Expert: Martin Meyer - 8/1/2008

Question
Is there any way I can make a quartz clock run slower on purpose?
Thanks

Answer
Hi Catherine,

I apologize for the delay in getting back to you.

The short answer is "no".

Quartz movements send electricity through a quartz crystal, which oscillates at a specific, predetermined frequency as a result. A computer chip in the movement reads the number of oscillations per second, then uses a "divider circuit" to repeatedly halve the number of oscillations until it produces an output of one oscillation per second. This output then causes a stepping motor to move once per second (in the case of analog clocks), or an LCD screen to update its display once per second (in the case of digital clocks).

Because the oscillations per second of the quartz crystal is not adjustable, there is no way to substantially change the rate of the clock. On a few high-grade watches (and possibly clocks) there is an adjusting screw which can very slightly change the rate of the movement, but this is only on the order of a few seconds per week or per month. http://www.clockmasteronline.com