Q. "I have a Telechron chiming clock but I didn't see it on your web page. It says: (some various model, motor and/or patent info) on it.  Can you tell me some more about this clock?"

A. Any Telechron that chimes was really a Revere clock, made in Cincinnati, OH.  It probably says: "Telechron Motored" on it although a very, very few were labeled as "General Electric / Telechrons" with "Revere" appearing only on the movement itself.  Either way, ALL chiming "Telechrons" are really Reveres and that's why I don't put them on this Page.  I don't know as much as I guess I should know about Revere clocks.  I can tell you their insides are a radical departure from your everyday Telechron alarm clock or even the strike clocks.  If you've got a few alarm clocks under your belt and think you want to tackle repairing a Revere clock, think twice.  Apart from the rotor and coils, you won't find too much in there you recognize.  These clocks are actually MORE complex than a three-train chimer run by springs.  They have to use a single power source instead of three and the drive wheels must move in and out of the rotor's drive wheel as needed.  I honestly don't believe the average person could take apart and reassemble a Revere clock and get it to work right again, regardless of how earnest the effort.
 

Q. "Pappy, I can't get the set knob off my clock?  What do I do?"

A.  The chances are very good that the knob is reverse-threaded so you need to twist it CLOCK-wise to get it off.  Nearly all clocks from the Early Years and Dawn of Deco era have regular threads with the only exceptions being alarms.  (I think.)  If there is an arrow showing you the direction to turn the set knob, it's nearly certain you will unscrew the knob in the opposite direction.  After half a century, these knobs can be just about welded to their shafts and even a big guy like I'm can have trouble getting them off.  It's perfectly OK to use pliers.  Just make sure you don't chew the knobs up with them.  I protect the knob with a piece of suede before I grip it with pliers.  A good clocksmith should leave no trace he was ever in there; the surest sign of an amateur is wrecking an aluminum set knob with steel tools.  That said, it's always possible somebody was in there before you and your knob is a right-handed replacement (seen it).  When in doubt, try spinning it the other way.
 

Q. "My clock is A.) making noise B.) stopped  C.) losing time D.) some combination of A, B or C.   What's wrong?"

A.  It's almost certain that your clock needs a cleaning.  There's also a good probability you need a new rotor.  There's also a small chance that something else is broken on your clock.  See below.
 

Q. "My clock doesn't work (right). Where can I get it fixed?"

A. You need to find a good clocksmith. Ask your friends or ask antique shop owners who seem to have a lot of running clocks who they recommend. Don't trust anybody unless recommended by a close friend or relative.  If the guy tells you the clock can't be fixed, walk out.  If he offers to put in a quartz movement, run out!  Installing a quartz movement is to clock repair what taxidermy is to medicine.  You can get a rotor--see below.
 

Q. "My clock is gaining several hours a day.  What's wrong?

A.  It's got the wrong rotor in it.  Your clock must have been built for a zone that didn't use 60-cycle AC.  You're going to need a new rotor.
 

Q. "Where can a get a new motor/rotor for my clock?"

A. Telechron is out of business.  Let's get that clear up front.  Now, before they closed their doors (1992) they went nuts making rotors--zillions of them--then (I was told this) they destroyed their rotor machines forever.  By the end, B and H rotors were made like the S rotors had been.  That is, made of aluminum and nylon.  They weren't built to last 30+ years like the old rotors but they were really cheap to build as it was all automated (really-- all those rotors were hand-built at one time by ladies with little, teeny fingers...).  Anyway, clock supply houses bought all these rotors and raised their prices.  As people began to hoard them, the prices kept going up until now they cost about $35 - $55 each!  (In 1946, a good H rotor cost $2.15 and the time set knob for a 2H17 Minutemaster cost a dime--I just thought I'd say that.)  B rotors for most Telechrons are completely  unavailable.  If you manage to find a B rotor, it's probably going to be a solid shaft one made for Revere chiming clocks.   H rotors are still available but not for long.  These new, old-stock crummy rotors are almost gone so if you want one, you'll need to go a clock supply joint like www.timesavers.com or www.ronellclock.com.  They're pretty good.  Now there IS a technique I pioneered for bringing dead rotors back to life that really works (not for every rotor but it usually works).  That method is covered in Jim Linz' Telechron book, Electrifying Time.  If you aren't going to rehab your old, dead rotors, please sell them on Ebay or just store them away for future generations.

Remember: 3.6 RPM H rotors are an exact replacement for F rotors except for the long-pinioned rotors in the F-series alarms and in the two pendulum models, the 8H30 and 8H31 which were different.

A couple of companies are making a replacement "Telechron motor".  These are designed for chiming clocks--not Telechrons.  They supposedly have 20x the torque of a rotor (I have my doubts.  The one I looked at had nylon gears.) so they will chew up your clock before they stop.  George and I decided the best way to safely use these things were to grind the drive shaft almost completely through so it would snap off if it encountered a stoppage.  I'm not saying not to use these things, I'm saying to be careful.  Don't install them in a dirty clock--it'll just force the clock to wear itself out until it can go no more then POP, something's going to bust.
Contrary to the ad copy, they won't fit in every Revere/G.E. chimer.  I've seen two where the motor had to be reworked (not a small job) before the motor body would clear the chime gears.  It's certainly possible with the right tools to tap the end of the shaft and install a drive pinion so they could power B rotor Telechrons.  Please contact me if you have any experience with this.

Want your rotor rebuilt right?  Go to:  http://telechronclock.com/
Tell 'im Pappy sent you!

For some, the best way to get a new rotor is from another clock.  See below.
 

Q. "Where can I get parts for my Telechron clock?"

A. People asking this question really DO want to know if they can order a new dial for their 2H15 from somewhere.  That's so cute!  Unfortunately, (unless it's the best kept secret ever) there's nowhere to get Telechron parts except from other Telechrons.  The good news is that Telechron and GE models shared many parts.   The BAD news is that the parts most needed (cases and dials) aren't usually shared between models and it's usually the same stuff that's ruined on every clock.  For example, if you have a 7H125 Dispatcher with a big crack in the top (and you probably do), every damaged 7H125 you find will have damage to front case in some way.  That's life.
 

Q. "I'd like to find a model (some model) clock.  Can you sell me one or tell me where I can find one?"

A.  Telchron.net is not and will never be a commercial venture.  The site isn't here to make money and I will never sell clocks here.  I chose "telechron.net" and not "telechron.com" for a reason.  Because of Internet fair use laws, this allows me a little latitude to swipe pics to use on the site.  :-)

The best places to find Telechron and G-E clocks are (in order of economy):
1) yard, tag , garage sales
2) local flea market / swap meet
3) estate sales
4) live auctions
5) Ebay (this is also the most likely place to find a specific model)
6) "antique" or "event" flea markets
7) antique stores
8) antique malls (groups of several dealers all together under one roof)
9) on-line (Internet) antique store

Notice Ebay is right in the middle of this list.  It's not a co-incedence that Ebay prices, on average, are a good representation of the actual value of a clock.
 

Q. "(I just took my Telechron/GE clock apart.)  How do I clean/fix it?"

A.  It would be an insult to any real clocksmith if I thought I could instruct you on how to fix your clock in an email or in this FAQ.  If you're really serious, you should either buy an actual book on clock repair or sit down and figure it out for yourself.  My first ever clock repair was a 711 which I thought was the most complicated thing in the world.  Later, I was blessed with the chance to apprentice for a gifted and patient master clocksmith who showed me what a real complicated clock was and also that I was probably hopeless as a clocksmith.  Still, I get by and you can too with the right attitude and patience.  As much as I love them, Telechron and GE clocks aren't very complicated and they rarely need any "real" clocksmithing.  You can do this.  (Please remember, most set knobs on clocks built after 1932 are reverse-threaded.  You unscrew them clock-wise!!)
 

Q. "I have (some model).  What's it worth?"

A.  I don't ever, ever give appraisals.  Questions like this usually come in just like it says above.  No "hi".  No "I was wondering".  No "sincerely yours".  Very rude and most of these requests come from Ebay sellers wondering how much reserve to put on their clock.  These clocks are worth whatever you want to pay or they're worth whatever someone has just paid you for one.  Please don't ask me.
 

Q. "Will you fix my Telechron?"

A.   Now here's a more serious question.  I have repaired clocks for folks but I don't anymore except for the rare exception.  I honestly have 100 clocks in my basement (it's more but I can't admit it to myself) that need refinishing and fixing.  I just don't have the time anymore for outside work.  I DO recommend supporting your local clocksmith if he or she is any good.  Check around to see if they have a good reputation.  There's no excuse for bad clocksmithing (I see enough evidence of it apprenticing for the Master.) and there's no need keeping those clowns in business.  But, if you look in your local yellow pages, you may be surprised to find a clocksmith right in town.  It may be a dying vocation but the irony is, they usually have all the work they can stand so you might have to wait a year or more for your clock.  Just warning you.
 

Q. "What's with the "red dot"?

A.   The "red dot"  was officially known as the reset indicator or reset signal .  It is also variously known on Ebay as the "A.M./P.M. indicator ", "magic eye", "moon phase dial" (ugh!) and my personal favorite description (verbatim):  "There is a small round hole above the manufacturer's name on the dial, through which can sometimes be seen a red imprint on some type of sheet goods positioned behind the hole."

When electric power was first introduced and for a long time afterward, it wasn't exactly what you'd call "reliable".  Power outtages were frequent in certain parts of the country and this posed a unique problem for Telechron.  Telechron sold "self-starting" clocks meaning it wasn't necessary to spin a little wheel to get them going, they just started .  Of course, if your clock loses power today, it annoyingly flashes 12:00 A.M. until you set the time but back then, your clock needed a way to signal you it wasn't giving the right time.

The reset signal came in two basic types but was basically just a two-color flag --half-red and half-beige or brown or whatever the dial color was.  The flag is steel and during normal operation it is held in the set (dial color) position by magnetism.  In early clocks, this magnetism comes right from the coils themselves.  On later clocks, one of the field screws is longer than the other and extends right through the back plate and into the movement to attract the flag.  In either style, if the power fails, there's nothing holding the flag up and it falls into the red position.  The trick is, when power is restored, the flag stays down, in other words, the magnetism does not pull the flag back up.  TIP:  As with all gravity parts in a clock, you never put oil on the reset signal.  Oil can only keep it from falling freely.  Don't worry, it won't wear out in ten thousand years of power failures.

How the reset signal gets set differs too.  Early clocks had a "spinner" (my word) you turn until a counterweight on the shaft was close enough to the coils to hold the flag in the set position.  Later clocks had a "kicker" (still my word) next to the time set knob that knocked the signal over to the set position.  If the clock is on, it should stay there.  Beginning in 1941 (with SOME models) the kicker was omitted and the whole clock had to be turned upside down to set the signal.  Kitchen clocks retained the kicker since it's kind of a pain to take them off the wall just to set the reset signal.  In the mid-1950's the reset signal began being left off models altogether.  If you find a pivot holes and recession for a signal in a clock without one, don't worry.  They continued using the same movements whether or not the signal was included.  And that's all I have to say about that.
 

Q. "How do you spell mantel, as in 'mantel clock'?"

A.  M-A-N-T-E-L -- Thanks for asking!  G.E actually spelled it m-a-n-t-l-e in a couple of their catalogs further contributing to the dumbing down of America.
 

Q. "Hey, Pappy.  What's the deal with the General Electric model 3H172 'Candlelight' "?

A.   All right, you got me.  No one really asks me that question.  I only WISH people asks me about it. because it's easily the most mis-represented clock on Ebay.  The clock came in two distinct versions.  One was some kind of animal hide; sometimes, pigskin but sometimes, lambskin or goatskin too.  I'm betting they used whatever they could buy cheaply.  The other version was GLASS--not marble, not onyx, stone, amethyst, black diamond or unobtanium.  Please click HERE to see the original catalog shot and description of the 3H172 that I hope will put end all debate.  I'll leave it up indefinitely so you educate anyone who needs it.

*frequently asked questions