Seth Thomas Clock

[Neighmond]

I had a conversation with a guy that fixed clocks , he pointed out that wind up clocks will run faster when fully wound as they have more force but that weakens as they unwind. whereas the ones with counterweights have a more constant "push" as the pressure from the weights doesn't change.

Kinda sorta. With the primitive old verge escapement, consistant power was a definite must have because the escapement had so much internal friction and the pendulum or balance wheel had to take a wide arc simply to unlock reliably. It was so much a problem that a cone shaped pulley with a chain called the fuzee was put into play to equalize power delivery to the point that the poor old verge escapement could use it. The clocks produced since about 1820 use either the recoil or the Graham escapement that are very forgiving of power varience, both because of comparativly deeper locks and shallower impulse and because circular error tends to even out the action of the escapement.

[phil]

I guess it was somethign they were able to engineer their way around. I have one that is a ships clock , used in conjunction with other apparatus to act as a nautical speedometer so I guess it's accurate and it is a wind up. I've wound it a few times but others complain of the ticking lol.. it has a loud ticker..

I've been into these Westinghouse Columairs. I have two Westinghouse WR8 in wait that are the same as the attached article, and one that I completed restoration of although its just a little incorrect because I had to use a few different radios to get enough parts. My restored one looks like this:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3008/302 ... d9aacd.jpg

this one is the WR8, there were several models all around 1929

https://retrovoltage.com/2013/07/15/193 ... ock-radio/

I've got a few others that are radios and clocks from this era but of course clocks go back way before radio was invented. The ones I have shown here don't start on their own. You have to open the dial face and give click a little part with the tip of a pencil to give them a push because that auto start mechanism was patented.
In days of multiple power outages they marked when the power went off, while others made near that time would restart and show a red flag to indicate that they were interrupted.

there were a few Columair radios that even had a wireless remote control but they are even more rare and I have never seen one in person.

I have one of these Philco clocks. it was designed to turn on a radio in the morning
http://www.tuberadioland.com/PhilcoMode ... _main.html

I have one like this Philco too. It is a clock and radio. I am missing the finials
https://www.radiolaguy.com/Showcase/Woo ... lco_51.htm

here is a philco of the grandfather clock type I don't have this one
https://www.antiquesnavigator.com/d-433 ... works.html

here is an early seth thomas "digital clock" I have one very similar but not sure if mine is that make..
https://www.google.com/search?client=fi ... P5MRhrbb2M:

they are all fun to collect. I am into radios not clocks but sometimes it's hard to resist their charm. Much like radios, clocks require people with the right tools who know how to fix them and they are in depleting supply so it is a cool thing to learn as you can be the only kid on the block that knows much about them;-)

[Neighmond]

Early electric, both synchronous and self winding are quite a study in their own way! I love the earliest ibm self winding master clocks.

[phil]

someone brought one IBM clock to our radio club. I could have had it. I think he said requires a pulse but it wouldn't be hard to provide that maybe with an IC chip. it looked like something you'd see in a school. I think there might have been a master controller that provided the pulse and they could change the time on all of them simultaneously for daylight savings etc.
the electric clocks we grew up with as kids were so reliable. they always sounded worn out and yet they would keep moving. I know they aren't super collectable but for some reason I am just drawn to them. I think it actually made more sense than batteries. Working on mechanical clocks requires patience with teeny parts and I think that as we move forward there aren't a lot of people with the sort of patience required.

I remember a story of my dad's.. His dad had a mechanical clock that wouldn't run. he had no patience for such things so he put it in a pot and boiled it. I guess that was enough to get it unstuck and evidently it worked well after.

[Manalto]

Wow! Of all the options that I could think of for getting a mechanical clock running again, I don't know that boiling in a pot (of water?) would ever occur to me.

[Neighmond]

IBM slave clocks usually used 24 volts direct current to run the relay. A minute pulse of two seconds is enough to make it advance.

[phil]

my kitchen had a recessed plug for a clock since original. You can still buy them. the difference is that it has a hook to hang the clock, and a recessed two prong outlet. This plug can be on the same circuit as your fridge and it is the only thing that can share the circuit. Its the only one I re-used during my re-wire. One day Ill find just the right kitchen clock and then I won't need to keep changing batteries.
the battery movement I have now runs too fast. I know I can get a new dollar store quality battery movement.. maybe I should try boiling it

[phil]

IBM slave clocks usually used 24 volts direct current to run the relay. A minute pulse of two seconds is enough to make it advance.

I dont; know so much about IC chips but I think he said you can just use one to provide that pulse. the 24V is easy one could probably just use a plug in transformer from a printer or something like it. one for LED lights maybe. some of the advertising clocks of the era are quite sought after.

Phil

[Gothichome]

Manalto, I have dipped one really gummy clock in a bowle of brake clean, did a wonderful job of cleaning the workings. After, I just placed a small drop of clock oil on all the shafts were they rotate on the frame plates.
Oh, I should add, be very carefull when dipping in brake clean, do not get any on the dial face, the numbers will be prone to wiping off. Just place it on a rag and air dry,takes about a minute or so to dry.

[Manalto]

I've heard of people using brake cleaner for vintage sewing machines with all-metal mechanisms. The old oil can solidify (especially if someone got creative with his/her choice of oil) and the machine seizes, particularly those with close tolerances like Bernina, Pfaff and Necchi. It's risky for them too; it can strip decals and paint. I use the old (and increasingly unpopular, because of the smell) method of kerosene and a stubbed paintbrush. The smell isn't that bad, often I just do the cleaning outdoors.