Clock thread/

[Hazel_1914]

Does anyone else like clocks & watches? Digital, analog--electric, mechanical, doesn't matter. Just wondering whether anyone else is fond of the whole horology thing. If so let's see-- some you collected, some you saw & just thought were neat, all that. Clocks check off a lot of the autism boxes, for special-interest material: at least for me anyway. Would love to know if anyone else thinks they're neat.

I don't really collect clocks seriously but I buy mechanical ones when I need something to keep time with. Been doing this for awhile and I am kind of enjoying it.

There's a few in my stash now--old Seth Thomas mantle clock that I inherited, a 1964 alarm clock from Germany, what I think is a 1910s Waltham with a huge balance wheel movement on the wall, two antique pocket watches, and a beat-up 1925 Westclox alarm that doesn't work and will need a spring barrel.

I missed having a striking clock in the house as the bell helps me keep track of what time it is. So I went ahead & got an Sessions eight-day mantle clock from eBay, kind of an old one but it seemed to be OK. Good thing is, it was free. Bad thing is, it was free because I got a refund after it got smashed in the mail. Now it looks like someone dropped a dollar watch in a bowl of Grape-Nuts.

Here is a picture from before the postal service and eBay seller packing incompetence worked their combined magic and banished this clock to the shadow realm. It is now a clock in the past tense, a postmodern deconstruction of the concept of timekeeping. I have a lot of gluing up to do, and must clean 100 years of soot and crinkly varnish off the outside--as well as fix the movement. The movement did surprisingly well considering the shipping journey was basically "smash it off the ground" but it still took a few licks and at its age I will need to clean it anyhow and change the oil.

 

[Kalinychta]

I absolutely love clocks. There’s something inherently strange about them, and the complications in the old ones are so beautiful.

 

[Suzette]

My mother has a gold ladies pocket watch from 1900 or something like that. When you take the back off and listen to the works it makes this odd little shwooosh, pop, squeeek but all at a level that is quieter than a whisper. There is a ticking too but it is the other sounds that make the clock special.

 

[Callistemon]

I love old clocks and their mechanisms - and lots of old things from pre-electric, pre-digital. Their aesthetic quality is often wonderful. Look at the clock you posted!

This is about workmanship and crafting, not factories and production lines - these things aren't soulless, like our plastic digital alarm clock at home. But we do at least have a quirky kitchen wall clock:



I spent my first 11 years in Germany and Italy, in the 70s/early 80s when a lot of people still had grandfather clocks passed down from previous generations. These were so lovely to look at. The only problem with them is their ticking drives me spare if I'm trying to concentrate or sleep!

Also in Germany there were a lot of cuckoo clocks, which pretty much everyone in my primary school class thought cute and wonderful:

They were just such wonderful and whimsical works of art...

And then there was the big moving clock display in central Munich, called the Rathaus-Glockenspiel...

Again, beautifully made...

Have you seen Hugo? If not, you might enjoy this film!

I'm looking forward to seeing more of this thread!

 

[Suzette]

Can't discuss clocks without mentiining the antikythera mechanisim
Antikythera Mechanism: Ancient Celestial Calculator

 

[Kalinychta]

The Orloj…Prague’s 600 year old astrological clock

 

[Owliet]

Does anyone else like clocks & watches? Digital, analog--electric, mechanical, doesn't matter. Just wondering whether anyone else is fond of the whole horology thing. If so let's see-- some you collected, some you saw & just thought were neat, all that. Clocks check off a lot of the autism boxes, for special-interest material: at least for me anyway. Would love to know if anyone else thinks they're neat.

I don't really collect clocks seriously but I buy mechanical ones when I need something to keep time with. Been doing this for awhile and I am kind of enjoying it.

There's a few in my stash now--old Seth Thomas mantle clock that I inherited, a 1964 alarm clock from Germany, what I think is a 1910s Waltham with a huge balance wheel movement on the wall, two antique pocket watches, and a beat-up 1925 Westclox alarm that doesn't work and will need a spring barrel.

I missed having a striking clock in the house as the bell helps me keep track of what time it is. So I went ahead & got an Sessions eight-day mantle clock from eBay, kind of an old one but it seemed to be OK. Good thing is, it was free. Bad thing is, it was free because I got a refund after it got smashed in the mail. Now it looks like someone dropped a dollar watch in a bowl of Grape-Nuts.

Here is a picture from before the postal service and eBay seller packing incompetence worked their combined magic and banished this clock to the shadow realm. It is now a clock in the past tense, a postmodern deconstruction of the concept of timekeeping. I have a lot of gluing up to do, and must clean 100 years of soot and crinkly varnish off the outside--as well as fix the movement. The movement did surprisingly well considering the shipping journey was basically "smash it off the ground" but it still took a few licks and at its age I will need to clean it anyhow and change the oil.

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Considering I live in a place that is famous for clock making, some of the clock designs are wonderful. When I’m feeling better, I’ll take photos of these clocks and share them.

 

[Hazel_1914]

Two old ones. 1964 alarm clock and the big eight-day Waltham from maybe the 1910s or '20s. The alarm clock was actually pretty fun to clean up & restore internally but it still looks pretty sorry outside & could probably stand to be oiled. I really need to get the Waltham to a clockmaker's because it probably has not been serviced in decades, but it does run very well and it keeps time. The mechanism looks like a giant watch inside, right down to the knob at the side to wind it up and set the time with. It's very quiet but it sounds nice.

 

[Gracey]

Ugly but captivating.
Fisheye magnification means even with my eyesight I can still read the time and watch the workings.

 

[Crossbreed]

Can't discuss clocks without mentiining the antikythera mechanisim
Antikythera Mechanism: Ancient Celestial Calculator

Someone made a Lego version, too. (It sounds like they used the same music.)

Lego Antikythera Mechanism

 

[Crossbreed]

Have you seen Hugo? If not, you might enjoy this film!

Seen it. It was a good movie, but the title was a bit of misdirection; the story was really about someone else...

 

[Kalinychta]

The film is based on a lovely book called The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick.

 

[Owliet]

The ancient civilizations like Egypt, ancient Persia and Greece invented two forms to keep time. We know of sun dials, but how do you keep time at night when there’s no light? They invented the clepsydra or water clock. I know that you love history, so I hope that you enjoy reading this: Water clocks - Keeping track of time in Antiquity

 

[Owliet]

In bern, Switzerland’s capital there is this big tower clock that was built in the 13th century.

And if you’re interested, here’s a link that gives more information: Tour of the Zytglogge (Clock Tower) - Bern Welcome


Not my video but I will try to get one next time because it makes a lot of noise. Which the video doesn’t really do it justice.

 

[Streetwise]

Does anyone else like clocks & watches? Digital, analog--electric, mechanical, doesn't matter. Just wondering whether anyone else is fond of the whole horology thing. If so let's see-- some you collected, some you saw & just thought were neat, all that. Clocks check off a lot of the autism boxes, for special-interest material: at least for me anyway. Would love to know if anyone else thinks they're neat.

I don't really collect clocks seriously but I buy mechanical ones when I need something to keep time with. Been doing this for awhile and I am kind of enjoying it.

There's a few in my stash now--old Seth Thomas mantle clock that I inherited, a 1964 alarm clock from Germany, what I think is a 1910s Waltham with a huge balance wheel movement on the wall, two antique pocket watches, and a beat-up 1925 Westclox alarm that doesn't work and will need a spring barrel.

I missed having a striking clock in the house as the bell helps me keep track of what time it is. So I went ahead & got an Sessions eight-day mantle clock from eBay, kind of an old one but it seemed to be OK. Good thing is, it was free. Bad thing is, it was free because I got a refund after it got smashed in the mail. Now it looks like someone dropped a dollar watch in a bowl of Grape-Nuts.

Here is a picture from before the postal service and eBay seller packing incompetence worked their combined magic and banished this clock to the shadow realm. It is now a clock in the past tense, a postmodern deconstruction of the concept of timekeeping. I have a lot of gluing up to do, and must clean 100 years of soot and crinkly varnish off the outside--as well as fix the movement. The movement did surprisingly well considering the shipping journey was basically "smash it off the ground" but it still took a few licks and at its age I will need to clean it anyhow and change the oil.

View attachment 76955

View attachment 76954

Does anyone else like clocks & watches? Digital, analog--electric, mechanical, doesn't matter. Just wondering whether anyone else is fond of the whole horology thing. If so let's see-- some you collected, some you saw & just thought were neat, all that. Clocks check off a lot of the autism boxes, for special-interest material: at least for me anyway. Would love to know if anyone else thinks they're neat.

I don't really collect clocks seriously but I buy mechanical ones when I need something to keep time with. Been doing this for awhile and I am kind of enjoying it.

There's a few in my stash now--old Seth Thomas mantle clock that I inherited, a 1964 alarm clock from Germany, what I think is a 1910s Waltham with a huge balance wheel movement on the wall, two antique pocket watches, and a beat-up 1925 Westclox alarm that doesn't work and will need a spring barrel.

I missed having a striking clock in the house as the bell helps me keep track of what time it is. So I went ahead & got an Sessions eight-day mantle clock from eBay, kind of an old one but it seemed to be OK. Good thing is, it was free. Bad thing is, it was free because I got a refund after it got smashed in the mail. Now it looks like someone dropped a dollar watch in a bowl of Grape-Nuts.

Here is a picture from before the postal service and eBay seller packing incompetence worked their combined magic and banished this clock to the shadow realm. It is now a clock in the past tense, a postmodern deconstruction of the concept of timekeeping. I have a lot of gluing up to do, and must clean 100 years of soot and crinkly varnish off the outside--as well as fix the movement. The movement did surprisingly well considering the shipping journey was basically "smash it off the ground" but it still took a few licks and at its age I will need to clean it anyhow and change the oil.

View attachment 76955

View attachment 76954

This (prime meridian line ,greenwich observatory south london)has intrigued me, since I first saw the part on the pavement, on a God TV (christian network based in the UK)edition of behind the scenes, over 5 years ago, its a huge clock to me

I live 300 miles away been to London can't remember how many times never visited ponders ?

 

[Streetwise]

I have about 10-12 watches ,always wanted an old pocket watch like below

 

[Raggamuffin]

I have this watch by Ziiiro.

They do another one which I really want to get:

Ed

 

[maycontainthunder]

I find the engineering aspect the most interesting. I've watched gear cutting videos but an awful lot of clockmakers cut them manually which takes a massive amount of skill.

 

[Streetwise]

View attachment 76960 View attachment 76961Two old ones. 1964 alarm clock and the big eight-day Waltham from maybe the 1910s or '20s. The alarm clock was actually pretty fun to clean up & restore internally but it still looks pretty sorry outside & could probably stand to be oiled. I really need to get the Waltham to a clockmaker's because it probably has not been serviced in decades, but it does run very well and it keeps time. The mechanism looks like a giant watch inside, right down to the knob at the side to wind it up and set the time with. It's very quiet but it sounds nice.

Before you travel to the time piece repairer tell them the brand and model of clock ,we humped an Austrian cuckoo clock to be repaired only to be told he couldn't repair it ^~^

 

[Hazel_1914]

Before you travel to the time piece repairer tell them the brand and model of clock ,we humped an Austrian cuckoo clock to be repaired only to be told he couldn't repair it ^~^

That must've been disappointing. Some people won't work on cuckoo clocks for whatever reason; it's a bit of a misconception. A lot of times I've met piano tuners who won't restore older pianos, collectors who think you can't play records on an old phonograph, and clockmakers who will not touch cuckoo clocks with a barge-pole. Just because your local guy won't fix it doesn't always mean it's beyond repair--

I think I can get that one repaired by some antique auto repairmen; Waltham made watches & car clocks & the mechanism in that clock is exactly like the huge "auto watch" that would be the dash clock for an older car. For example here's one from a 1932 Hudson Super Six automobile. I can't afford a Hudson so I don't have this kind of clock either! But basically all the folks who fix antique cars should be able to know a guy who can service those kinds of clock.