55 electric clock

delco1946

delco1946

Senior Member
Hi all, I have a question regarding my 55 electric dash clock. It’s always worked perfectly, but in the last day I’ve discovered it seems to be either not working or working very slowly ( suddenly). This could also be an intermittent thing. I hear ticking like normal but not sure what to do at this point. Is there anyway to diagnose what’s wrong? Could it just be dirty and need cleaning? Oil to lubricate? I am not interested in converting it to a different style- I try to keep everything stock. Thanks for the tips!
 
If ya don't mind spending around $200, you could take it out of the dash and send it to one of a number of auto instrument rebuilders. They can restore the clock both mechanically and aesthetically for you.
I have used Instrument Services Inc. in the past, but have grown fond of Williamsons Instruments Inc.
 

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In my 54 Ford I took it out and apart from the cover, then used low pressure air to blow
out the dust (25 PSI), then cleaned the points and sprayed it liberally with WD 40.
Put it back together, and it has been working fine for about 6 months now.

Did have to adjust it a couple of times from running fast.
 
Thanks for the tips. I don’t know what clock points are so that suggests I’m in the camp to send it out for repair :D. I’ll look up Williamson and see what they offer.
 
delco1946 said:
Thanks for the tips. I don’t know what clock points are so that suggests I’m in the camp to send it out for repair :D. ...
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The early-ish clocks are actually run by a spring wound mechanism. As the spring runs down an internal switch closes and turns on a small motor which winds the spring, then the motor shuts off.
 
delco1946 said:
Thanks for the tips. I don’t know what clock points are so that suggests I’m in the camp to send it out for repair :D. I’ll look up Williamson and see what they offer.
Click to expand...

If you open it up you will see with ease the points. That is the single most cause for failure in those clocks and the easiest to fix. Just a set of points open to the atmosphere that get corroded after time.
 
I opened the clock but I don’t see anything that is “obviously points”. The clock looks incredibly clean so I’m not sure what I could do to clean it. Are points in the wiring portion or the clock gearing portion?
 
Not sure if I’ve figured out how the electric part works but it seems like my problem is more to do with the clock mechanism, it doesn’t seem to be moving as friction-free as it should.
 
Couple of pictures of the points in a 58 Edsel clock. The internals may look a little different but there is a set of points that close to pull a spring winder. When they close the solenoid pulls the winder and they open until the spring is ready to be wound again.
 

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There are two different '55 clocks, one electric and one windup. I have a couple of the electric clocks (including the one original to my '55 that my parents bought new) and one wind-up.
 
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