# 24-Hour Clocks



## ned-ludd

My obsession doesn't stop at watches. I have 24-hour clocks too.

This World Time Clock came with a 12-hour movement but today I replaced that with a 24-hour movement so it makes much more sense now.








Kitchen Wall Clock








Russian Aircraft Clock on a home-made laser-cut acrylic stand








Bulova Quartz (with pendulum removed because it chews through batteries)







(Yes, that's a tellurian orrery in the background.)

The following are clocks I've made myself.

Arduino-driven DAC VU Meter Clock (Mk.1)








TTL Binary Clock Prototype (showing 13:23:48)








Arduino-driven Binary Clock Prototype (showing 13:41:13)








So what 24-hour clocks do you have that you'd like to show us?


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## Afka

This is my Italian Perditempo, 46 cm diameter!


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## kwill




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## Afka

Soviet marine clock.


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## linuxs

Same









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## ned-ludd

I was quite taken with a Seth Thomas clock that sold for a ridiculous amount on the bay today. I really like the layout with minutes outside the hours and the small inner seconds dial. And that second, green hour hand is a brilliant touch!









The final price was much too rich for my blood so I decided to try and reproduce the face layout and make my own copy/homage of it. For some time I've had the desire to make my own 24-hour clock(s) and already have a selection of hands and a few quartz movements for the purpose.

In making my VU Meter clock (see my previous post) I re-acquainted myself with the Postscript graphics language to draw the dials. It's been over thirty years since I used Postscript in any seriousness but it's proving very useful for this sort of thing, and works well for creating designs for my laser cutter and CNC router. It's much easier for me to create and tweak a clock face using Postscript than, say, Photoshop, SketchUp or Inkscape.

Here's my current design for a face that should fit inside an old 240mm diameter kitchen clock case I have saved for the purpose. This example is a 12-up but it's only a minor edit of the PS source to change it to 24-up.









The dials are currently sized for a set of Dauphine hands I have in stock and since there was space around the outside I added the second (UTC) zone in blue. I'm unlikely to stick with that, though, as it shifts by one hour at Daylight savings and to be true to the Seth Thomas I should use an extra hour hand instead. 
Obviously to honour the ST design I should use pear hands but I don't have any of them on hand so shall have to order some and alter the design to suit the lengths of any I get.


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## ned-ludd

Well, the only 24-hour movement I had on hand was a long-shaft, high torque one, which wouldn't fit under the glass in the clock case I had. I'd used the last short shaft movement to upgrade the small world time clock last week. So I couldn't make the ST homage as proposed with material to hand.

Rather than put everything aside until I acquire another short-shaft movement I was determined to make a clock - _any_ clock - this weekend. So I pulled out some long (160mm/210mm) hands I got with the high torque movement and modified the ST design to suit them. Along the way I made some design decisions I'm quite pleased with, such as a sun and horizon motif and losing the second timezone.

Yesterday afternoon I had the 460mm(!) diameter face printed on the heaviest A1 paper available. I glued this to 6mm MDF sheet and cut it out on my micro-bandsaw. Then I cut out a 460mm circle of clear 1mm polycarbonate sheet to protect the face. This is held in place around the circumference by longitudinally slit 10mm clear vinyl tubing. A proper case will have to come later - if at all - so for now this means the hands are exposed.









Generally I'm pleased with the result but design-wise I've already made some changes for the next one: such as tighter fitting, larger fonts and larger tick marks on the seconds dial. Also I need to be aware of leaving a larger margin around the outside so the minute figures don't get obscured.

The only disappointing thing is the high-torque movement:the minute hand is quite sloppy. It lags up to thirty seconds going up then recovers coming down. I have more movements on order so maybe I'll find a better one to fix this.

Lastly, there's the dilemma of where to hang it: I am very short of wall space at Bachelors Hall!


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## walkingdolphin

My 24 hour clock









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## ned-ludd

I just can't help myself. Here's my new kitchen clock.







It has two separate quartz movements: one for the seconds and one for the hour+minutes.
Luckily the movements are silent, or their beat interference and drift would drive me mad.


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## ned-ludd

After some minor repairs and adjustments these mains-electric clocks now grace my home. I put in a dedicated 100vAC/60Hz power supply for them, as they won't work off the local electricity supply of 240vAC/50Hz.

Numechron Tymeter Model 101 from 1963.








Mastercrafters Model 191 World Time Clock. The perspex cover is off because it needs polishing.







The south-polar azimuthal map rotates with the hour hand so you can read world times directly.


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## TOPAZ

.
Here is a quite simple representative of 24-hour clocks ...









;-)

atb, Michael


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## peagreen

I would buy a version with midnight at the bottom, if I knew where I could find one in Europe.


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## ned-ludd

A rare, 24-hour only example of the World Time desk clock species.









The red aeroplane is the seconds, the long hand the minutes and the hours are shown by the cities disc, which rotates clockwise.
(Most clocks of this form are 12-hour with an additional 24-hour cities wheel.)

It's unfortunate that the world map is the reverse of the cities; it should be a south polar map.








The Nittoh movement is mechanical and the spring is wound up periodically by the electric motor. Neat!


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## ned-ludd

Here are three examples from my collection of world time 24-hour clocks where the hour hand/disc rotates clockwise and the hour numerals are fixed on the outside.

Small (90mm face) Waltham mains electric desk clock. 







The glass cover is off until I sort out the second hand dragging on it. Note the GMT arrow on the hour disc.

Large (250mm face) mains electric wall clock.







To adjust the hand's position on the disc requires the glass cover to be removed, which is difficult. I think this clock will never be adjusted for DST!

Medium sized (220mm face) Trintec quartz wall clock with a south-polar azimuthal projection of the globe. 







As always, the aeroplane is the second hand. Note that it has no minute hand. It could do with an hour hand marker so you don't always have to search for your local time zone.


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## ned-ludd

Here are two examples from my collection of world time 24-hour clocks where the disc shows the hours and the cities are fixed on the outside.
Because the hour numerals appear in the reverse direction from normal clocks, these are difficult to read at a glance.

A medium sized (180mm face) quartz wall clock by Clever Clocks.







Smooth sweep second hand. Designed on the US west coast and shows it.

Medium sized (140mm face) mains electric 'WorlDial' mantel clock by H.L. van Wyck.







The red hand is seconds, the black hand minutes. The green tab at lower left is just a small sticker to help me find local time. (What, no Sydney?!)

I find it interesting how world cities clocks often differ in the cities/countries they choose to represent the time zones. It seems to reflect changes in cultural, political and economic focus over time.


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## ned-ludd

Gotta have a flip clock! So retro. 
Finding an affordable (i.e. sub AU$50) 24-hour one was difficult but here it is.

Battery driven quartz. 175mm wide and wall mountable.


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## ned-ludd

Don't let the 8" porthole-style case fool you: it's all plastic with a quartz movement.


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## ned-ludd

A couple of world time desk clocks.

1950s Kalex World Time Clock (210mm/8" wide) running on 110vAC/60Hz.








2007 no-name promotional desk clock (180mm/7" wide) running on an AA battery.







You move the little aeroplane pin to select the World Time displayed.

(I guess desks must have been a lot bigger in the '50s!)


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## ned-ludd

New arrival: Lord King World Time









The corner was chipped in transit and awaits repair.

It's fascinating that very close inspection of the gap between London and Buenos Aires faintly shows 'Iceland'. I'm guessing that the original artwork was created prior to 1968, after which Iceland moved to the GMT (London) zone. This clock would have been assembled afterwards with the Iceland text erased.


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## ned-ludd

*Seiko Quartz World Time* QQZ153G Cal.44501

A departure from the usual air-travel themed clocks of this type.









The nautical theme has a small silhouette of an endlessly circumnavigating sloop as the second hand. The minute hand is a thin black triangle. There was a fat triangular 12-hour hand but I removed that. The 24-hour chapter wheel proceeds clockwise so the numbers are reversed.

The ship's wheel rotates the outer timezone chapter freely so you can set your own city at the top for convenient time reading. This was needed because the 12-hour hand and the 24-hour wheel are locked to each other so matching local time to other timezones didn't work otherwise. With the 12-hour hand removed you can now set the ship's wheel and clock wherever you like - for instance, to match similar world clocks. For once, the north polar azimuthal map in the middle matches the time zones.

If you were OCD about symmetric positioning of the wheel handles you'd be out of luck in most timezones; not even GMT/UTC lines up with the handles! A desperate person might consider realigning the stick-on timezone chapter but that risks damaging it.

Iceland is missing so like the previous clock we can date this clock to post-1968.


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## dannyking

What’s this world whee clock. Beautiful!


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## ned-ludd

Introducing my Nixie tube clocks!

Ready-made one from China.









DIY kit from Hong Kong.









Constructed just yesterday, I have yet to decide what sort of case to build around this. Leaving it naked would be nice but there are some high voltages present on the board and accidents happen.


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## peagreen

I have a vague memory of electronic calculators that used Nixie tubes. That must have been when I was in secondary school because they went out of use shortly after that.
We really have come a long way.


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## Wooden_spoon

ned-ludd said:


> Introducing my Nixie tube clocks!
> 
> Ready-made one from China.
> 
> View attachment 13444715
> 
> 
> DIY kit from Hong Kong.
> 
> View attachment 13444717
> 
> 
> Constructed just yesterday, I have yet to decide what sort of case to build around this. Leaving it naked would be nice but there are some high voltages present on the board and accidents happen.


That's so cool

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## afennell

Very cool!


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## linuxs

New entry 









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## Ftumch

Where are you finding these amazing clocks, Ned? I can't even get a Trintec locally.


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## ned-ludd

Ftumch said:


> Where are you finding these amazing clocks, Ned? I can't even get a Trintec locally.


All of my 24-hour clocks have been bought online.

Only two were found locally (in Oz): the flip clock was new retail and the US military clock second-hand from a eucalyptus trading site. All the rest came via various web sites from the USA, Japan and Europe.


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## ned-ludd

Vostok Ship Clock 5-ChM5









Solid, heavy (and probably indestructible) eight-day mechanical clock.

It's on a rough, home-made wooden table mount until I find a permanent wall location for it.


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## Barry S

ned-ludd said:


> Vostok Ship Clock 5-ChM5
> 
> Solid, heavy (and probably indestructible) eight-day mechanical clock.
> 
> It's on a rough, home-made wooden table mount until I find a permanent wall location for it.


That actually looks quite at home on the wooden stand.

Is that an older model? Current one for sale appears to have a different housing.


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## ned-ludd

Barry S said:


> That actually looks quite at home on the wooden stand.


I'm inclined to agree but it will have to be spruced up to become the clock's permanent home. Maybe a wrinkled paint finish in a similar colour to the case (which has a mildly wrinkled finish).



Barry S said:


> Is that an older model? Current one for sale appears to have a different housing.


It's a recent acquisition from Meranom so I must assume it's the latest model. I can't see any difference in the housing, though the photos available don't give too many clues.


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## Barry S

ned-ludd said:


> It's a recent acquisition from Meranom so I must assume it's the latest model. I can't see any difference in the housing, though the photos available don't give too many clues.


It must be the angle - or my eyes. In your photo the case seems to taper toward the face of the clock while the sides appear straight to me in the Meranom example.


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## ned-ludd

Here are some side-on photos showing its graceful curves (and very chunky hinge).















The case is opened using the winder key.


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## Barry S

ned-ludd said:


> Here are some side-on photos showing its graceful curves (and very chunky hinge).
> 
> View attachment 13658473
> View attachment 13658475
> 
> 
> The case is opened using the winder key.


Thanks. Those graceful curves are no small part of the appeal of this clock. Too bad they are not evident in the Meranom photo.


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## Pastextian

ned-ludd said:


> Introducing my Nixie tube clocks!
> 
> Ready-made one from China.
> 
> View attachment 13444715
> 
> 
> DIY kit from Hong Kong.
> 
> View attachment 13444717
> 
> 
> Constructed just yesterday, I have yet to decide what sort of case to build around this. Leaving it naked would be nice but there are some high voltages present on the board and accidents happen.


Could do something similar to a tube amp. Maybe a neat mix of modern and retro.









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## Ftumch

One on Meranom looks shiny. The bead blasted finish is much nicer IMO.

https://meranom.com/en/vostok/vostok-watch-ship-clock-5-chm5-24-hour.html


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## peagreen

"Weight not over than 2,8 kg."

Now I understand why mister Ludd said this was probably indestructible.


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## Barry S

ned-ludd said:


> Here are some side-on photos showing its graceful curves (and very chunky hinge).
> 
> View attachment 13658473
> View attachment 13658475
> 
> 
> The case is opened using the winder key.


Well, thanks to Ned I ordered the clock about a month ago. Thanks to fate, it arrived today defective. 
First, when setting the time by moving the minute hand, the second hand spun rapidly. Then, when I tried to wind it, all the hands moved until the second hand came in contact with the key. When the key was removed, all the hands spun rapidly - so fast that the second hand was invisible - exhausting a full wind in about a minute. I wish I could include a video but I can't figure out how to upload an iPhone video.


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## ned-ludd

Barry S said:


> Then, when I tried to wind it, all the hands moved until the second hand came in contact with the key. When the key was removed, all the hands spun rapidly - so fast that the second hand was invisible - exhausting a full wind in about a minute.


It sounds like parts of the escapement have come adrift. Possibly an easy repair but how inconvenient!
In case bits are now loose inside the works I'd advise against winding it again until repaired. 
I've no idea whether Meranom offers a warranty but they'd be the first people I'd contact in this situation.


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## Barry S

ned-ludd said:


> It sounds like parts of the escapement have come adrift. Possibly an easy repair but how inconvenient!
> In case bits are now loose inside the works I'd advise against winding it again until repaired.
> I've no idea whether Meranom offers a warranty but they'd be the first people I'd contact in this situation.


Yes, I already started the return process and waiting to hear back. I checked the "dead on arrival" box and described the problem.


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## muto

Russian 129CHS 24 hour clock i just purchased from ebay:








Really like the design and 24h watches/clocks in general.


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## alitaher2009

nice purchase bro.


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## cuthbert

It appears Vostok has reissued the 24h ship clock.


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## ned-ludd

Which reminds me: 
Barry S have you had any success getting your DOA clock replaced/repaired by Meranom?


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## Cryslay33

ned-ludd said:


> I just can't help myself. Here's my new kitchen clock.
> View attachment 12818395
> 
> It has two separate quartz movements: one for the seconds and one for the hour+minutes.
> Luckily the movements are silent, or their beat interference and drift would drive me mad.


Really nice piece.


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## Barry S

ned-ludd said:


> Which reminds me:
> Barry S have you had any success getting your DOA clock replaced/repaired by Meranom?


I sent the clock back and I'm still waiting to hear back. Tracking shows it was delivered on 29 January. Online, the return status is still "Awaiting Products." I sent an email a couple days ago asking for an update so hopefully I'll hear from them by the end of next week.

Incidentally, return postage cost over $80US! PayPal return shipping refund is capped at $30 but certainly helped.


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## Barry S

ned-ludd said:


> Which reminds me:
> Barry S have you had any success getting your DOA clock replaced/repaired by Meranom?





Barry S said:


> I sent the clock back and I'm still waiting to hear back. Tracking shows it was delivered on 29 January. Online, the return status is still "Awaiting Products." I sent an email a couple days ago asking for an update so hopefully I'll hear from them by the end of next week.
> 
> Incidentally, return postage cost over $80US! PayPal return shipping refund is capped at $30 but certainly helped.


As it turns out, I did indeed hear from Dmitry that week informing me that the clock had just returned from warranty service and would be shipping out to me shortly.

Today, this well-travelled ship's clock completed another long journey (appropriately by sea I imagine) and arrived in perfect working order.


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## archlinux

muto said:


> View attachment 13794069


Make a desk clock with it!


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## Barry S

My wife made a project of mounting the Vostok. Here it is finally up and running:









Next up, this beautifully restored Chelsea Navy clock dating from World War 2:









We're planning a similar treatment for this one.


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## Barry S

Sorry, I was testing something and I can't seem to get rid of this. 

Anyway, enjoy the photo of the USS New York, built with steel from the World Trade Center. 

I'm sure there's a clock on there somewhere...


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## ned-ludd

Update with my most recently acquired 24-hour clocks.

330mm/13" Chinese LCD for the office.








200mm/8" Vintage Micronta Digital








220mm/9" Philips digital in the workshop
View attachment 14078875


220mm/9" Gold PCB analog from Greece in the kitchen








254mm/10" Trintec World Time in the office








110mm/4.5" Westclox 24-hour switch timer
View attachment 14078881


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## hj898

Gotta go with the flare me think 


__
http://instagr.am/p/2lTg49wF3p/


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## ned-ludd

Today I made a case/cover for my IN-14 Nixie clock.









Here's an IN-12 clock I also picked up recently.









These clocks offer a range of colourful LED effects but I prefer that disabled. The tubes provide enough of a light show for me.


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## Barry S

Finally up and running is my WW2 Chelsea US Navy clock. 









We decided to stick with the Navy theme on this wall.


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## ned-ludd

Here is a recent acquisition. It's a scratch-built Grandmother clock; 1500mm tall. Age unknown but likely more than sixty years.










The numerals are pin-back tin-type ones pressed into holes in the wood. The hands are very definitely handmade. It's all very quaint.









The clock wasn't working when it arrived and I have done a full service on the (hopefully eight-day) movement to get it going more or less reliably. It was advertised as being an 'aircraft movement' but given its size, weight and volume (140mm x 100mm x 40mm) I very much doubt that. There are no makers marks on it at all and it looks like a lot of extra bits have been stripped from it. The wheel modification to 24-hour is fairly obvious but not visible in this photo.









The balance wheel struggled to reach 90° amplitude before servicing and stopped randomly. When I dismantled the movement I found lots of blue-green oil everywhere so that explains a lot. After cleaning, reassembly and sensible oiling the amplitude is a much healthier 240°.

The hands are giving a bit of trouble - stopping at particular positions - so I'm working on sorting out them and the shafts now. A complete hand mechanism redesign may be needed, though I'd like to keep it looking much like I presume it was meant to look like when it was made by some unidentified handyman a long time ago.


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## GeneSederholm

Late to the party. Posted it on another sub forum awhile back. Huge elTIMEco electric clock. 18" in diameter. Thick glass front. Bought it at a used store for $10.00 thirty years ago. Been hanging on the wall ever since and still keeps excellent time.


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## ned-ludd

Time for an update on fairly recent acquisitions. (Apologies if I've shown any of these previously.)

Wharton World Time Wall Clock (Quartz)









Waltham CDIA Aircraft Clock (Mechanical)









Wakmann Aircraft Clock (Mechanical)









Elgin E37500 Image Wall Clock (Quartz)









Elgin E37500 Aircraft Clock (Mechanical)









Quartz-Z Mark 3 Chronometer Boat Clock









Royal Geographic Society World Clock (Mechanical)









Vostok Ship Clock (Mechanical)









IKEA 'Kvartig' Single-Hand Wall Clock (Quartz)









Persistence-Of-Vision LED Clock


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## TOPAZ

On the wall of my study ...


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## @str0ch1mp

Ok, I see this is an older set of posts, but I had to post the 24’s in my collection that haven’t been pictured…


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## ned-ludd

That's a very impressive collection!
I have a number of those clocks as well, now.
My Simplex has a red GMT hand but is otherwise almost identical to yours. It's still, however, on the bench awaiting full refurbishment. 
My two Mastercrafters world time clocks are semi-retired because their motors are very noisy, despite being powered at 115v/60Hz by an Athena Frequency Converter (because power here is 230v/50Hz).


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## linuxs

hi, i did this by modifying a movement and face of an IkeaIkea watch 









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## Heighlan'er

Recommendations for where to buy 24 hr mantle and desk clocks (12 on top, ideally)?


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## jlariviere

I want a 24 hour clock at work. Some were highly irritated by the "backward" clock i had up for a bit; they couldn't figure out a backwards movement, even with the numbers and a second hand (they took it down while i was on vacation)


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## DADIWATCH

Allow me to post some tower clocks.


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## Rumaimin

Hello, where can I get a true 24 hour analog clock?
Where the hour hand takes one day to rotate around the face clock.

Thanks

--
Nick


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