ClockInfo.com » schatz http://clockinfo.com Commentary about clock repair and clock history from Bill's Clockworks and ClockHistory.com Fri, 20 Jan 2012 11:38:23 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 Schatz 1000 Day Clock, 1956, with 1959 Presentation Plate http://clockinfo.com/posts/4251 http://clockinfo.com/posts/4251#comments Sat, 14 Jan 2012 20:49:36 +0000 Bill Stoddard http://clockinfo.com/?p=4251 I recently repaired this Schatz 1000 day clock. It is dated 10 56 (October 1956) on the back of the movement, and the front of the base has a presentation plate dated February 8, 1959. The picture on the right, below, shows the gears and the mainspring barrel. Note how large the barrel is compared to the other gears!

IMG_1433 IMG_1427 (2) The gears in the movement

See more photos.

Repair job 5647. 0.0024 inch Horolovar suspension spring. Horolovar back plate no. 1010A.

]]> http://clockinfo.com/posts/4251/feed 3 Schatz Diamond Dial 400 Day Clock with Hole in Dome http://clockinfo.com/posts/4238 http://clockinfo.com/posts/4238#comments Sat, 14 Jan 2012 20:14:19 +0000 Bill Stoddard http://clockinfo.com/?p=4238 This Schatz standard-sized 400 day clock with diamond-shaped dial is dated 7 53 (July 1953) on the back of the movement. This clock has a glass dome with a hole in the top that fits over the brass handle. The base has brass leveling discs. The movement has two jewels (bearings), an uncommon feature in Schatz standard 400 day clocks (but all the Schatz miniature clocks have two jewels). This movement also has an extra mainspring on gear T4 (the 4th wheel in the gear train). It is visible in the left photo below. This is a very weak mainspring, and was used on a relatively small number of clocks. They found that it gave no improvement in performance.

IMG_1460 IMG_1452 IMG_1445

See more photos.

Job 5650. Horolovar back plate 1287. 0.004 inch thick suspension spring.

 

]]> http://clockinfo.com/posts/4238/feed 0 Schatz “London Coach” 400 Day Clock, March 1956 http://clockinfo.com/posts/4150 http://clockinfo.com/posts/4150#comments Wed, 07 Dec 2011 12:51:20 +0000 Bill Stoddard http://clockinfo.com/?p=4150 Here is a nice example of the Schatz “London Coach” 400 day clock. This one is dated 3 56 (March 1956) on the back of the movement.

I disassembled and cleaned the movement and polished the pivots. I replaced the suspension spring with a new Horolovar 0.0024 inch thick spring (note that I used a 0.0024, not a 0.0023, as discussed in “Suspension Springs for Schatz and Kundo Miniature 400 Day Clocks”

IMG_0966 IMG_0956 Before restoration

I polished and lacquered the brass case parts except for the back panel.

See more photos.

Repair job 5638.

]]> http://clockinfo.com/posts/4150/feed 0 Schatz Bird & Leaf Cuckoo Clock – Light Color Shaded Finish http://clockinfo.com/posts/4039 http://clockinfo.com/posts/4039#comments Fri, 30 Sep 2011 10:00:22 +0000 Bill Stoddard http://clockinfo.com/?p=4039 I recently repaired this Schatz cuckoo clock. It has the KU50 movement, and the case is the bird and leaf style with light color shaded finish. See my previous post, Four Schatz Cuckoo Clocks, for some other case styles. The top piece of the case isn’t shown in the photos.

 

IMG_0651 IMG_0654 IMG_0648

Dimensions: Height (no top) 11 1/4 inches, width 8 1/16 inches, dial diameter (black part) 2 7/8 inches.

See more photos.

Repair job 5571. I polished the pivots and installed 15 bushings.

]]> http://clockinfo.com/posts/4039/feed 2 Schatz 1000 Day Clock from 1956 with Original Instructions http://clockinfo.com/posts/4030 http://clockinfo.com/posts/4030#comments Thu, 29 Sep 2011 23:38:08 +0000 Bill Stoddard http://clockinfo.com/?p=4030 I recently repaired this Schatz 1000 day clock. It is dated 10 56 (October 1956) on the rear of the movement.

This clock has its original instruction sheet, with both English and German instructions

Schatz 1000 Day Clock Dated 10 56 (October 1956) Front Page of Instruction Sheet Illustrations

See more photos.

Repair job 5559.

]]> http://clockinfo.com/posts/4030/feed 2 Copper, Nickel and Brass 400 Day Clocks http://clockinfo.com/posts/3818 http://clockinfo.com/posts/3818#comments Wed, 31 Aug 2011 12:13:07 +0000 Bill Stoddard http://clockinfo.com/?p=3818 Most 400 day clocks have a round brass base that is polished and lacquered.

Some nickel-plated 400 day clocks were made. These are uncommon, and I see only 1 or 2 of these per year in my repair shop.

I recently repaired a copper plated Schatz 400 day clock! It is the only one I have ever seen.

IMG_0155 IMG_0154 IMG_0153 IMG_0152

The photos above show 3 examples for comparison: a Kundo standard with nickel finish (uncommon), a Schatz standard with copper plated finish (rare), and a Kundo standard with brass base (the most common 400 day clock)

]]> http://clockinfo.com/posts/3818/feed 0 Schatz Copper Plated 400 Day Clock http://clockinfo.com/posts/3756 http://clockinfo.com/posts/3756#comments Wed, 31 Aug 2011 11:39:45 +0000 Bill Stoddard http://clockinfo.com/?p=3756 This is the most unusal Schatz 400 day clock I’ve seen – it has a copper plated finish. It is the only one I’ve see in all my years of collecting and repairing clocks. When the clock came in for repair, the finish on the base had been damaged by attempted polishing. The movement and bezel still looked good!

I sent the following parts to Ken’s Clock Clinic for replating:

  • Pendulum parts: hook, 8 half-ball covers, 4 arms, regulator assembly, decorative washer and center assembly;
  • Case parts: 2 pillars, 4 pillar ends, platform, base cup, base cup screw, base, 3 finials.

The movement plates, suspension guard, guard washers, ratchet, ratchet cock, ratchet cock washer, bezel, saddle, saddle washer, saddle bridge, plate washers are copper plated. The hand nut, gear train and motion work are not copper plated.

This clock was made around 1940 or 1950. The dial has no maker’s name, and the pack plate says Jahresuhrenfabrik 49 Germany in a circle.

IMG_0278 IMG_0283 The parts as received from being copper plated by Ken's Clock Clinic IMG_0225 IMG_0218 Nickel, copper and brass 400 day clocks

I didn’t clean the movment plates in cleaning fluid for fear of damaging the lacquer or the copper plating. I pegged and smooth broached the pivot holes to clean them. The movment is identified in the Horolovar 400 day clock book as plate no. 1278.

See more pictures.

I thank Ken of Ken’s Clock Clinic for taking on this plating project. The base was especially challenging to do.

Repair job 5073.

]]> http://clockinfo.com/posts/3756/feed 1 Four Schatz Cuckoo Clocks http://clockinfo.com/posts/3637 http://clockinfo.com/posts/3637#comments Fri, 19 Aug 2011 20:06:08 +0000 Bill Stoddard http://clockinfo.com/?p=3637 I recently repaired 3 Schatz cuckoo clocks, and have photos of another I repaired several years ago. These examples show 4 case styles: maple leaf, hunting, oak leaf and multi-color. An earlier post shows the movement and gears of the Schatz hunting model cuckoo clock.

Schatz introduced their cuckoo clock movement in 1950, and probably made cuckoo clocks up until the late 1950s or early 1960s.

The movements are the same design, but I noticed some variations:

  • There are 2 different logo circles on the back plate. The earlier ones say: ”Jahresuhrenfabrik Germany” around the circle and “50″ in the center.  The later ones say: “Aug. Schatz & Sohne Germany” around the circle, and “KU 50″ in the center.
  • One of the “50″ movements has a brass lever to open and close the cuckoo door, the others have a blued steel lever.
  • The clocks with “50″ movements had lighter weights that clocks with the “KU 50″ movement. See bottom of article for a list of weights.

See a Schatz sales brochure that shows 2 models of cuckoo clock.

See more photos of the maple leaf cuckoo clock (has a “50″ movement).

See more photos of the hunting cuckoo clock ((has a “50″ movement).

See more photos of the oak leaf cuckoo clock (has a “KU 50″ movement).

See more photos of the multi-color cuckoo clock (has a “KU 50″ movement).

(Three of them don’t have their top piece in the pictures.)

Maple leaf cuckoo clock Hunting cuckoo clock Oak leaf cuckoo clock Multicolor cuckoo clock Brass name plate "Schatz 8 Day" Schatz cuckoo clock movement Rear plate of movement says "Jahresuhrenfabrik Germany 50" in a circle Rear plate of the movement says "Aug. Schatz & Sohne Germany KU 50" in a circle

I measured the chains on the multi-color clock: 42 links per foot, 1.2 mm wire diameter.

Weights:

  • Maple leaf cuckoo clock: about 2 pounds 12 ounces each.
  • Hunting model cuckoo clock: 2 pounds 12 ounces and 2 pounds 14 ounces.
  • Oak leaf cuckoo clock: 3 pounds 5 ounces and 3 pounds 6 ounces.
  • Multi-color cuckoo clock: 3 pounds 4 ounces and 3 pounds 5 ounces.

I believe the above list is in chronological order, it seems that Schatz used heavier weights for later clocks.

The Schatz is different from most cuckoos in that there are separate controls for door and bird – bird goes in and out with each cuckoo while the door stays open. Here is a video showing this:

Repair jobs 4492, 5325, 5537 and 5351

]]> http://clockinfo.com/posts/3637/feed 1 Schatz Square Dial 400 Day Clock, 1953 http://clockinfo.com/posts/3625 http://clockinfo.com/posts/3625#comments Tue, 16 Aug 2011 23:37:44 +0000 Bill Stoddard http://clockinfo.com/?p=3625 I recently repaired this square dial Schatz 400 day clock made in November 1953. I cleaned the movement, polished the pivots and the anchor pin, and replaced the suspension spring. These clocks use a 0.004 inch thick Horolovar suspension spring. I also polished and lacquered the base and pillars. The square dial clock is not as common as the round dial model.

Schatz square dial 400 day clock IMG_9933 IMG_9938

See more photos.

Repair job 5518.

]]> http://clockinfo.com/posts/3625/feed 0 Schatz Standard No Name 400 Day Clock, ca. 1949, with Instructions http://clockinfo.com/posts/3500 http://clockinfo.com/posts/3500#comments Mon, 04 Jul 2011 12:00:32 +0000 Bill Stoddard http://clockinfo.com/?p=3500 This Schatz (Jahresuhernfabrik) standard size 400 day clock was made around 1949 – 1950. It has some differences from those made around 1950 – 1951. The “early” features include:

  • No name on the dial;
  • short sliding tube on suspension guard;
  • the dial is secured with taper pins (instead of collars with screw);
  • the minute wheel is held by a cock instead of a screw, and the canon pinion is larger in diameter than the later style.
Schatz Setup 02 Schatz Setup 01 Schatz Devon Sales Notes IMG_9651 IMG_9646 IMG_9645

This clock has its original instruction sheets.

The single sheet appears to have been hand typed, and is signed “Devon Sales Company, Devon, Connecicut”

The 4 page instructions were printed in Germany and contain both German and English text. They contain the heading “Directions for setting up ORIGINAL SCHATZ 400 day lever clock” The instructions explain raising the sliding tube on the suspension guard, hanging and starting the pendulum, the purpose of the cup in the base, how to tell if the clock is out of beat, how to adjust the beat, and regulating the clock. The instructions don’t cover winding and setting the clock, perhaps they assumed that people already knew how to wind and set a clock (which was probably true in 1950!)

See more photos.

Repair job 5494.

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