C2 Clock Restoration

[Roger P.]

The clock on my '65 has the typical issues: it works intermittently, and the face & hands are somewhat faded. I will not be having my car judged, so I decided to replace the old movement with a new quartz movement as I don't want the potential of an electrical fire (of course, I will keep the old one in my box of "oldies but goodies"). However, what should I do about the face and hands? I see that Zip offers a replacement face for $ 40.00, the hands for $ 45.00, and the quartz movement for $ 79.95. This seems a lot easier and cheaper than silk screening & painting as long as the replacement items are of good quality. I will check the lens, shaft stem, spring, etc. to make sure that I don't need to replace any of these miscellaneous parts as well. Am I going about this correctly, or is there a better approach?

Your suggestions are appreciated,
Roger Piper (50141)

[Donald T.]

Re: C2 Clock Restoration

Roger,

For the kind of money you are talking about spending, why not spend a little more and just get a repro clock for $299? That would save a lot of time and hassle.

[Louis T.]

Re: C2 Clock Restoration

Hi Roger,



Louis

[Joel T.]

Re: C2 Clock Restoration

The clock on my '65 has the typical issues: it works intermittently, and the face & hands are somewhat faded. I will not be having my car judged, so I decided to replace the old movement with a new quartz movement as I don't want the potential of an electrical fire (of course, I will keep the old one in my box of "oldies but goodies"). However, what should I do about the face and hands? I see that Zip offers a replacement face for $ 40.00, the hands for $ 45.00, and the quartz movement for $ 79.95. This seems a lot easier and cheaper than silk screening & painting as long as the replacement items are of good quality. I will check the lens, shaft stem, spring, etc. to make sure that I don't need to replace any of these miscellaneous parts as well. Am I going about this correctly, or is there a better approach?

Your suggestions are appreciated,
Roger Piper (50141)

Roger,

I would check, but I think you will loose points with a quartz movement versus the original...

Joel

[John H.]

Re: C2 Clock Restoration

Roger,

I would check, but I think you will loose points with a quartz movement versus the original...

Joel

Yup, all 25 of them - that's a big hit.

[David D.]

Re: C2 Clock Restoration

Roger,
I had my entire cluster, all gauges, and clock retored by Bill and couldn't be happier. If you decide on the Quartz movement, he'll return your mechanical. Your clock will look at act like it did on day 1.

Doesn't cost anything to call him and inquire.... (561) 676-3099

http://www.harrisonspeedometer.com/

Good luck in what ever you decide....
David

[Gary B.]

Clock deducts; Ops vs. Interior

John,

I assume the 25-pt deduct for a quartz clock is during the operations judging. Would there be an addition deduct during interior judging, or is quartz vs. mechanical function not part of the interior judging line item?

Gary

[Mark W.]

Re: C2 Clock Restoration

Roger stated he wasn't having his car judged, so the points deduction is not relevent to him.

[Roger P.]

Re: C2 Clock Restoration

Don, Louis, Joel, John, David, Gary, and Mark:
Thank you all for your excellent suggestions. There are certainly a few ways to approach the clock restoration. As Mark stated, I will not be having my car judged - other than by my friends and myself (I can be tougher than NCRS judges) . My gauges look pretty good; about a 7.5 on a 1-10 scale. However, the clock is about a 5 and doesn't work most of the time. Louis is right, it could be annoying if the clock looks "too good" compared to the other gauges. I will consider the quick and easy fix that Louis suggested at this time which would cost next to nothing and, if necessary, simply replacing the movement with an original or quartz via restoration parts. However, I would prefer that the clock also looked a little better. Therefore, per David's suggestion, I will contact Bill to see what he recommends and how much he would charge. I am located just south of Hollywood, Florida, and Bill is conveniently only about an hour north on I-95 - a perfect excuse to take my baby for a topless cruise !

Thanks again,
Roger (50141)

[John H.]

Re: Clock deducts; Ops vs. Interior

John,

I assume the 25-pt deduct for a quartz clock is during the operations judging. Would there be an addition deduct during interior judging, or is quartz vs. mechanical function not part of the interior judging line item?

Gary

Gary -

The 25-point deduction would be in Operations judging - Interior judging only assesses its appearance.

[Jack H.]

Re: Clock deducts; Ops vs. Interior

And, quite often, interior judges work in the 'dark' with the car's battery cutoff switch thown open. So, they wouldn't see the second hand in motion nor hear the absense of the mainspring cocking solenoid.

Yep, with a quartz movement expect to lose 25 points in an Operations Check and automatically fail a Performance Verification Test. But, you will NOT fail a Founder's Operations Check where the judging rule interpretation is MUCH more lenient...

[Roger P.]

C2 Clock Restoration

Last month I posted that I wanted to restore my "less than functional" and "tired" looking clock, but wasn't sure how to approach the task. I got some very good advice that ranged from a minimal DIY fix to buying a reproduction clock. I took David Duell's advice and contacted Bill Harrison of Harrison Speedometer (561-676-3099) to get a price on restoring my original clock. David, you made an excellent recommendation -- I can't thank you enough ! Bill is a true gentlemen, does excellent work, his pricing is very fair, and he provided me with a fast turn-around time. My clock looks brand new! He also restores individual gauges and complete instrument clusters. Check out his website at www.harrisonspeedometer.com. I highly recommend him to all NCRS members in need of clock and instrument restoration. Since he is located relatively close to me in South Florida, I brought my clock to him in person, and had the pleasure of meeting David there as well. Both are great guys, and we spent some time talking about (give it some thought) -- you're right... our beloved Corvettes !! Thank you NCRS members for your continued advice and support. Now I'm not only cruisin' in style, but I'm also on time looking sharp .

Happy cruisin',
Roger Piper (50141)

[David D.]

Re: C2 Clock Restoration

Roger,
Glad to see you are happy with Bill's work. Like I said, he restored my clock, cluster and all the gauges, and I haven't stopped smilin yet.

Looking forward to seeing you at some future Corvette event.
David