
A blog about Johann Bessler and the Orffyreus Code and my efforts to decipher it. I'll comment on things connected with it and anything I think might be of interest to anyone else.
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Sunday, 19 June 2022
Johann Bessler’s Research & Development.
Friday, 10 June 2022
Johann Bessler Versus the Conspiricists
There are often comments suggesting that publication of the solution to Johann Bessler’s Perpetual Motion device could endanger the life of the publisher/discoverer etc. But in my opinion this is just the fake conspiracy theorists at work; the same kind of belief espoused by flat-earthers, the faked moon landings, the investigation of a crashed UFO at Area 51, and many other ‘suspicious’ events. Many conspiracy theories involve an explanation for an event or situation that invokes a conspiracy by sinister and powerful groups, often political in motivation, when other explanations are more probable. They are no doubt apocryphal.
These conspiracies work because of a psychological effect known as the illusory truth effect or the illusion of truth effect. It is the tendency to believe false information to be correct after repeated exposure. This phenomenon was first identified in a 1977 study at Villanova University and Temple University When truth is assessed, people rely on whether the information is in line with their understanding or if it feels familiar. The first condition is logical, as people compare new information with what they already know to be true. Repetition makes statements easier to process relative to new, unrepeated statements, leading people to believe that the repeated conclusion is more truthful. (Thanks to Wikipedia.org)
Having said that I’m not immune to the strange attraction of some theories even though my inbuilt BS detector warns me not to be gullible. In a way we are bombarded with conspiracy theories on a daily basis. There is so much duff information out there which is swallowed eagerly by younger, more innocent and less experienced people who harvest huge amounts of information and through a variety of social media help to spread it like a virus. Many older and wiser people also spread the same news as if it was legitimate, authorised or verifiable. So is this just more paranoia and on what grounds would people think that we Bessler researchers are risking our lives by continuing our research?
The favourite bad guy is ‘Big Oil’ and allied political groups, MIBs what or whoever they are, and others with their own axe to grind. There are those who deny global warming and others who accept it but deny human responsibility, blaming it on natural cyclical causes. Too many to list here but I think that some are following an agenda with the ultimate aim of stopping our kind of research because it will impact on the value of their own interests and therefore they welcome these conspiracy groups which are self generating and popular with certain groups.
Not forgetting those who genuinely believe that we in this area of research are delusional, misled or incapable of understanding that Bessler was a fake and the whole project is doomed to failure. I suppose they can’t be called conspiracists but their effect is similar to those who are, and of course they believe they’re correct due to the illusory truth effect!
I’m certain that the ramifications of a modern version of Bessler’s wheel will include reviews of investment in most if not all alternative energy research. It will call into question the true value of windmill electricity generators, whether on land or offshore, and this will be challenged by groups with a personal interest in such industries. I found a paper published by one industrial giant which stated that “the European Union has committed to cut greenhouse gas emission by 55% by 2030 in order to reach climate neutrality in 2050. It has been widely recognised that electricity will be the backbone of the energy system when it comes to a clean energy transition. Renewables, led by wind and solar, will play a central role in the shift from fossil-based power generation, with evolving energy carriers like hydrogen complementing direct electrification and helping to address harder-to abate sectors.” You can’t blame them, they have a huge investment in this industry and see their future reliant on the options available to them at this time, i.e., no realistic chance of Bessler’s wheel making an appearance any time soon, but if and when it does appear they are not going to take it lying down. Their best way forward would be to invest in researching ways to use it, and they might just do that. This could be replicated around the world.
My suggestion to those who warn against publishing details about Bessler’s wheel assuming they’ve succeeded in building a working model is you should flood the media with precise details of the construction. Use the same methods as the conspiracists and the news will spread faster than the most potent media virus. This way the details will proliferate in a world with multiple interactive communications and become unstoppable.
JC
Sunday, 5 June 2022
Johann Bessler’s Build Issues
What follows is mostly speculation and not to be treated as fact although hopefully my suggestions are logical.
Research into Bessler’s Wheel tends to be concentrated on trying to discover how he invented a device which could lift heavy weights and run continuously for more than a month, but what of the accompanying issues he had to overcome in the process?
The ceilings in Kassel where he exhibited his last and largest device were about twelve feet high, so he needed a ten foot step ladder to fix the eight sets of bolts into the ceiling, to hold the two sets of four pillars supporting the wheel. William Kenrick described seeing the remains of the bolts still attached to the ceiling on a visit he made a few years after Bessler had left. Translocating the wheel a few steps between each set of wheel supports might have required a pair of platforms extending from under the first set of bearings to a similar position under the second. With the axle being about six feet above the floor Bessler and his cousin would need something to raise their shoulders high enough to lift it enough to drop it into the next bearing set. The platforms could have provided this assistance.
They could have left the platforms in position which would have allowed visitors easy access to examine the bearings and although no mention of such furniture was made, several written comments describe the intensive examination of the bearings which were frequently carried out. Access to the bearings could have been enabled by a platform and it is possible that the platforms could have been movable to allow a view of the whole wheel rotating, and we know that Fischer von Erlach spent about two hours examining the wheel and listening to the sounds coming from it. Removal of any platform would seem necessary to allow him to be close enough. Or a simple ladder could have been provided but examination of the bearings while the wheel revolved might necessitate the presence of the platforms.
The axle was six feet long and the wheel eighteen inches wide, leaving four and half feet clear but there had to be three or four inches on each end to accommodate the pillars and their bearing shells. So about two feet clearance for each man to lift his end of the axle. So other means of lifting might include a kind of wheel barrow with some suitable construction to fit under the axle, or perhaps each man simply lifted the wheel onto his shoulders via a padded yoke of some kind.
Translocation of the wheel to a separate set of bearings and supporting pillars was suggested by Gottfried Leibniz during their two meetings, and it was designed to allow the close examination of the bearings which were left uncovered during the examinations.
There had to be access to a large window, or two would be better; one to enable the rope to pass through to the outside pulley and down to the courtyard below, and a second or third one to allow the examiners and other spectators to see the lifting of the heavy weight. There also had to be room for several people all there to witness the spectacle, but allowing Bessler a private space to remove and replace a number of weights during translocation.
Actual construction of the wheel could have been managed in position on the axle which had already been fitted in place on the pillars, otherwise it would have to be lifted onto the bearings during or after the wheel’s build had been completed.
I don’t know how all his build issues were dealt with but Bessler only had one assistant sometimes referred to as his ‘his blue-apron apprentice’, also as his cousin. In Freemasonry a candidate is given a blue apron to signify that he has progressed to the second degree after the initial white lambskin one, meaning he has learned more of his chosen apprenticeship. Although it’s tempting to think that Bessler’s assistant knew how the wheel worked, I doubt it. Bessler displayed such concern over that ‘secret’ and only ever shared it reluctantly with Karl the Landgrave who insisted on personal verification that the machine was genuine before he agreed to allowing the inventor to exhibit it in his castle Weissenstein at Kassel.
The assistant was necessary to help with translocating the wheel and perhaps with lifting some parts of the build, but even if it was his younger brother Gottfried, I still think it extremely unlikely that Bessler would have allowed any information about the actual ‘secret’ to have been shared deliberately or accidentally.
Despite the difficulties Bessler managed to overcome them and provided an excellent exhibition of his machine which lasted over ten years. It is so frustrating that given the large numbers of people who must have examined his machine minutely over the years no one was able to complete the purchase of one of the most amazing inventions ever to be seen. The one man who was prepared to buy Bessler’s wheel, Peter the Great, Czar of Russia, died on his way to see it.
JC
Wednesday, 25 May 2022
Johann Bessler’s Gravity-Enabled Electricity Generator 24/7
On 6th June, 1712, in Germany, Johann Bessler (also known by his pseudonym, Orffyreus) announced that after many years of failure, he had succeeded in designing and building a perpetual motion machine. For more than fourteen years he exhibited his machine and allowed people to thoroughly examine it. Following advice from the famous scientist, Gottfried Leibniz, who was able to observe the device on two occasions, he devised a number of demonstrations and tests designed to prove the validity of his machine without giving away the secret of its design.
Tuesday, 17 May 2022
Bessler’s Clues Here and on Besslerwheel forum
I’ve decided to go back to my original plan which was to share everything I’ve discovered and know, or believe about Bessler’s wheel. It has proved difficult to make my new workshop available in the near future and now I have finally decided not to attempt to build a working model. This was a difficult decision to make, but if it leads to someone finally succeeding by producing a working version based on what I have shared then it will have been worthwhile.
I shall post more or less the same text and illustrations on both mediums, and hope to finish up with a description of the prime mover in Bessler’s wheel, on 6th June 2022.
JC
Saturday, 14 May 2022
Why did Bessler Use Embedded Codes?
It seems clear enough that Bessler had always intended to insert coded information embedded within his publications, because by applying a simple code to his name, Orffyre in place of Bessler, he draws our attention like a magnet to see what else is to be found. He adopted his pseudonym immediately he began to exhibit his first wheel at Gera, and we can infer that he was following a carefully thought out plan of action. Even his first publication Grundlicher Bericht contains a number of ciphers, and a large variety of codes becomes apparent in his subsequent publication Apologia Poetica. Even his last and most impressive work, Das Triumphirende follows the same trajectory, containing a number of pieces information veiled in innocent looking text.
So the question is, why? What reason prompted him to spend what must have occupied his mind for many hours, presumably also at the same times as working on his wheels? He was certainly fascinated by ciphers of all kind, having been taught about them by the Jesuit priest and the Rabbi he met in Prague. I have argued that the information was embedded in all his publications in case he was forced to prove his priority in designing a perpetual motion machine, but this would not be necessary if he had sold his machine and he certainly expected to do so. If, as happened, he didn’t sell it, perhaps he needed the proof of his precedence if someone else demonstrated the secret before he had acquired a buyer. Even then what possible benefit to him would that be? Ultimately he hinted that he would prefer to die without selling it than give it away while he still lived.
He sought fame and fortune, and some might suggest that perhaps the fortune part was not as important as the fame, but I don’t think so. The sum of money he asked for was huge. He wanted acknowledgement of his discovery and even if someone else won the prize, Bessler could still prove he was first in the search for a successful perpetual motion machine. But he must have had a plan to provide the means of either deciphering his clues and codes, or publishing a full explanation showing how to unravel them. Yet the codes and ciphers are so obscure as to practically defeat the efforts of most people, so we are left with the same question - why?
I think that the whole field of codes, ciphers, secret messages, chronograms, alphabetic substitutions, alphanumerics etc, absolutely fascinated him and he was an inveterate showman, performer and egotist. Perhaps he looked forward to explaining to his future rapt audience how he cleverly hid all the information needed to build his machine, under the very eyes of those who sought out his secret.
JC
Friday, 6 May 2022
Shouldn’t Observation Support Theory?
Bear with me in what follows it has a point to it. Empiricism seems to comes second to the current paradigm. It shouldn’t do but that’s the way it usually ends up. Empiricism is the belief that all knowledge is based on real experience derived from observation or experimentation rather than theory. This thinking was stimulated by the rise of experimental science, which developed in the 17th and 18th centuries. But as time passed and presumptions flowed from the original experience, unsupported assumptions occasionally diverted from the observed facts and errors swayed the latest beliefs.
I was reading an article on a website dedicated to the history of archaeology, and I was interested to note that during the 19th and 20th century there were numerous finds of early man-made tools. The archaeologists involved included both professional and amateur scientists. They published literally hundreds of papers in all the most respected archaeological journals of their time and they are still available. These finds number in the thousands. The articles were peer reviewed and the dating of the finds were, in the majority accepted. But guess what? At some point in the last century a huge number of those finds were either described as fraudulent or mistaken.
The reason for this volt-face was that in almost every case that was rejected, the date assigned to the substratum in which the tools were found along with the remains of apparently modern human bones, was said to be too early for them to have been genuine man-made tools - therefore their findings have been dismissed. This did not fit in with the paradigm accepted throughout the world of archaeology that modern man could not have existed so long ago therefore the finds were fake or mistaken.
The article was written by a highly respected and knowledgeable expert on prehistoric man-made tools and, using the latest scientific methods to re-examine a number of these tools which lie in dusty cupboards in many museums around the world, he declared the finds genuine and argued that the current paradigm was wrong and modern humans had existed many thousands of years longer than the current archaeological system allows.
The reason I have mentioned this, reminds me of our own case. The archaeologists rejected those early findings because they didn’t agree with what they had been taught. Modern science rejects our finding because doesn’t fit in with what we have been taught. We believe that the evidence that Johann Bessler’s perpetual motion was genuine and there is excellent evidence in the form of direct observation supporting this conclusion, but this evidence was dismissed because it didn’t fit within the current belief both then and now.
JC
Friday, 29 April 2022
The True Story of Johann 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 succeeded in designing and building a perpetual motion machine. For more than fourteen years he exhibited his machine and allowed people to thoroughly examine it. Following advice from the famous scientist, Gottfried Leibniz, who was able to examine the device, he devised a number of demonstrations and tests designed to prove the validity of his machine without giving away the secret of its design.
Sunday, 24 April 2022
Amy Pohl, my Amazing Granddaughter’s got 2 Million Followers!
My apologies for inserting this item into my blog, but I’m so proud of my granddaughter, I couldn’t resist. Normal service will be returned as quickly possible
Following over two years of trauma caused by the insertion of a dirty cannula at a large teaching hospital, Amy suffered from Complex Regional Pain Syndrome, which subsequently developed into complete paralysis of the lower body, this is known as Functional Neurological Disorder.
She has fought through PTSD and other mental disorders and despite it all she has become an inspiration to thousands of people around the world.
On TikTok she has over 2 million followers, but the numbers on YouTube are mounting faster and will overtake TikTok
You can see her account of her life to date on YouTube.
Just put amy e pohl into google and YouTube and follow the links.
Also on Facebook, TikTok and Instagram.
NB She has Seven year old Hungarian Vizsla called ……..Bessler! Amy named after Johann Bessler because she believes that I’m right about him.
JC
UPDATE - Moving House Next Week - Workshop in Action ASAP!
We left our previous house 13 months ago thinking we could find our ideal house quickly and be able to strike a good deal as we didn’t have a house to sell. Oops! Almost immediately the number of desirable houses available slumped. We had moved in with my daughter thinking it would only take a couple of months before we completed our purchase and moved in - how wrong we were, 13 months! Covid more or less closed the market down, but at last we’ve secured somewhere we like.
I’ve had no workshop in all this time and it has been sooooo frustrating! But as soon as we’ve moved in, unpacked etc, I’ll be able to get back to work, building what I think will be the solution to Bessler’s wheel. As you all know I’ve been here before, more than once, but optimism is a vital ingredient in this game, and as long as I remain convinced that Johann Bessler’s claims to have built what he reluctantly termed a perpetual motion machine, were genuine, then I see little chance of ever giving up trying to find the solution.
I think this will work, but if it doesn’t I’m sure it will come closer than I’ve ever got before. I’m not going to say anymore about the design until I’ve tested it, but I don’t want to leave my work on this unpublished because we don’t know what lies around the corner and I can’t risk keeping it all to myself any longer. The explanations I’ve got are being written and will be published as soon as testing has been finished, working or not. That way at least, if I can’t finish it, someone else will have the opportunity to use my work to complete the project.
JC
Monday, 18 April 2022
Is This the Perfect Storm for Bessler’s Wheel?
It’s a curious situation we find ourselves in, we who believe that Johann Bessler did actually build a machine which ran continuously with no input of energy from the traditional sources. It sometimes feels as if we are promoting some kind of New Age religion; we are it’s disciples and the rest of the world are non-believers! It isn’t the same though because religion relies on faith without evidence, without reason or intellect. We, however, have evidence which we accept despite the mountain of scepticism we have to defend against. We seek to prove our evidence is legitimate, and so dispel the accusations of blind faith. Religion can never prove it’s legitimacy until we’ve passed on from this life, but I hope that one of us will provide the unassailable evidence that Bessler’s claims were genuine, preferably sooner rather than later.
We are facing what could be regarded as a perfect storm, to use a popular expression, on the contrary, this is probably the best possible time in history for Johann Bessler’s perpetual motion machine to make it’s second and final appearance.
It began with the concerns that the earth was running out of accessible crude oil and that we were burning it at an unsustainable rate. Then the climatologist jumped onto the bandwagon, declaiming the greenhouse effect, global warming and pollution. Then we had the plague, or covid. It’s beginning to sound a bit like the ten plagues of Egypt, caused by Pharaoh’s refusal to let the Israelites go free. This plague caused a global recession, and then when we had just about had enough, Vladimir Putin, decided to make war on his neighbour, which rapidly involved the rest of the world, leading to more deaths, more mass-migration and more starvation…….and the price of gas has rocketed upwards, perhaps we need an alternative?
This might seem as if that mysterious ‘guiding hand’ I once mentioned here a while ago, is at work. But is it overpopulation or pollution or some other endgame which we are being steered towards? When I was about 26 years of age, I had a serious car accident which could have killed me or maimed me, but from which I walked away with nothing but a brief period of unconsciousness. Upon my return to normal life, I experienced a feeling of intense exultation, optimism and the absolute certainty that I was destined to do something of great importance. I have tried to rationalise this feeling, putting it down to my amazement at having survived without serious injury, let alone death. It was this event that got me researching the life of Bessler some ten years after my first encounter with him. This revelation has stayed with me throughout all my years; true, it hasn’t morphed into anything of substantial value yet, although I’m always hopeful that Bessler’s wheel will indeed make its triumphant appearance one of these days.
It would seem as though Bessler’s invention came more than 300 years to soon. We had to go through the steam age, then the crude oil age, the nuclear age, the solar/wind ages before the time was ripe for Bessler’s wheel - that guiding hand again?
I don’t actually believe in a guiding hand, it’s just the way things happen, the easy route is usually the one that wins. We humans have an inherent ability to see patterns where none exist, draw conclusions on them, but mostly they are coincidences. Is Bessler’s machine the easiest route available to solve so many problems now? I reckon so.
I’m adding a link to a very important video which was sent in a comment below by Yuri. Please take a look.
JC
Thursday, 14 April 2022
Johann Bessler’s Various Perpetual Motion Machines
There is a curious consistency about all four of Johann Bessler’s wheels, which is interesting and leads one to certain speculations about them. The details which follow are all taken from www.orffyre.com. This website is run by an old friend and correspondent of mine dating back to our earliest research days, and his information is accurate to date. From the afore-mentioned website:
(Bessler used the Leipzeg ell in his measurements - 1 ell = 22.3 inches
First wheel - Gera
Diameter = 4.6 feet
Thickness = about 4 inches
Speed = over 50 RPM unloaded
Rotation = uni-directional, required restraint when not in use
Axle = unknown
Sound = unknown
Power = unknown
* size in ell units: reported diameter = 2.5 ell = 4.6 feet; reported thickness = 4 Leipzeg inches = 3.7 inches *
Second wheel - Draschwitz
Diameter = 9.3 feet
Thickness = 6 inches
Speed = over 50 RPM unloaded
Rotation = uni-directional, required restraint when not in use
Axle = 6 inches diameter (probable diameter = 1/4 ell = 5.6 inches)
Sound = loud noise
Power = unknown
* size in ell units: reported diameter = 5 ell = 9.3 feet; probable thickness = 1/4 ell = 5.6 inches *
Third wheel - Merseburg
Diameter = 12 feet
Thickness = 11.15 inches
Speed = 40 RPM or more
Rotation = dual-directional, required gentle push start in either direction
Axle = 6 inches diameter (probable diameter = 1/4 ell = 5.6 inches)
Sound = banging noise at descending side of wheel
Power = estimates range from 20 Watts to 100 Watts
* size in ell units: reported diameter = 6 ells = 12 feet; reported thickness = 1/2 ell = 11.15 inches *
Fourth wheel - Kassel (Weissenstein Castle)
Diameter = 12 feet
Thickness = 18 inches
Speed = 26 RPM unloaded - 20 RPM under water screw load
Rotation = dual-directional, required gentle push start in either direction
Axle = 8 inches diameter (probable diameter = 1/3 ell = 7.4 inches)
Sound = about 8 bangs per revolution at descending side of wheel
Power = estimates range from 25 Watts to 125 Watts
* size in ell units: reported diameter = 6 ells = 12 feet; probable thickness = 3/4 ell = 16.7 inches
Bessler's apparent use of the Leipzig ell suggests he probably built his wheels to whole ell units and simple fractions thereof. The above diagram shows feet and inches derived from Leipzig ell conversions as listed in the data above.)
Ok, this me! The first thing to notice is that the first three wheels turned at a speed close to 50 rpm. Given the difference in the sizes of all three devices we might have expected a larger variation in their output. The fourth wheel, the Kassel wheel, the largest one tested, only rotated at 26 rpm, but given that it was designed to undergo an endurance test of several weeks, it would be surprising if Bessler had not designed it to turn at approximately half the speed of the others.
It seems likely that he increased the thickness of the wheel to compensate for the reduced weight-lifting capacity caused no doubt by reducing the speed or the actions of the internal mechanisms, thus slowing its rotation. Although we know little about the interior of the machines we can speculate on what alterations he might have made to the mechanisms within the fourth wheel, (the Kassel wheel) compared to those earlier ones to make turn more slowly.
In the most basic terms, we know that there were weights which must have moved about relative to the axle, and they had to be able to move from one place to another, and then return within one rotation. There seem to be limited potential variables, and I ruled out alterations in the mass of the weights. This leaves only a variation in the number of weights, and the distance they can move.
Again if we take into consideration the common rotational speed between the first three wheels, (Gera, Draschwitz and Merseburg) we might speculate that although the distances the weights moved might vary from wheel to wheel, perhaps their effect was controlled by the amount of torque each one could produce, and regardless of weight and mechanism size, perhaps no variation could occur, other than a reduction in top speed due to friction or work.
The first two wheels (Gera and Draschwitz) would begin to spin spontaneously as soon as a brake was released. We can infer that they were both in a state of permanent imbalance. I ignore suggestions that the wheel was stopped in a certain position in order to provide this effect. Besides Bessler stating that they had to be locked to stop them continuing to rotate, there is plenty of evidence from onlookers that he spoke the truth.
The second two wheels (Merseburg and Kassel) did not have this feature, but would begin to spin after being given a gentle nudge in the desired direction. They were capable of being started in either direction from which point they accelerated to their top speed. Clearly their two-way capacity led the two directions being balanced when stationary. This leads us to another question. If the first two wheels could attain a speed close 50 rpm, it seems surprising that the third wheel (Merseburg) also achieved the same speed in either direction. We can leave aside for the moment, the slow-turning Kassel wheel because we know it was designed to be slow.
One might think, as I did, that the two-way wheels had a second set of mechanisms designed to turn in the opposite direction, which allowed the wheel to be turned either way, but that might seem to create resistance in one mechanism being turned the wrong way which would either prevent the wheel turning, or lead to it turning more slowly. This apparently did not happen because the two-way Merseburg wheel was able to match the speed of the earlier one-way wheels. If a duplicate, but mirror image mechanism was installed within the Merseburg wheel, it was twice the thickness of the second wheel which would probably provide enough space for a double mechanism.
Given this problem perhaps he had found another way to allow just one set of mechanisms to cause rotation in either direction, this would have been the ideal solution, it would have simplified things. But we cannot work out how he might have done this until we know how his one way wheel worked.
So what is it that seemed to allow the first three wheels to reach around 50 rpm? Well we do know that several witnesses remarked on the great regularity of all the wheel’s evenness of rotation. There was no jerkiness nor bumpiness in each rotation. I presume there would be a limit to how fast the weights could move and this could be a limiting factor, regardless of size of any internal mechanisms. This could possibly be improved in these modern times, not just by reducing friction but by improving the configuration of the each mechanism. It would be a curious feat if one could improve the speed up-to 60rpm, measuring exactly one minute.
A single second was, historically, established by calculating the time it takes for the Earth to rotate once about its axis and dividing the time by the 86,400 seconds in each solar day, (60 x 60 x 24 = 86,400). Of course we have a much more precise method now, but in 1656, Dutch scientist Christiaan Huygens invented the first pendulum clock. It had a pendulum length of just under a meter which gave it a swing of one second, and an escapement that ticked every second. It was the first clock that could accurately keep time in seconds. By the 1730s, 80 years later, John Harrison's maritime chronometers could keep time accurate to within one second in 100 days.
But, if Christian Huygens pendulum clock had a pendulum length of just under a meter which gave it a swing of one second (39.27 inches), might that give us a hint at the length of levers in Bessler’s clock? Were they also just under a meter in length to time the wheel to close the 60 rpm? Allowing for friction that might have slowed the rotation to what it actually was.
I suspect that Bessler’s weighted levers had a much longer swing than Huygens’ 6 degree swing because it was generating force rather than measuring minutes, but given the work they did, they moved more slowly than any clock pendulum, so being close to 60 rpm may or may not be just coincidental.
JC
Thursday, 7 April 2022
Johann Bessler and a Few Coincidences?
There seem to be some related features within Bessler’s documents which may be coincidental, or not - so I have tried to draw conclusions from them by assuming that they are deliberate. I’m sure some will disagree but I think it worth pointing them out, just in case they were intended to catch our eye for some reason.
It’s sometimes easy to see things as coincidences rather than intentional occurrences. For instance I like the fact that Bessler stresses the importance of the number 5, and 55. My birthday is on the 5th day of month 2, obviously a coincidence, how could it be otherwise? I was born in 1945, Bessler died in 1745 just another coincidence. There is one more example which I’ll mention later.
The document I have always referred to as the “Toys” page is numbered MT 138, 139, 140 and 141. This is logical as it follows MT 137. There are actually five drawings on the page lettered A B C D and E plus what appears to be a late addition of a hand drawn figure with the number 5 adjacent. So we appear to have four pages, apparently with five drawings labelled with letters plus one more number 5.
At first sight I believed the intention was to show that this page was intended to replace four others, destroyed or buried, after his arrest. But this assumes that either he was charged but not imprisoned otherwise he might not have had time to prepare for searches or confiscation of his documents, so the charges he was accused of made him hurry to take precautions against such actions against him. This is possible, but why would he need to remind himself of four pages buried or destroyed?
The total of 141 is interesting. It seems as though he wanted to get to that number and not beyond, but numbering the ‘Toys’ page 138 would seem to have been good enough. 141 is not a prime number and it’s only factors are 3 times 47. If we turn to MT 47 we discover that inserted within the drawing which is numbered 47, another number 47, twice in fact because one is the mirror image of the other so there are three number 47s present on the page. Is this a pointer to the number 141 or the reverse or is it just a coincidence?
Bessler’s ‘Declaration of Faith’ which appears in his “Apologia Poetica” chapter 55, contains numerous Bible references, 141 to be precise. So if we assume the same link as before, what is the relevance of the number 47? The first thing which occurred to me was Euclid’s 47th proposition. Was Bessler drawing attention to it for some reason.
“In any right triangle, the sum of the squares of the two sides is equal to the square of the hypotenuse.” It’s also a 3, 4, 5 triangle, see below. I’m sure I needn’t go into any detail about this, but the figure also relates to the Freemasons symbol as you can see further below. Maybe this was the connection he sought to hint at.
This particular one includes the year.........2019! He also wrote them for 1519, 1619, 1719, 1819 and 1919. But why 2019 and why did he stop,there? It could have been the year his solution was discovered - what a coincidence that would have been. If it had, everyone would have believed that Bessler had somehow predicted the future, but it didn’t happen, and if it had, it would still be just a coincidence.
Thursday, 31 March 2022
Some Thoughts Worth Considering in Designing a Gravity Wheel
Monday, 28 March 2022
My Way Works for Me, I Hope! Maybe It Will Work for You?
I’ve mentioned this before, but anyway here I go again!
There is so much talk about doing the maths, vector dynamics, velocity and acceleration analysis, gravitation and orbital mechanics, geometry etc (apologies to Tim for borrowing his words, but it supported my point perfectly). Surely you can work out if it might have potential by sketching it out on paper, draw in the various weight positions, and if it still looks possible do what I suggest next. There is too much speculation about the maths in my opinion. I can visualise a mechanism and watch it turn, and I’m sure lots of people in this field can do so too.
Surely anyone can test a theoretical design with cheap materials. Cardboard, card, lolly sticks, straws, cotton thread, brass split-pins, fishing weights, washers, nuts and bolts. Threaded rods or bolts. Old second hand Meccano sets even if they are missing most their original content are still a good source of pulleys etc. These are the things I use and have done so for many years, much of it recycled from one design to another. I used to make my prototypes out of good quality materials, but subsequently, I always kept in mind that this first model was for my eyes only, just to prove the design to myself. A more attractive construction would follow my first successful build.
There are some people who are so focussed on reducing friction to a minimum that I think they’ve for gotten that Bessler’s wheel did work, lifting 70 pound chests, turning an Archimedes pump, not to mention running for several weeks. Why worry about friction at all, if it works, refining everything can be done afterwards when it works.
There are others who spend inordinate amounts of time and money, producing beautiful mechanisms that are a joy to behold, yet still remain as motionless as a statue.
Many people seek to solve Bessler’s wheel by trying to jump straight to the bi-directional wheel, which Bessler admitted gave him problems initially. I’ve always concentrated on trying to duplicate the one way wheel first. It is clearly the simpler of the two options.
Now of course I know that time after time I’ve been told that simulations are the way to go and I’m sure that’s true, but firstly I’m too old to learn how to use this kind of software, but more importantly I enjoy building models. I find that I can learn more from building than looking at designs, whether on paper or in a video, and a few months ago I learned something I believe to be crucial to Bessler’s design simply because I was holding a piece of mechanism and just handling it, watching it operating my hands.
But I know sims are popular and even though I doubt I can understand it all, and actually I’m so busy that I have little time to learn about them, if I get a working model I have contacts who I’m sure would be happy make a sim of my wheel in action. I’m not convinced of their necessity given the success of a physical build, but I will bow to the consensus opinion, if I’m successful.
JC
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