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Clocks, Watches/Jauch movement replacement

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Expert: - 12/24/2011


Question
Back of movement
Back of movement  
Dear Mr Newman,



I have an Emperor kit clock with a pinch waist (12" inside) and a movement which says it was made by Jauch and has the number 110  73. From what I can gather from the Web and the response from Emperor it is considered the same as a Jauch 77.  The case might be an Emperor Cambridge 300. Emperor recommends using one of two cable drive replacement kits but my wife prefers the looks of the chain drive. At this point I have ordered a new suspension spring and plan to play with it awhile, but will probably end up replacing the movement.

One online clock repair/dealer recommends using a Hermle 1151 050H/94 and his conversion kit. My concern is that the size of my current Jauch is  9 1/8" wide x 6 3/4" high x 8 1/4" from hand-shaft to the back of the chime casting block, considerably larger than the Hermle unit. Other dimensions would seem to require extensive modification to the chime block/sounding board, and change the relationship of the front plate to the dial. The Jauch has a 53mm handshaft.

From your online responses it seems there are other conversions available that you recommend. What do you recommend and how complex and expensive would the conversion be?

I first sent an email to your shop but decided it might be of interest to others.

Thank you for your attention to this matter and for the interesting online advise on allexperts.com.

Jim Brennan

Answer
Hi, Jim.  The movement you have is not the Jauch 77 but one of a series called the Pendel 110.  This, and all Jauch movements have not been manufactured for quite a while, as Jauch is no longer in business.  There are a couple of problems in converting to a cable drive and that is that winding holes would have to be punched in the existing dial or a new dial would have to be purchased.  Also the weights would have to be increased, as the cable drives with pulleys require more weight to run.  I can get you the information on a conversion movement for your clock, which would have a chain drive.  However, I will be on vacation for a week and not have complete information until I return to my shop after the first of the year.  Since I do have your email address, I will contact you in a couple of days from my laptop as I will be out of state.  If I haven't contacted you by Tuesday evening, email me again.  I will do some research and then at least give you an idea of what it will involve and can give you some more details then.  This conversion is done often with the conversion kits available.

John Newman
The Village Clocksmith
Old Prattvillage
Prattville, Alabama  

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John Newman

Expertise

As much as I would like to offer values of clocks, I am not a certified appraiser and will not venture into giving an unresearched guess. There is very little published information on what I consider to be the value of "modern production clocks". Considerations are what the clock originally sold for, the condition of the case and movement, and particularly the area in which you live, the demand and the economy. ALSO, WATCHES ARE NOT MY FIELD. However, I can advise the clock owner on proper maintenance of a clock to keep it running, small corrections and adjustments and how to move a clock without damaging it. I can also advise on obtaining parts for clocks. It helps if you can send any information on the clock movement which is usually found on the back plate of the movement. I have been a clockmaker for about 35 years and was plant engineer in the mid 90's and later operations and engineering consultant at Emperor Clock Company in Fairhope, Alabama. I now have my own clock shop.

Experience

One of my greatest accomplishments was traveling to China to assist a clock factory in building clocks to the standards which we required. With the proper specifications and quality control, some beautiful clock cases were built. The factory people from the wood carvers to the plant manager were very congenial, friendly and I left a lot of wonderful friends when I returned from my trips.

Organizations
Chamber of Commerce Small Business Committee

Publications
Horological Times, a publication of the American Watch and Clockmakers Instute. Collaberated column author, with Photos and ideas for clock movement conversion article.

Education/Credentials
Associate of Science Mechanical Engineering Technology Emperor Introductory Clock Repair (Eventually taught a portion of the class after becoming employee)

Awards and Honors
Small Business of the Quarter (Prattville, Alabama) Leadership Class of 2009 (Autauga County, Alabama)

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