This clock wasn’t one I set out to find. My wife and I were wandering through a sprawling antique shop in Almonte, Ontario—the kind of place where time itself seems to stand still. She drifted upstairs while I lingered below, each of us lost in our own quiet hunt. A few minutes later, she appeared … More The Clock That Wasn’t Complete: My Waterbury Suffolk Discovery
Almonte, Ontario, (Canada) is a town that practically invites you to slow down and explore, and that’s exactly what my wife and I did one afternoon in September. In fact, it is called “The Friendly Town”. We drifted from one antique shop to another, discovering all sorts of curiosities. But in one store, I found … More Discovering a Rare Waterbury Clock in Almonte, Ontario
I originally assumed this clock was a Seth Thomas since it had a Seth Thomas movement. After a thorough search on the web, I concluded that this was not a Seth Thomas case. I searched for clocks made by other clockmakers, starting with E.N Welch, Ansonia (because it is similar in style to the Syria), … More Waterbury Wren shelf clock – case refresh
Let me begin by saying that I am not a big fan of clock movements with steel plates. Many that I have come across have brass bushing inserts that I believe to be a limitation rather than a benefit. The movement in this plain drop octagon case is a Waterbury time-only. When I bought the … More Waterbury Arion wall clock movement servicing
This clock is an antique store find not too far from where I live. It was high on a shelf and the price was not visible. I asked the shopkeeper to take it down so that I could check the price ($40) and verify that it had a mechanical movement. I opened the back panel, … More A marriage of two makers, Waterbury and Seth Thomas
Tick-Talk Tuesday is about the letters and comments I receive from you, the reader, concerning your clock, issues you might have had, challenges you face or a clock you would like me to profile. I give my responses to your question(s) and provide advice on your particular clock concern. For those comments and questions that … More Tick Talk Tuesday #28 – How do I fix my Waterbury ogee?
Back in December 2019, I wrote about the challenges of adjusting the strike side of this attractive parlour clock, a Waterbury York, circa 1900. Despite many attempts the strike side refused to work. Though I was close to a solution but I did not realize it at the time. I put it aside to think … More Waterbury York parlour clock – a fresh approach to addressing a non-functioning strike side
Winter, along with the dry conditions of a typical Canadian home, can play havoc with wooden clock cases. In Canada we generally shut the doors and windows to keep the cold air out from mid November to mid March and we may stay inside for days at a time. During our Canadian winter we have … More Dry home and clock case issues
These three 30 hour clocks in the opening photo were serviced in the fall of 2018. The fourth (shown next) is a Waterbury Ogee from about 1870. It was never my intention to collect 30-hour clocks but I am attracted to this style of clock. Thousands were made, they are surprisingly cheap and come up … More 30-hour clocks – four for your consideration
I’ve thought about this clock, dreamt about it, wondered where it was all these years……and now I have it. I was confident that I could do something with this clock since I had just finished a major restoration project. I had no idea that the clock I was getting was a movement in a homemade … More Lessons learned restoring grandfather’s old clock
It has taken me 6 years to assemble my collection of antique and vintage clocks. Although I have many clocks, wall clocks are my particular favorites. Check out my collection of antique and vintage wall clocks in this YouTube video I made in January 2019. Feel free to comment.
This is the fourth and final article on this curious and somewhat homely Waterbury time and strike schoolhouse clock. I have a vivid memory of this Waterbury octagon short drop schoolhouse clock that hung in my grandparent’s kitchen when I was a young boy. Now that I have it what do I do with it. … More Grandfathers clock – the drop door, the movement and other things – Part IV
This is Part III of a 4-part series. I have a vivid memory of this Waterbury octagon short drop schoolhouse clock that hung in my grandparent’s kitchen when I was a young boy. Now that I have it what do I do with it. I have devoted two previous articles to this curious and somewhat … More Grandfathers old clock – Preserve a memory or restore it – Part III
Is this attractive 30 hour weight driven Ogee a Waterbury, a New Haven or an E.N. Welch? All of the above, actually and perhaps more. The older the clock and the greater the number of owners means there is an increased chance that there have been minor and even significant changes to the clock Is … More Waterbury, New Haven or EN Welch – A true Frankenstein clock
I posted Part I of a four-part article on this curious schoolhouse clock recently. In this, Part II I discuss the what I like and what frustrates me about this project. I have a vivid memory of this Waterbury octagon short drop schoolhouse clock that hung in my grandparent’s kitchen when I was a … More Grandfathers old clock – now what do I do with it? Part II
I’ve thought about this clock, dreamt about it, wondering where it was all these years…….and now I have it. Now, what do I do? I have a vivid memory of this Waterbury octagon short drop schoolhouse clock that hung in my grandparent’s kitchen when I was a young boy. After church on Sundays, my … More Grandfathers old clock – I asked for it, now what do I do? Part I
This 30 hour Ogee clock was purchased in the fall of 2017. I was eager to add this clock to my collection as it is the one particular style of clock that I do not have. From my research on Waterbury clocks I determined that it was made in or around 1870. I decided to … More Waterbury 30 hour Ogee clock – servicing Part II
My hope was that it would be a relatively straight forward exercise This is Part 1 of servicing this 30 hour Waterbury time and strike movement. I honestly thought it would be relatively straight forward exercise. Dis-assemble, clean the parts, polish the pivots, do a little bushing work and voila! Not so. I have worked … More Waterbury 30 hour Ogee clock – servicing Part I
Why are these clocks so cheap? Discounting the wild prices some seem to be asking on online for-sale sites, a good example can be had for almost nothing. Why? Allow me to explain. This 30 hour time and strike Waterbury Ogee clock was discovered at an antique store an hour’s drive away. The store has … More Waterbury Ogee (OG) 30 hour weight driven clock and why they are so undervalued
It this day and age it is very common to have family scattered to the four winds. What time is it is such and such? Why not create timezone clocks? I live in Canada and I have one daughter in Calgary, Alberta, one of our mid-western provinces and one in Victoria, BC, on the … More Timezone clocks – keeping track of family across the country
I recently purchased a vintage Canadian made New Haven 8-day short drop octagon time and strike clock. It is in the familiar style of a schoolhouse clock. The New Haven Clock Company lasted just over 100 years. Sadly, The New Haven Clock Company lasted just over 100 years. Much of the history of the New … More New Haven Short Drop Octagon – two curious features
When I bought my Ingersoll-Waterbury clock a year ago I knew that it had not been serviced but the price was reasonable and it was running. I got a lot of other projects out of the way and have finally gotten around to giving this clock a little care and attention. Ingersoll-Waterbury clocks were sold in … More Ingersoll Waterbury mantel clock servicing and a little mystery thrown in for good measure
I am not sure where you would have found a Waterbury Arion. It is really too small for a schoolhouse clock or an office clock unless it was a tiny office. Nevertheless, enough of them were made since they are fairly common. I bought this time-only clock from an older gentleman in Halifax, Nova Scotia.. … More New glass and bezel for Waterbury Arion
Everybody appreciates a serviced clock when they are making a purchase. However, there is no acceptable definition for the term “Fully Serviced”. Fully serviced may mean one thing for the amateur clock collector and repairer and another to a professional clock repair shop. The other day I was responding to a FaceBook post which offered a … More What the term a “fully serviced” clock really means
My next project is this vintage Ingersoll-Waterbury time and strike mantel clock. Ingersoll-Waterbury clocks were sold in Canada and had Canadian made cases using American made Waterbury movements. G.R. L’Esperance of Montreal were the sole distributors of Ingersoll-Waterbury clocks in Canada. Waterbury has a long history going back to 1857. Like many American clock companies … More Ingersoll-Waterbury time and strike mantel clock
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