Repairing the Kenko Equatorial Mount Fixed Clutch Lever

While observing the Sun with my students, the clutch lever on the equatorial mount broke.

They said they were just turning it when it snapped.

It probably couldn’t withstand the accumulated shocks over many years.

The mount’s brand was Kenko.

But no matter how much I searched, I couldn’t find the lever sold separately.

So I decided to create one with 3D modeling.

First, I disassembled the lever.

The internal structure is somewhat unique; I think the rectangular part was designed so it would fit no matter how you insert it.

But we don’t really need this kind of structure.

Just embedding a single rectangle in the middle is enough.

Since we can’t expect the same strength from plastic as from metal, I made the shape a bit bulkier.

If there are overhanging sections, the print quality drops, so I just made the bottom surface flat.

I tried fitting it onto the equatorial mount.

It went in tightly, but the slight elasticity of the plastic seemed to help in this case.

And once you just tighten it with a screw, that’s it!

I recessed it slightly inside to account for the pan head, and that part fit perfectly too, which felt satisfying.

From now on, it won’t really matter even if it breaks a few more times.

It’s still amazing that just having a 3D printer lets you go from being a consumer to being a producer.

I should keep practicing modeling consistently from now on.