winding arbor or the clock plate. You can clip it to the bow of a pocket watch or the strap bracket of a wrist watch. If you do much work with wrist watches, you will probably want to consdier getting either the simple watch sensor or the clamping watch sensor.
This image shows the standard acoustic sensor clipped to the winding arbor of a Seth Thomas clock.
The optical sensor needs to be arranged so some part of the pendulum passes between the two small posts of the sensor. Usually you'll use the tip of the pendulum adjusting screw at the very bottom of the pendulum. The optical sensor usually needs to be held by a fixture. This is often a "third hand" that you can buy at Radio Shack.
In this picture you can see the optical sensor held in the alligator clip of a Radio Shack third hand. This Seth Thomas movement doesn't have a rating screw at the bottom, so a tiny bit of opaque tape is stuck to the bob to trigger the sensor.
You might wonder how you could use the optical sensor on a mantle clock, where the pendulum is inside. This can be handled by fastening the optical sensor to a stick or bar and sliding it in through the back of the clock. Arrange the sensor so it is triggered by the wire pendulum rod above the bob.
Another situation that comes up for the repairman is how to use the optical sensor on a tall clock in a customer's house. We have created an optical sensor clamp that will clamp to the side of an open clock door. The clamp has an articulated arm attached to it and the sensor is at the end. You can move the arm to place the optical sensor at the center of swing in a running clock case.
Setting the Level control
Every time a sensor detects a beat from the clock or watch, the "beat" LED on MicroSet will blink. If you're using the optical sensor you can set the Level control anywhere from half to fully clockwise. If you're using the acoustic sensor you may have to pay a little more attention to the setting of the Level control. (This is especially true when measuring watches, and there is a special section devoted to this.) When measuring clocks with an acoustic sensor, you want the Level control to be high enough that you won't miss any quiet beats, but not so high that you are likely to pick up noise or other sounds as false beats. Start with the Level control turned very low, then raise it slowly until the LED starts to blink regularly with each tick. Then raise it a little bit more to have a safety margin.
Revision date: 10-17-03
