Clocks

Within the past 6 to 10 months there was an article publiched on how to repair car clocks. I ca't find the article now. Does anyone remember seeing it?

Bill

v12bill,ive repaired a few jaguar clocks and found they mostly just needed a very gentle cleaning and a very small amount of lube . also needed a slight adjustment of the coil/armature distance.i am by no means an authority on clock repair maybe i just got lucky.jagman.

Good friend of mine ran into some health issues and had to sell off his cars.  But he saved a special gem in his wallet until he saw me, and gave me this Clock phamlet that came with some of the car's original paperwork.  Never saw this literature before, pretty cool. The original is very small- I enlarged it 130%  Others may find it helpful.

Clock Instructions Phamlet.pdf

I have had success with using Radio Shack Tuner Cleaner and Lubricant to clean and lube the clocks. Spray it generously on the clock. but not directly on the balance wheel. Wind the clock by hand and let it run down several times. If it doesn't continue to run, spray it again. when it will continue to run, clean the contact points and connect it to a 6volt lantern battery or another 6 volt source and let it run for a couple of weeks, checking it daily to see that it is running and keeping time.

If the clock keeps blowing fuses, try dressing the points. Another cause of blowing fuses is a bind in the electric magnet that winds the clock.

The 12 volt clocks will require 2 lantern batteries connected in series.

This works on the clocks up the 1970's. I have not taken one apart for newer cars.

There are some U-Tube videos on repairing the clocks Google "automobile clock repair".

I've had success getting two 41 Zephyr clocks going using a needle to drop 3-in-1 oil on the bearings of the main spring and the two gears that are activated by that. Putting pressure on the winder for a few minutes will keep it running and helps the oil penetrate the bearings. One keeps good time and the other runs too fast, even when the adjustment is set to the slowest setting.

Using wet-or-dry sandpaper to clean the contacts also helps. The battery should be kept well charged, because if there isn't enough current to pull the contacts open it will blow the fuse.