Antique and Vintage Clocks

Every horologist should have sturdy clock stand for testing clock movements.

If you have Gene’s movement test stand to test your clock movements you have chosen one of the best stands for clock repair. It is well-built, adjustable and simple to use. It is one of the best test stands I have ever used but it is not perfect.

While Gene’s test stand is excellent for mantel and shelf clock movement testing it is not ideal for most wall clock testing. I was tired of propping the movement stand up with books and pieces of wood to gain height so I decided to address the problem by constructing a cheap and effective extension for testing those movements with long pendulum rods which includes many wall clocks that I enjoy working on. I initially thought about building an entirely new stand for wall clock movements but building an extension to Gene’s stand made much more sense.

Although this extension addresses a shortcoming of Gene’s movement test stand, should you require something taller for grandfather clock movements you can easily modify this one to suit your needs. I do not work on grandfather clocks; the size is right for my purposes.

The extension consists of four legs, three of which are braced approximately midway on each side and the back with a lower brace along the bottom front. It has a plywood platform on the top where Gene’s stand rests.

The extension has no adjustments although leveling can still be achieved on the Gene’s stand by means of the 4 adjustment bolts on the bottom part of the stand

The extension has no adjustments although leveling can still be achieved on the Gene’s stand by means of the 4 adjustment bolts on the bottom part of the stand. The legs are 1/2″ by 1 1/4″ spruce. The extension measures 18 1/4″ high by 9″ deep by 9 1/4″ wide. I used carpenter’s glue and for extra rigidity and 1″ screws (pre-drilled holes) to secure all the pieces together. I sanded it and applied a clear topcoat to give it an attractive finish. This is a project that took me less than two hours.

Simply attach the extension when you need it. A clamp or two can be used to secure the stand to the extension but I might design something more effective later.

You need some form of stand to test movements and if you do not have one, I highly recommend Gene’s Movement stand. The extension makes it even better. Let me know what you think.