Best clock acquisition of 2022

Well, it’s that time of the year. What is my best clock acquisition of the past year? You can decide for yourself and leave a comment but I will reveal my favorite at the end of the post.

As a clock hobbyist, I have had little difficulty locating interesting clocks and every year I have managed to find a winner or two. 2022 was no exception.

In the early days of collecting, time and strike vintage mantel clocks were my principal focus with the goal of taking them apart and making them work, an important part of my learning. Many of those clocks have been either sold or gifted. I have shifted my focus toward collecting interesting clocks, rare clocks, clocks that have a special provenance, and growing my collection of Canadian-made clocks.

My wife is my best clock finder. Our discussions may go something like this; “did you see that wall clock on Facebook/xxx auction house?”. “Let me see. Yeah, it looks good, what do you think? Make an offer?” and off we go. Sometimes I will accept the offer from the seller without negotiating because it is a fair price but there are times when a little wheeling and dealing takes place prior to the sale.

In no particular order, here are my finds for 2022.

Fusee gallery clock

The clock is also called a dial clock in England which is where it was made. There are no markings anywhere on the clock save an obscure trademark that I have been unable to identify. It is a time-only fusee clock with a 12-inch dial, a very common size. It might have had a chain drive at the beginning of its life but it now has a cable. I have not serviced this clock because I don’t know enough about fusee movements, particularly the method of preloading the powerful mainspring.

E N Welch marine clock

This 30-hour spring wound clock with a hairspring lever escapement simply tells the time. It was made in the 1870s and perhaps earlier. It has been serviced, bushed, and cleaned, but my challenge at the moment is setting up the hairspping. It will work but not well.

Hamilton clock co ogee

_{Hamilton time and strike ogee clock, Canadian made}

Acquired in the spring of 2022 this ogee clock was made in Hamilton, Ontario (Canada). The movement was serviced but the case challenged my veneering skills. It looks quite presentable now but was in poor condition when I bought it.

Jerome and Co. Rose Cottage clock

Quite honestly I was going to throw the case out after having serviced the movement. It simply looks too far gone. However, I have accepted the challenge of bringing back this clock to its former glory. So far it is a work in progress.

Jauch calendar clock

From a distance, this clock looks good but a closer examination reveals a cheaply made time-only movement and an equally inexpensive pine case. It is clear that this German company was attempting to cash in on the antique American schoolhouse clock that was popular in the 1970s.

Wag on the wall

This has a well-made German movement, possibly by Mauthe or Hermle. It is a time-and-strike weight-driven clock and keeps very good time. Its only negative is that it has a cheap 1960s look about it but the only thing missing is a bottom middle finial.

Sessions Grand Assortment

Perhaps the ugliest gingerbread clock ever made. The photo is the exact clock I worked on two years ago since the clock is apart at the moment and I have stripped down the case (a last resort).

Sessions Mission clock

I like this clock not only because it is a 10$ thrift store find but it has very nicely styled mission clock and it works very well, keeping decent time for a spring-driven clock.

Empire gallery clock

_{English gallery clock} _{with 10-inch dial}

I was hoping this was a fusee clock when I bid on it on an online auction in the spring of 2022 but it is a spring-driven 8-day clock with a fairly robust movement that was intended for commercial use, a store, an office environment perhaps.

Daniel Pratt Jr woodworks clock

I have a couple of Danel Pratt woodworks clock. Unfortunately, this one is missing its topper. Servicing woodworks movements takes special care and attention and I may tackle this clock in the spring.

Ansonia 30-hour parlour clock

I seem to gravitate toward 30-hour clocks. This is a time-and-strike clock and is in decent condition requiring only a few touchups.

My favorite?

Well, it has to be the time-only fusee which is probably why I subconsciously placed it first on the list. It well built industrial-strength clock that was designed to last for years. It looks great on any wall, is very quiet, and quite accurate which is what fusee movements are known for.

February 14, 2023

Jerome cottage clock – progress so far

It is always challenging to find time to work on projects when life is busy. I picked up some part-time work this winter, teaching at a community college so between that my clock hobby teaching has taken precedence, for now.

Since the post on extreme restoration a week or so ago, I have continued planning the work to be done and have actually managed to address two issues, the second one only partially.

For my first thoughts on this Jerome Rose Cottage 30-hour clock, see the post below. I am sure you will agree that this is a candidate for extreme measures.

Jerome Rose Cottage clock – a candidate for extreme restoration?

_{Posted Jan 31, 2023}

The case has been cleaned of dirt and grime and I have removed some of the ragged pieces of veneer on the right side. The plan is to cover the exposed sections with new veneer but since the trim is curved I will have to work out some way to apply the veneer to the curved surface and clamp using some sort of curved block. I considered an old section of ogee molding but no, not the right shape.

The movement had been serviced in the spring of 2022 and is running perfectly.

_{One solid wheel on this tiny movement}

Painting the door trim

In my collection of acrylic paints, I found antique gold which I believe is very close to the original trim framing the front access door.

Dark chocolate brown paint was used to cover the area between the glass and the gold trim and since it was a flat texture I applied a coat of shellac to give it a satin sheen.

The design of the small glass tablet will be a challenge to duplicate and I continue my search online for a cottage clock with the same design that I can pattern off, otherwise, I will have to improvise.

Addressing the dial

The dial has been thoroughly cleaned but some of the dirt is embedded in the dial surface which is not an issue since I would like to retain some of the patina.

I haven’t quite found the exact paint match at this point, but I am not too concerned as building up layers is the first step in in-painting. With some experimentation I should arrive very close to what I am looking for. The real fun will be in-painting the Roman numerals and chapter ring.

Next steps

Next will be the veneer work but as mentioned clamping the veneer will be a minor challenge. I am sure I will find a way. The veneer looks like Rosewood and I have a small quantity on hand.

After the veneer work is completed the tablet will be addressed and that will unfortunately involve cutting or peeling the label on the inside, though I will preserve it as best I can.

Finally when all is done a coat or two of traditional shellac should make this clock very presentable.

This small clock has certainly been to hell and back but I do know one thing; whatever I do will be a vast improvement.

Look for more posts to come on this nice little cottage clock.

February 7, 2023

The tiniest clock movement I have come across, made by New Haven

Jerome & Co., a marketing arm of the New Haven Clock Co. made this clock in the mid-1850s. It is a 1-day or 30-hour clock called the “Rose Cottage”. In the 1850s and later, cottage clocks could be purchased with a time and strike movement, time and strike with alarm but this one is a very simple clock that was made to do one thing, tell the time.

It is a very small movement. In fact the smallest American clock movement I have ever worked on.

The most interesting features of this movement, besides the size, are the solid third wheel and the high mount escape wheel with the entry pallet just above the wheel itself.

The photo below shows a very interesting “fix” for a worn pivot hole, certainly an add-on by a not-so-professional clock repairer. It consists of a piece of copper wire soldered to the plate. The copper wire then loops around the pivot and keeps it from moving in the worn hole. Many repairers at the time punched around a pivot hole to close it but this is an odd repair.

Other issues included finishing nails instead of taper pins to secure the plates and the mainspring loop end attached to the bottom right post instead of the left. While on the right post (as found) the mainspring uncoils and pushes against the center cannon lantern pinion and stops the clock. I doubt that the movement could run a full day.

The movement

As a time-only movement, it is pretty simple in design. It takes all but a minute to disassemble and reassemble the movement.

My first task was to remove the ugly solder and copper wire. I pulled the wire away and using a soldering gun the solder dissolved easily, both front, and back since both ends had the same “fix”.

Once the copper wire was removed I could see that the front bushing hole was elongated as I suspected.

_{New bushing, upper black dot, mainspring attached to the bottom left post}

The only other bushing required was the escape wheel and back-plate. The bushing hole on the escape wheel bridge is a little worn but it should do for now as this clock will not be a daily runner.

The movement is on the test stand and running well. Now to see what I can do with a very worn and very tired case.

June 4, 2022

Jerome & Co Rose cottage clock – the case is a mess but the movement is interesting

I have a number of cottage clocks and they all seem to have one thing in common, they have lived hard lives and this one is no exception. They had the cheapest of movements, the cheapest of cases, and could be purchased for almost nothing but many have not survived and that’s too bad.

This is a one-day or 30-hour time-only cottage clock made by Jerome & Co. Most cottage clocks come with a time and strike movement, some had alarms but this has just the movement.

Chauncey Jerome was a prolific clockmaker and a true pioneer of the early American clock. Despite his success in clock manufacturing from the late 1830s to the early 1850s a number of poor business decisions led to bankruptcy in 1856, and the assets of the bankrupt Jerome Manufacturing Co. were purchased by the New Haven Clock Co.

While Jerome was involved in numerous clock-making activities after his bankruptcy and marketed clocks under his name and label, Jerome & Co. is not one of those. “Jerome & Co.” was a tradename used by the New Haven clock company.

The Jerome name obviously had some cache and it was a good marketing strategy on the part of New Haven.

The plan

The movement is very simple in design. However, it has had an odd repair. On the left side of the movement is a copper wire soldered to the brass plate. The copper wire wraps around the 3rd wheel pivot and acts as a bushing. There is a similar repair on the backplate. This will be removed and replaced by a brass bushing. There are one or two other bushings required as well.

As for the rosewood veneer case, I am not sure what I will do. There are veneer losses on the right side of the case, the bottom corners, and the top left. Most of the gilt around the front access door has worn off, there are significant losses on the dial, there is a large age split on the top-right and the reverse painted lower tablet has signifciant losses. I don’t want to go too far and ruin the clock but as it is, it looks quite bad.

May 31, 2022

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