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This cute little Seth Thomas mantel clock is 9 13/16 inches tall and 7 3/8 inches wide. It has a white enamel dial, and the minute hand is 1 3/4  long. It strikes the hour and half-hour.

The model B-48-J movement in this clock looks like a forerunner of the No. 120 movement in my earlier post. Superficially they look similar, but the gearing and escapement are different. Both movements have stationary barrels to contain the mainsprings. This movement has the barrels mounted to the back plate, but the 120 has them mounted to a removable lower front plate. This means that one can replace the mainsprings on the No. 120 movement without separating the  plates. This movement (B-48-J), however, requires disassembly to replace a mainspring.

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Repair job 5737. A previous repair shop had installed bushings that were way too tall (3 times the required height). I polished the pivots and installed proper bushings. I also straightened bent teeth on the canon pinion, reduced the hand-set tension (to make the minute hand easy enough to turn) and replaced one missing pinion wire (or trundle).

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Here’s another classic tambour mantel clock by Seth Thomas, this one in a dark mahogany case. The dial is a brass sheet with embossed numerals, lettering and time track that has been matte silver plated. The hands are the modern “ST” pattern (S on the minute hand and T on the hour hand).

The 8-day No. 89 movement strikes the hour and half-hour on a cathedral (heavy flat wire) gong.

The case is 9 3/16 inches tall and 16 3/4 inches wide. The dial’s minute track is 4 1/2 inches in diameter, and the minute hand is 2 5/16 inches long.

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The original mainsprings have the following measurements:

• Time mainspring: 3/4 inch wide x 0.016 inch thick;
• Strike mainspring: 3/4 inch wide x 0.0159 inch thick.

Repair job 5740. Polish pivots, install 16 bushings.

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The American tambour mantel clock was very popular in the 1920s and 1930s. This example by Seth Thomas is a classic that uses the reliable No. 89 movement. It strikes the hour and half hour and is an 8-day clock (intended to be wound every 7 days, but will often run 14 days on a winding).

The case is 9 1/4 inches tall and 19 1/2 inches wide. The dial is aluminum with printed markings. The minute track is 4 5/8 inches diameter, and the minute hand is 2 5/16 inches long.

The pendulum bob is 45.3 mm diameter, and weighs 5.4 ounces.

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Repair job 5697. Pivots polished, 12 bushings, new time mainspring (3/4 x 0.0163 x 120 inches – R & M 77.303).

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This small round-top Seth Thomas mantel clock uses the no. 48-R round movement, 8-day time and strike with rack and snail striking (so it won’t get out of synchronization). The mahogany case is 10 3/8 inches tall and 7 3/16 inches wide. The white enamel dial has a 4 1/2 inch minute track, and the minute hand is 2 3/16 inches long.

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Repair job 5673. Polish pivots, 12 bushings, re-stake strike gear #4 on its hub, install new wires in S4 pinion, straighten 2 bent pivots.

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The owners of this clock received it as a wedding gift in 1955, and were dismayed when the clock stopped working during a thunderstorm. It needed cleaning, pivot polishing and two bushings. The coil smelled burnt, and I was lucky to find a good used replacement. The fiber gear had several damaged teeth, so I replaced that as well.

The clock has a walnut case and is 5 1/8 inch tall, and 5 5/8 inches wide at the feet.

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Repair job 5680.

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This wooden case time only wall clock is labeled “Plymouth” on the dial but was made by Seth Thomas. The time-only pendulum movement appears to use some parts from their no. 124 chiming clock movement. The case is 14 5/8 inches tall and 9 5/8 inches wide. The minute hand is 2 3/8 inches long, and the minute track on the dial is 3 3/4 inches diameter.

The pendulum weighs 3.2 ounces, and is 6 1/2 inches long overall. The pendulum cylinder (bob) is brass, 1 15/16 inches long and 5/8 inches diameter.

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Repair job 5668.

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This Seth Thomas mantel clock from about 1910 – 1920 has an Adamantine (celluloid) wood-grain finish. The movement is marked “89″ and has bim-bam striking on the hour and a single tone strike (the high note only) on the half-hour. The case is 19 7/8  inches wide and 9 1/2 inches tall. The dial is silvered brass with printed numerals and a 4 7/16 inch diameter minute track. The minute hand is 2 3/8 inches long.

I cleaned the movement, polished the pivots, and installed 13 bushings. The pendulum rod and pendulum bob were previous replacements. The clock was losing time, so I shortened the pendulum rod by 3/8 inch.

I replaced the time mainspring because it was causing wear to the mainwheel teeth. I intended to keep the original strike mainspring, but it broke after cleaning and lubrication, as I was winding it into the clamp for re-assembly. The original mainsprings have the following measurements:

Time: 3/4 wide by 0.0185 inch thick (thicker than usual for a Seth Thomas No. 89 movement)

Strike: 3/4 inch by  0.017 to 0.0172 inch thick).

The replacement mainsprings are no. 280-19-003 from Colonial Clock Co., and have the following measurements:

Time: 3/4 inch wide by 0.0158 – 0.016 inch thick by 120 inches long

Strike: 3/4 inch wide by 0.0162 inch thick by 120 inches long.

The movement is a variation on the basic No. 89 having bim-bam strike. It was made before Seth Thomas started giving different model number to variations on the basic movement.

Here is a video showing the pendulum motion and the striking:

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Repair job 5640.

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This Seth Thomas tambour mantel clock has a heavy brass dial that is engraved and silver plated. It was made around 1910 – 1920. The hands are the modern “ST” style, with the minute hand having an “S” at the base and the hour hand having a “T”. A different style of ST hands were used back in the 1860s.

The case is 19 1/2 inches wide and 9 1/4 inches tall. The minute hand is 2 5/16 inches long. The movement is the no. 89J. It is similar to the standard no. 89, with the addition of a two-piece back plate.

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I did limited repair on the movement, cleaning it, polishing a few pivots and installing 3 bushings. Three screw-in bushings had been installed in the past, these are not good to use, but some repairers use them because they could be installed without dismantling the movement. The screw-in bushings are large and ugly.

The original mansprings are the following sizes:

Time: 3/4 x 0.0165 inch

Strike: 3/4 by 0.0161 inch

The pendulum bob is gold painted lead, 1 3/4 inch diameter, weight 5.4 ounces.

Repair job 5586.

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