How to simulate a grandfather clock with Claude Code
Mete used Claude Code to write a clock-specific design generator and interactive simulation. Its checks found a weight-pendulum collision after roughly five days of simulated running, prompting a clearance search. No physical clock was built.
reddit.com
Suggested prompt
Suggested prompt written by Agents In Use, not the source author. Replace bracketed inputs and review tool permissions first.
Build a [mechanism]-specific design generator using [templates and verified references]. Separate fixed human choices from searched parameters. Simulate [movement and loads], then test clashes, support and visibility against known failing examples. Report failures in the checks themselves. Deliver an interactive artifact and list simplifications, uncertain inputs and physical tests still required. Do not claim simulated accuracy is measured hardware performance.
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Sourced account- Source poster / publisher
- u/tanhumete
- Original account
- Read the source ↗
- Published
- Source link checked
- Reported result
- Mete reports an interactive clock simulation and a generator whose checks found a weight-pendulum collision after roughly five simulated days. A revised position retains 10 millimetres of clearance. The clock has not been built physically, and its reported accuracy is a simplified simulation result.
- Human involvement
- Mete chose the gear train, controlled design and taste, inspected visible faults, specified expected check failures and tested old versions. The author acknowledges weakly sourced inputs, simplified physics and limitations in the checks.
A linked account supports attribution. It does not mean we independently reproduced its result.
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How the agent did it
- Mete worked with Claude Code on templates, horology formulas and a clock-specific generator.
- The generator searched exact gear ratios and layouts, and Mete selected a gear train.
- Mete inspected the design and recorded expected failures before testing new checks on the old version.
Mete, posting as tanhumete, spent an evening working with Claude Code on an interactive grandfather clock. The result was a clock-specific generator that searched numerical designs, simulated mechanisms and checked layouts. Claude supplied horology knowledge, formulas and most of the code. Mete made design decisions and wrote templates with the agent.
The generator found 950 exact gear-train solutions and 7,230 clash-free layouts, according to the account. Mete selected a gear train, while the program chose the layout with the smallest plates. Case dimensions followed the pendulum swing and weight travel. The visual styles were hand-written data, not autonomous inventions.
Visual inspection kept revealing faults, so they added checks for clashes, support, visibility and coplanar faces. Mete recorded expected failures and tested the checks against the old version. The first run exposed four bugs in the checks themselves. A clearance check also found a collision that screenshots had missed: after about 0.6 metres of travel, the weight would hit the pendulum bob. The generator then searched the pendulum position while retaining 10 millimetres of clearance.
The source links an interactive artifact, but these remain simulated results. The reported escapement accuracy excludes temperature, oil and wear. Some inputs and margins lack strong sources, and no metal clock exists. This workflow suits people exploring procedural mechanical designs who can inspect the outputs and test the checks rather than treating an attractive simulation as proof of manufacturability.
Prompt
Suggested prompt (written by Agents In Use, not the author's)
Source: Reddit · u/tanhumete
Frequently asked questions
Was the clock physically built or its accuracy measured?
No. The author explicitly says it has not been built in metal. The escapement result comes from a simplified simulation that omits temperature, oil and wear.
What did the automated clearance check find?
It found that the falling weight would hit the pendulum bob after about 0.6 metres, around day five. The generator then searched the pendulum position while keeping 10 millimetres clear.
More details
Remaining steps
- The clearance check found a weight-pendulum collision, and the generator searched a revised pendulum position.
- The author shared an interactive simulation and explicitly separated its predictions from physical performance.
About this account
Claude Code supplied knowledge, formulas and most of the code across a multi-step build. The resulting program searched parameters, simulated mechanisms and checked layouts. Those deterministic calculations are distinct from the agent's substantive coding work.
Firsthand account by u/tanhumete: https://www.reddit.com/r/ClaudeCode/comments/1x8ml3l/one_evening_with_claude_code_a_grandfather_clock/. Full public RSS post and returned comments captured on 18 October 2026. Body eligibility passed at 0.94. Outcomes are author-reported, not independently reproduced. Suggested prompt by Agents In Use, not the author's original prompt.
Credit: u/tanhumete on Reddit
Source published
Added to Agents In Use
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Tools and topics
Claude Code · Opus 5.5 · clock-specific design generator · interactive 3D artifact
mechanical design · simulation · procedural generation · validation
Editorial completeness: 100/100. Measures documented fields, not agent performance or verified outcomes.