To Peer Back In Time – The Inside Workings Of Antique Clocks

As many antique collectors and dealers will tell you, antiques afford a wonderful opportunity to go back in time. As an antique clock collector myself I've come to truly appreciate the splendor of the craftsmanship that allows antique clocks to run without batteries. Most people will appreciate the workmanship of a grandfather clock that keeps time by way of a swinging pendulum, but there are a lot of different antique clocks and each one has its own amazing way of keeping time. It's a shame that as a generation of watchmakers and clock repairers retire in their old age that many of the skills required to keep antique clocks alive are being lost.

The essence of the inside of an antique clock is an intricate machinery of tiny moving parts. Compare this to the modern clock - particularly digital varieties - that run via batteries and computer chips. You still find a lot of new watches being made with numerous moving parts, but these are now limited to the highest end of the price range and are very exclusive. Mass production techniques has simply made watch and clock making redundant in our modern society.

I don't have a problem with change and technology. I certainly wouldn't want to have to rely on a watchmaker or expert repairer every time my watch stopped keeping time. It's just not convenient and it would be much more expensive to have to have an ordinary watch repaired this way when I could otherwise just change its battery.

It's because of being an avid antique collector myself that I've been able to enjoy exposure to antique clocks and their working parts. This happened to me early in my antique collecting career when I had an old clock that stopped working. When I took it to be repaired a kind old man invited me to sit with him while he took it apart. I was amazed by the moving parts - the cogs, wheels and pins, pendulums and dials - that kept the time precisely without power. It just showed how clever our forebears have been.

Anyone can find an opportunity to gaze back at history through antiques. There are literally antique stores everywhere in the world and the internet is the perfect place to learn more if your town happens to be one of the five places on the planet without an antique shop. Looking inside antique clocks is one way to appreciate the past and understand how wonderful the present is and the future might be.

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Posted under Watches

This post was written by James Spacey on March 17, 2011

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Wish To Do Your Very Own Maintenance On Wrist Watches? Underneath Are The Specific Tools You Are Going To Need

Sending watched to be repaired professionally can be a very costly endeavor. Some individuals find it to be more beneficial to buy their own repair tools for watches. It might cost a bit of extra money additionally, however, it will save in the long run. So whether an individual needs to change the watch band, replace a battery, or something a bit more complex, having the right tools handy can make the difference when repairing watches.

First and foremost, a magnification tool is required. The inner workings of watches, especially old watches and analog, are very small and individuals must be able to see clearly inside. Magnifiers can be rested on tables, hand held, or bought to look like glasses.

Of course screw drivers will be needed. It is important to locate a screw driver that can work with very small, millimeter sized screws. And individuals will need screws. To find information on how to locate these items, a watch repair shop can be very beneficial.

Some repairs require tools other than a screw driver. Flat nose pliers can be very helpful because of the flat end. Tweezers are also a vital watch repair tool to have handy. The tweezers need to have beveled edges. Tweezers come in many different materials, including metal or plastic, it does not matter which one is chosen to do repairs. It is also advantageous to get a pair of non-magnetic tweezers to fix watches, as well as magnetic.

Never use a screw driver or tweezers to jimmy open the back of a watch. There are tools specially designed to open up watch casings. However, it needs to be noted that there are different tools like this for different models, so be aware. But, if the watches are waterproof, they can easily be opened with watch knife openers.

There is a wide array of additional tools that should be procured to make repairs on watches. Pins are needed to hold together parts of watches and pin pushers are required to remove these pins if necessary. Ball peen hammers are also good at removing pins and rivets. Removing watch hands requires the usage of a hand remover, while hand presses are utilized to replace hands of watches.

Always have the necessary items around for prevention. This usually includes items required to clean watches, such as lubrication oil, grease, and brushes. Many shops dealing in watches will sell cleaning kids. They also sell repair kits which can cost around forty dollars. However, these will not have all the necessary tools and some will need to be purchased separately at higher prices.

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Posted under Watches

This post was written by Damion Hutsler on February 16, 2011

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