08-12-2011, 03:15 PM
I don't usually restore newer items, but this clock was one of the first 'quartz' models from the company and dates from the mid 1970s. I think it can still be considered 'vintage'.
It is unusual because the case is made from two-part epoxy resin and is quite heavy. Unfortunately, cost cutting has become apparent by this time and the glass has been replaced by perspex and plastic/nylon has started to appear in the gear train where metal had been used previously. The dial is white card.
The quartz movement comprises of a 4.19MHz crystal+trimmer plus a dedicated 8-pin chip which produces 1 Hz pulses to drive the motor. The seconds hand has been omitted from this model and a decorative brass cap has been fitted over the spindle for the seconds hand. The movement is constructed around a single pcb.
A decorative pendulum is driven from a coil+magnetic feedback arrangement on a separate, independent pcb. It is pleasing to watch the pendulum take around 10 seconds to get up to speed even though it contributes nothing to the working of the clock in this model.
All the electronics work directly from a single 1.5 Volt battery, which was quite clever in those early days.
This one was bought for £0.99 on ebay as not working, spares or repair. The battery had leaked (quite common when only standard carbon/zinc batteries were available) and a lot of corrosion had to be removed. A wire had also broken and one of the power leads had rotted through due to battery leakage.
Ok, it's not worth anything; then I didn't pay much for it anyway. I got it working 100% and the restoration was easy as separate parts were still screwed together at this time.
So was it all worth it? Depends on your outlook I suppose.
It is unusual because the case is made from two-part epoxy resin and is quite heavy. Unfortunately, cost cutting has become apparent by this time and the glass has been replaced by perspex and plastic/nylon has started to appear in the gear train where metal had been used previously. The dial is white card.
The quartz movement comprises of a 4.19MHz crystal+trimmer plus a dedicated 8-pin chip which produces 1 Hz pulses to drive the motor. The seconds hand has been omitted from this model and a decorative brass cap has been fitted over the spindle for the seconds hand. The movement is constructed around a single pcb.
A decorative pendulum is driven from a coil+magnetic feedback arrangement on a separate, independent pcb. It is pleasing to watch the pendulum take around 10 seconds to get up to speed even though it contributes nothing to the working of the clock in this model.
All the electronics work directly from a single 1.5 Volt battery, which was quite clever in those early days.
This one was bought for £0.99 on ebay as not working, spares or repair. The battery had leaked (quite common when only standard carbon/zinc batteries were available) and a lot of corrosion had to be removed. A wire had also broken and one of the power leads had rotted through due to battery leakage.
Ok, it's not worth anything; then I didn't pay much for it anyway. I got it working 100% and the restoration was easy as separate parts were still screwed together at this time.
So was it all worth it? Depends on your outlook I suppose.