Three Schatz Clocks

         Here is the last Schatz ship's bell clock, and, in my opinion, the best. I have not seen one of these clocks for years, so these are obviously quite rare.

Fig. 1

         The layout is simple and elegant.

Fig. 2

         The mainsprings are smaller than what you find in most clocks. This clock requires less power to run. The mainsprings can be removed easily, without taking the entire mechanism apart, a terrific design feature found in most modern clocks.

Fig. 3

         The gears are smaller than in most clocks, and are clustered together in a very small space.

Fig. 4

         What makes this Schatz one of the best clocks is its escapement platform. Few escapements are better in design or quality of construction.

Fig. 5

         I decided to take photos of the platform in various stages of disassembly, so that everyone could see it.

Fig. 6

         This platform is as good as a Chelsea, in my opinion, for a fraction of the cost.

Fig. 7

         This platform was designed to be cleaned without disassembly in an ultrasonic cleaning machine for watches. I disagree strongly with this approach because the oil may solidify and not be loosened in the cleaning machine. In this particular platform, for example, the jewels for the escape wheel and pallets could not be cleaned with a wooden toothpick because the oil residue was so hard and stuck in place. I had to scrape the oil away with a small screwdriver. There is no way an ultrasonic machine could clean this away.

Fig. 8

         You could leave the platform in the cleaning solution for a long time to loosen the hardened oil by chemical action. In about 48 hours, the platform would be clean. However, the cleaning solution would dissolve the shellac and so the roller jewel would fall out, a very undesirable outcome.

Fig. 9

         The same is true for the oil in the rest of the clock. Every clock needs to be taken apart to be serviced properly.