This Schatz 400 day clock came into my shop for repair. The customer told me that it had a broken mainspring. On disassembly, I found that the mainspring was broken in more than 15 pieces! (Normally, a mainspring has just one break). See photos below:
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- The broken mainspring still in the barrel
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- 15 pieces of the broken mainspring
What caused the spring to break into multiple pieces?
The clock had been cleaned without being dismantled (there was debris in the gears from incomplete cleaning). The cleaning fluid could not be rinsed out of the mainspring. The fluid attacked the steel, causing stress cracks to form, followed by breakage.
Repair job 5176. Back plate number 1278, no date. Uses 0.004 inch suspension spring. When the mainspring broke, it bent the front second wheel pivot. I inserted a new pivot, and polished several other pivots.
Related posts:
- Schatz Standard 400 Day Clock with Round Silver Dial, Dated November 1952
- 1949 – 1950 Schatz 400 Day Clock With No Name On Dial
- Schatz standard 400 day clock, diamond dial, made in 1953
- Schatz Standard 400 Day Clock with Black and White Dial
- Schatz Standard 400 Day Clock with Silver Dial, Made Sept. 1954
