Clockwork cannot store energy

Are clockwork toys any good?

Clockwork toys aren't anything like as well made (or as impressive) and if you get more than a minute or two's entertainment for your thirty seconds or so of winding you're doing well. Generally, more interesting clockwork devices that run for longer have bigger and sturdier springs capable of storing much more energy.

How does a clockwork toy work?

Photo: The mainspring from a clockwork toy. When you wind up the toy, you compress the spring into a much tighter space to store energy that's released when the toy starts to move. Open up a ballpoint pen (one of the ones with a button you click to retract the ball) and you'll find a spring inside.

What does a clockwork machine do?

A set of gears through which the spring's energy is released. The gears control how quickly (or slowly) a clockwork machine can do things, but they also control how much force it can produce (for climbing inclines, perhaps). A mechanism the gears drive that makes the device do useful or interesting things.

How does a wind-up clock work?

Then the force of the mainspring turns the clockwork gears, until the stored energy is used up. The adjectives wind-up and spring-powered refer to mainspring-powered clockwork devices, which include clocks and watches, kitchen timers, music boxes, and wind-up toys.

Are windup clocks a good idea?

Windup clocks and watches are designed to have springs that will store enough energy to keep the mechanism working for a day or more. Clockwork toys aren't anything like as well made (or as impressive) and if you get more than a minute or two's entertainment for your thirty seconds or so of winding you're doing well.

What happens if you wind up a clockwork car?

If you wind up a clockwork car as much as you can, then let the key go, without putting the car on the ground, you'll hear the gears inside the mechanism screech and squeal as the spring releases its energy amazingly quickly.