Schatz Midget 400 Day Clock Made in 1962

Schatz made 3 sizes of 400 day clock: Standard, Miniature and Midget. The Standard 400 day says “49” on the back inside a circle, the miniature says “53”, and the midget says “JUM/7”. Can anyone tell me what “JUM/7” means?

The midget 400 day clock is slightly shorter than the miniature. I recently repaired a midget dated 9 62 (September 1962), and its height without the dome is 5 9/16 inches. A similar-looking miniature that I repaired (see Schatz Miniature 400 Day Clock, March 1956) is 7 inches tall to the top of the decoration above the dial.

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Schatz Midget 400 Day Clock made in September 1962
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Back view of the Schatz Midget. Note the plastic cover to protect the top block and fork of the suspension spring.

IMG_3028See more pictures.

The midget movement has a pin-pallet escapement instead of a Graham deadbeat.

Repair job 6631. I polished the pivots, smoothed some damaged teeth on the mainspring barrel, and replaced the suspension spring. I used a 0.0022 inch thick Horolovar suspension spring (a previous clock of the same model I repaired (see Schatz Midget 400 Day Clock Made in 1968). needed a 0.0023 inch thick spring (I’m not sure if the difference was in the suspension springs or the pendulum).


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7 comments

  1. Since the top block originally fitted into the saddle, its slot is the correct width. The best practice is to thin the top block so it fits closely but freely. Sometimes the top block’s screws get burrs on the slot edge from loosening and tightening them, and they need to be smoothed down.

  2. I own a Schatz mini that I purchased at a thrift store. The torsion spring was broken at the bottom block. I have been trying to install a replacement spring. I am having a very difficult time getting the top block into the saddle. It is a very tight fit and requires quite a bit of push to get it in. It is very difficult to adjust and get the pin to align with the hole in the saddle. I have ruined 3 springs trying to get the block into the saddle or trying to align the holes. I was told that this is a known problem Schatz clocks have and one should file the inside right side of the saddle to get a little more clearance and allow the saddle to rock forward and backward. Has anyone else had this problem and what was the resolution.

  3. “JUM7” could mean an abbreviation for the German words for “year timepiece manufacturer, 7 inches tall”

  4. It may need to be taken apart and cleaned. The suspension spring may be bent or twisted. Or it may just be “out of beat” (not ticking evenly) which can be corrected by rotating the top block of the suspension spring to equalize the motion in both directions.

  5. Thanks Bill,I’ll keep looking. I just acquired a “Midget”. Everything seems to move but will not stay running. Any ideas you want to pass along?

  6. Yes, but this doesn’t answer my question as to what it means – for example, is it German for something or is it arbitrary letters and a number? The Standard and Miniature 49 and 53 represent the years of introduction.

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