Repairing '65 T-Bird clock

[JamesR]

My impression is that most people think it's pointless to try to repair a clock in an old car. But is it? I have my clock/map light housing off while I'm doing some other stuff in there, and I thought, "Should I try it?" The videos I've seen claim it's an electro-mechnical set up, which I guess makes sense for a car of that era that gets driven fairly regularly.

Any idea what the success rate of repairing a '65 T-Bird clock is? Any idea what the most common culprit in non-function is? Parts available?

Thanks.

[RedBird64]

It sure doesn't cost anything to give it a close examination and thorough cleaning. That may be all it needs!

Years ago I bought a replacement from a TBird junkyard. I picked out the nicest one (even the insides were mint) and they tested it. It worked great!
That was until I put it in the housing and found out why the insides were like-new. Turns out the second had was too long and hit the housing, litterally stopping the clock!
I snipped the end of the second hand and it's been working great ever since (well OK, it keeps terrible time).

I rather like the nostalgic clunk the old clock makes everytime it winds itself. Gives you a real feeling of how these things worked before electronics made our lives "better".

Scott

[cacockrum]

I’ve had good luck getting the clocks in my ‘66s working reliably. The clock rewinds itself every minute or two when a set of internal points close and make contact. This activates a mechanism that rewinds the spring and opens the points again. The issue that I find is that after enough closings and openings the points become burned and no longer work. A careful redressing of the points has fixed the problem for me, after which the clock keeps pretty good time.

Art

[Dansbirds]

I like the idea that if it’s in the car it needs to work. Not that I don’t have multiple ways to tell time between watch, phone, etc. but I get some silly gratification from seeing it work. I sent my clock to a clock repair guy for my 65 and paid dearly to have it fixed. Not sure if auto clocks are the same internally but on another forum I’m on for my corvette a guy stated he fixed his clock by cleaning it with WD40. I couldn’t tell you if it’s a permanent fix but my corvette clock has worked now for the past 2 years for the cost of a can of wd40.

[JamesR]

Thanks a bunch for the replies, guys. Scott, what's your definition of keeping terrible time? Do you suspect that your clock is performing somewhere near what it was new...did they all keep terrible time back then?

Art, I don't suppose new contact points are available?

Dansbirds, would I be too bold in asking how much it cost, or at least for the contact info of the person who did the repair? How well does your clock keep time?

The reason I ask is because several years ago I inherited a couple of old wind up mechanical watches. I took them in for repair and cleaning. One keeps time amazingly well - about a minute slow after several days of running. It is possible to have mechanical timepieces work good, but of course I wouldn't expect that kind of accuracy from my car clock. But if my end result is an hour off after only a day, I may not bother with a repair, at least at this point in time. The other watch I inherited was off maybe five or ten minutes after a day or so of running. That would be acceptable. Just want to get a general idea of what to expect, no guarantees of course.

[David Langhorne]

I found my clock was beyond repair with elongated holes where the bearings went so I fitted a quartz conversion. I can thoroughly recommend it - supplied by Instrument Services Inc. The number is S-3015 and I think I got if off ebay. Has kept perfect time for over 2 years now and cost $82 plus shipping. Very easy to fit with good instruction leaflet and DVD. Don't see any point in keeping it original when no-one can tell the difference.

[paulr]

The issue that I find is that after enough closings and openings the points become burned and no longer work. A careful redressing of the points has fixed the problem for me, after which the clock keeps pretty good time.

Art

I've repaired a few clocks and the point made above has always been the issue. The question of buying new points is unnecessary. A fine file and very gentle hand will restore the points in a about a minute. I imagine if you'd hire a clock maker to replace the points it would run the bill way up. At the risk of stepping on toes I'll advise against using WD40 on this clock. The movement and mainspring in these clocks is very fine and very delicate. Compressed air and pressure sprays of any kind can cause damage. WD40 is far too oily for the movement; dirt will be attracted which will clog things over time. Eventually, it will cause the clock to stop and cleaning will be very difficult. The movement is solid brass and requires very little lubrication. Real clock oil is used and is applied with a hypodermic needle. The movement has oil sinks--spots where oil is to be specifically placed by the droplet.

[JamesR]

by David Langhorne » Sun Dec 22, 2019 12:31 pm
I found my clock was beyond repair with elongated holes where the bearings went so I fitted a quartz conversion. I can thoroughly recommend it - supplied by Instrument Services Inc. The number is S-3015 and I think I got if off ebay. Has kept perfect time for over 2 years now and cost $82 plus shipping. Very easy to fit with good instruction leaflet and DVD. Don't see any point in keeping it original when no-one can tell the difference.

Thanks for that, Dave. That's certainly a possibility, too. Depending on how usable an original T bird clock is as a clock, your option might be the most workable.

I got my sequential turn signal flasher to work correctly, only to have it stop working again after a few miles. Since my since my directional and stop light relays were non-original electronic units, I said, "what the heck" and ordered the Cougar's Unlimited all-in-one unit. My turn signals have worked correctly since then and I haven't looked back.

I really do like original - I'm having the factory tube radio from my old Mercury rebuilt at greater cost than a more practical modern unit. But I don't want to pursue originality at all costs, both financial and practical.

[RedBird64]

Even though I've had my car for decades, I don't have much of an idea how well they kept time. When I got the car my clock was kaput. Lived with it that way for many years before replacing it and then I didn't ever drive it as a daily driver after that. The car could set for weeks (or more) before I got back in it and then it would be hours off. While I do drive it more often now, it always seems to be at least an hour and a half off. If I park the car for more than a couple of days, I disconnect the battery.
According to the owners manual, adjusting it what ever direction its off will make it run slower or faster but looking at it's internals, that seems like a lot of hooey.
Maybe someone else can comment on how well their clock keeps time.

S

[paulr]

Scott, I was told by a clock shop repairman that these clocks were designed to run continuously. This is not a comment on whether or not someone chooses to do so is right or wrong. I don't begin to understand what might be implied in his statement. Mine probably does lose about a minute every month or so given a chance to run straight, if I had to guess an average. My modern digital truck clock has lost 1-2 minutes every month for the last 9 years. That makes no sense to me whatsoever. It is Chinese, of course.

[JamesR]

Mine probably does lose about a minute every month or so given a chance to run straight, if I had to guess an average.

That's absolutely fantastic, Paul. If that's a possibility, I think I might give this a try, per your recommendations (thanks for those, BTW.) Don't know how soon I'll get to it, though, with the holidays. The map light enclosure is very easy to take off and put on, so not a big deal.

[JBird66]

I took mine out and simply oiled it with nano clock oil... you could perhaps use sewing machine oil. Being a clock collector ... I'll echo what Paul said...please do not use WD40 on a clock of any kind unless of course its a quartz ..don't really care then. Mine runs a little fast and will need to have the hairspring adjusted but its back in the car now. If you can I would run it outside the car for a while to see if it keeps time properly ...unfortunately i don't think there was a simple lever for adjustment as you would find on a pocket watch so that adjustment would need to be made at the hair spring ..and if that is the case you're going to need to be very gentle and careful and make sure none of the tools you are using are magnetized.

[David Langhorne]

The original clocks are self adjusting. If you keep resetting it every day it will eventually keep good time - at least that's the theory.

[JamesR]

Thanks Joe and Dave. Lots of good info. I'll attempt the clock repair when my other T Bird projects are complete. Sounds like there some simple non-invasive measures to take first.

[Terry64HT]

Re Paul's post a couple back....the points arc every time they spring open, watch them in a dark room. When the field collapses in a relay coil, there is a voltage spike that can be several hundred volts every time. This is a main cause of burnt points. A simple fix is to put a flyback diode across the coil. Very easy to do and will extend the life of the points enormously.
As far as adjusting the clocks go, moving the hands less than about 10 minutes has no effect except to change the time. Adjusting more than that will cause the mechanism to change. With a bit of patience, the clock will run correctly.
Terry
64HT