Sunday 18 November 2018

1969 to Present - Where Has The Time Gone?

Aged about fifteen, I wandered into the school library one cold, damp afternoon, bored and looking for something interesting to read, not really expecting to find anything but always hopeful.  I found this dusty old book entitled ‘Oddities’, and leafed through it in a kind of disinterested way.  About a hour later I suddenly remembered where I was and what I should be doing!  I grabbed the book and headed out, having already decided that I must finish the book.

The book was by Lieutenant Rupert T. Gould, well-known for his books on unexplained facts.  He was also an expert restorer of marine chronometers, the most famous being those invented by John Harrison, the man who solved the problem of finding a ship’s longitudinal position at sea.  Harrison won the famous British Board of Longitude prize of £20,000 - the same amount of money sought by Johann Bessler for the secret of his perpetual motion machine.  The reward was offered by the British Government through the 1714 Longitude Act which was the first time the government used legislation to address a specific scientific problem.

Gould included an account of ‘The Wheel of Orffyreus’, which, since those long ago days, I have come to realise, is the best account of Bessler’s wheel, (up to my own, of course!)  My own research confirmed everything he wrote about, but of course, back in 1930, he did not have the tools for research that we have now. Gould described the accusations Bessler’s maid fabricated against him and it was in her description of how she was made to turn the wheel that I first saw a glimmer of light, which I latterly understood to be proof that she lied.  It was that tiny crack in the wall of professional scepticism by the members of the elite scientific, rich and powerful men of those days that allowed me to see an alternative to the narrative that had sealed Bessler’s fate and perpetuated the idea that he was a criminal.

That brief sudden moment of clarity engendered by the impossibility of the maid’s claims against Bessler remained with me for several years until I realised I would get no resolution to my concerns until I had either tried to build a perpetual motion machine myself, or tried to find out more about Johann Bessler.

The first research involved obtaining as much information as possible from the British Museum Library, including some of Bessler’s original publications and other documents referring or relating to him.  The immediate problem confronting me was that I had no German, neither the modern kind nor the 300 year old kind.  Unphased by this seemingly insurmountable problem at the naive age of about 24, I wrote a letter to a local paper requesting assistance of anyone prepared to translate some old German documents free of charge.  Amazingly I received offers of help from six or seven people.  I settled on one man, Mike Senior, who became a life long friend but who, sadly, passed away a couple of years ago.  He was an ex-school teacher who left because he complained the kids didn't want to learn.  He had degrees in 18th C German, classic Greek and Latin plus Astrophysics and Botany!  He was a regular contributer to various  scholarly magazines and had solutions to some of the most complex  puzzles particularly those of a mathematical nature. Everything of Bessler’s which I have published was translated by Mike, other than the notes accompanying Maschinen Tractate which accomplished by fellow researcher from the USA.

I would say that since the age of 24 I have been involved in Bessler research and as I will be 74, next year, that is approaching 50 years.  I have constructed countless models each built in the hope that it would spin continuously driven purely by the force of gravity causing the falling of weights inside the wheel. Have I ever felt like giving up?  No, never because I know Bessler succeeded and it is therefore possible.

The concept is simple and Karl the Landgrave was surprised no-one had thought of it before, so it s only a matter of time.  I would have thought 50 years was time enough!

It's only been during the last three or four years that I have begun to understand how he did it, but even then it has been a hard fought battle to find some of his clues and work them out, and correct the false first impressions I got. So far all those clues found and interpreted by many people do not seem to have any relevance to a solution and only time will tell if mine are any better.   So next year?  I've lost count of the times I've suggested that, but confidence is high!

JC

27 comments:

  1. John Collins,

    You are the only person in over 300 years with the uncommon decency to defend Bessler. To portray him honestly and fairly without malice. All others have chosen to insult, ridicule, and belittle him in every way possible. They have done there best to condemn him and his wheel. The favorite method seams to be to pile up a mountain of all the wheels that can't work, then throw his wheel on top of it, in an attempt to try and show that it; along with all the others, didn't work either.
    You, John Collins, on the other hand, chose to write a whole book describing in so many ways that his wheel did work! Just knowing that, gives us an enormous advantage, to find a way to achieve it. Without you, it would be impossible!
    Sam Peppiatt

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    1. Thank you Sam. Your words are much appreciated.

      JC

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    1. Stephen my apologies, I think it's on my blog because I'm signed in. Write to me (jcollins) at my free-energy web site.

      JC

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  3. With Mike Senior having a degree in 18th C German and classic Latin, I think you found a good translator, as some of Bessler's publications have a German and a Latin version and he could probably have used both in some parts to arrive at a good translation.

    As for your nearly 50 years of research, all I can say is very well done. You are now certainly not alone in the quest. Many of us are also thankful for how you used the internet for spreading the word about Johann Bessler.

    Zhyyra

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  4. Very well said Zhyyra.

    I am absolutely convinced that in time someone eventually will find “the” solution. Without any doubt history will prove that John Collins has done a tremendous effort with his research and participated in this endeavour by keeping Bessler’s story alive.

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  5. Buongiorno, io sono "solo" 6 anni che sono venuto a conoscenza di lei e di Bessler, ho fatto 4 prototipi ed ho speso finora 500 euro, la ruota in alcuni periodi dell'anno diventa per me un'ossessione e allora ci lavoro parecchio tempo, forse troppo....
    La tecnologia ogni giorno fa passi da gigante e mi sembra sempre più strano che una cosa in teoria così "semplice" come la ruota non sia ancora stata scoperta, è anche vero che possiamo dire che questa ricerca viene fatta solo a livello hobbystico perchè a nessuna multinazionale converrebbe che l'energia nel mondo sia gratis per tutti (un pò come la storia di Tesla), però ultimamente ho perso la fiducia e penso che la storia di bessler sia solo una bella favola, ho davvero il timore che sia solo tempo perso e che la ruota in realtà non si possa realizzare.....comunque faccio i miei migliori auguri ha chi ha il coraggio (e il tempo e il denaro ) per perseverare.

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    1. Above in English and my response at the end. Jc

      Hello, I'm "only" 6 years that I got to know you and Bessler, I made 4 prototypes and I've spent 500 euros so far, the wheel in some periods of the year becomes an obsession for me and then I work a lot time, maybe too much ....
      The technology makes giant steps every day and it seems to me increasingly strange that something so "simple" as the wheel has not yet been discovered, it is also true that we can say that this research is done only at hobby level because at no multinational would agree that the energy in the world is free for everyone (a bit like the story of Tesla), but lately I have lost confidence and I think the story of bessler is just a beautiful story, I really fear that it is just lost time and that the wheel can not really be realized ..... however I do my best wishes have those who have the courage (and time and money) to persevere.

      Thank you for your comments, it is nice to know there are people in Italy looking for the solution. Good luck with your research and please do not give up.

      JC

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  6. Our approach is wrong... the pre-concept we have in mind is not the right one... If you ask me, the very attitude is wrong... A drastic change is reqd...

    For example, take the Pentagon drawing appearing at the top... How many of us really feel it is the right one... Is it actually not the main misleading factor?... Should it perennially appear here?...

    I am quite sure it does not gel with the real bw concept... With so many things to misguide us it is no wonder why success eludes us as yet another year passes away...

    The actual concept is very simple yet surprisingly we are nowhere near the truth... Thanks to our great ignorance...

    The need of the hour is not to silence the advisor but to have an open and broad mind...

    What makes things fall?... What keeps anything moving?... what is the most simple way to imbalance a wheel?... How to raise a wt in an innovative way?... What does the banging sound tell us?... What happens after the banging?...

    There are so many basic things that need to be addressed...

    Hope we don't kick the bucket without having a glimpse of the Bessler secret...

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    1. Clearly our approach has been wrong so far Suresh, but don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater! I don’t think Bessler would have introduced the pentagon without good reason, but that is just my opinion.

      Before I published Bessler’s works people sought the solution without the benefit of Bessler’s clues, and no-one found the solution in the 300 intervening years, so I still believe that the solution will be found and it will include some connection with the pentagon and it will be extremely simple!

      And yes I too hope that we don’t ‘kick the bucket’, before we find out what the solution is!

      JC

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    2. The pentagon may only be there as a symbolic representation of the number 5. The shape may have nothing to do with the wheel.

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  7. maybe the 'connectivity' principle is the connecting of the 2 inner weights (cord or ridgid?), after all they are both moving 'up' at the same time at 1 and 7 o'clock (ish), it may be advantageous somehow. If more 'help' is needed maybe releasing a latched spring here will aid ? after all the lower hammer men have a much smaller body dia. and they are drawn tightly coiled (under tension?)
    Jon

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  8. I agree with anon... The pentagon shape may have nothing to do with the wheel...

    In my opinion, there are ample clues available other than the Pentagon idea...

    There were many publications available before the year 1993... From which I actually gained a great insight... One such book was from Lindsay Publications... Titled ' perpetual motion, a continuing saga'... It was Pentagon idea free and contained great clues which made a very good reading... The problem with the Pentagon concept is that it can cloud our natural concept...

    The wheel's internal arrangement has to be very symetrical... Pentagon is five sided... And this doesn't help...

    Take for example the traditional weighing balance or the scale... If you add weight to one side the other side gets raised... Like a see-saw...

    If we combine several such pairs on the same axle they will act in pairs...

    This action by pairs cannot be achieved by the Pentagon method as the symetry cannot be maintained inside a circle...

    The circle has to be divided into equal quadrants for the weights to perform their swinging act which is very crucial...

    The swinging path is such that it requires a 180 degree space on one side of the wheel... Which simply means it takes up an entire radius... or one full quadrant out of four... Which is possible if we divide the circle into four quadrants...

    Tell me sir, how the pentagon idea gels here?...

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    1. How the pentagon got here? Bessler hid it in many of his drawings.

      JC

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    2. I apologize to John the most.
      I think Suresh Kumar is right because he understands the geometry.
      Time to free yourself and look from another side. John.

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    3. Good morning, according to her, the weights are free and roll or hang on some levers and swing ? thank you

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    4. I respect your opinions. But I have my own.

      JC

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  9. Suresh you should start a blog about your ideas of a working design. Let John use his blog to expound on his ideas. If you have your own blog I think you would get farther working a solution than trying to convert everyone here including John I don't think John is ready to give out everything he knows but it sounds like you have something to say you need a place to sayit without fear
    of taking over someone elses blog. Here is where the five sided guys seem to hang out you will have to come up your design thoughts on your blog about how many sides you would use. Even besslerswheel website you can have your design critiqued by members there if you like.

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  10. Brick, brick, brick, brick. 4.
    Wall, wall, wall. 3.
    Jan.

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  12. That's interesting there is a company called Bessler stairway company that build disappearing attic ladder stairs hmmmmm....

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  13. I 'climbed the ladder' and found I was climbing up a down escalator!

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  14. I agree, John deserves a tremendous amount of credit for all he has done and continues to do..... I have come to the same point that the blog has reached. A balanced wheel cannot move. Suresh..... we all can benefit from a broader conversation, I am sure that John would be happy to post a link to your blog. The more folks working on the solution the quicker it will appear. Happy Thanksgiving to all..... We have much to be Thankful for

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The True Story of Bessler’s Perpetual Motion Machine.

On  6th June, 1712, in Germany, Johann Bessler (also known by his pseudonym, Orffyreus) announced that after many years of failure, he had s...