# Gustav Becker P 64 ?



## Robert L (Jan 25, 2017)

Hello all , I'm new to the forum , and don't know anything about clocks , 
I inherited a Gustav Becker wall clock from my Father , who , recived it 
from his Parents many years ago , all the time my Dad had it , it always
ran and kept good time , after he passed it was carfully stored in a 
good box and clean blanket at his sister's house for about two years ,
I finally got settled and put it in my house about six months ago , set 
it up level and after a number of tries I got it to run and over about five
days dialed in the swing to keep almost perfect time , the clock ran
perfect untill about three months back , I would re-start it and would 
only run for 15 minutes then stop .did that maybe 10 or 12 times then it 
would only run for 1 to 3 minutes after that , so I'm looking for some
advice as to what to do to get it running again , it apears to be clean
and dust free , but what do I know ? ( not much ) I will post pictures
soon . Thanks for taking the time for looking . Bob


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## Herbalizer (Jul 24, 2010)

It needs to be serviced by a Clockmaker for sure. It will need to be taken apart, cleaned with the pivots polished and probably a few bushings replaced assembled and adjusted. Usually about $300. Would be set for another 10 years.


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## Robert L (Jan 25, 2017)

A few pictures , all the wood turnings ect . need new dowles 
which I plan to do myself .


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## rationaltime (May 1, 2008)

Hello Robert,

Welcome to watchuseek.

It would be best to have the clock cleaned and lubricated, but here is my
suggestion.

Sometimes the old clocks don't have a lot of extra amplitude in the swing.
As you no doubt found the vertical orientation must be just right to have
enough impulse transferred through the escapement at the proper phase.
When the clock is wound this can impart a torque to the case. If the 
case rotates a little bit the beat will be off and the amplitude can drop.
If you think that could have happened in your case you might first check
the orientation and the beat.


Thanks,
rationaltime


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## Robert L (Jan 25, 2017)

The pictures did not post in the order that I wanted ,
( oh well ) still learing how to use this site ,thanks
Herbalizer for the input , guess I'll have to save my
nickles and dimes to get it cleaned and fixed up ....
I know this sounds stupid , but would it do any good
to use a can of compressed air to sotra blow out the
works ? or would that just cause more problems ? 
Thanks again , Bob


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## Robert L (Jan 25, 2017)

rationaltime said:


> Hello Robert,
> 
> Welcome to watchuseek.
> 
> ...


Hi rationaltime , thanks for chiming in , I'll have to study up on what your 
refering to ... by torque to the case , are you refering to the wood case itself ? 
Thanks , Bob


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## rationaltime (May 1, 2008)

Hello Bob,

Yes. Usually the case has a single point of support. It wouldn't be hard 
to shift it a little bit. For example, when the front of the case is opened
for winding all the weight of the door is supported on one side of the case.
Winding with the key also wants to rotate the case.

If you see dirt or dust in the works a service is imminent. If it looks clean
I don't know that applying an air blast would help. As long as you are
planning a service anyway I would be inclined to try lubrication. If it were
mine I would use the sharp end of a pin to transfer a tiny drop of oil there
and there, and also the bearings at the other ends of those shafts. You
want just enough oil to get in the bearing. You don't want excess oil 
around to hold dust or get on the dial.








What kind of oil? Something thin and non gumming. I suppose the clock
makers won't like this, but modern cars use thin synthetic oil. A little bit
of 0W-20 synthetic motor oil would work.

Thanks,
rationaltime


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## Robert L (Jan 25, 2017)

Hi rationaltime , 
Thanks for the pointers , never would have thought of
a synthetic oil ... what about a sewing machine oil ? or
is it still made ? as I have more time than money at present 
I think I'll try blowing out the works with canned air then 
lubricate a few points . The wood case has a single point
on top to hang from and two ( one on each side ) mounted
thumb screws ( with sharpened points ) on the bottom to
adjust out or in from the wall , so I think it is fairly stable 
when set up , although I must admit I have never ckecked
it for plumb in both directions . Need to post this before 
my battery goes dead . more to follow . Bob


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## Robert L (Jan 25, 2017)

To continue ; I suppose I need to check the wood case for 
plumb off the wall as well as for left to right , the mount for the 
clock works ( inside the wood case ) dosen't seem to be square
with the case itself , I can get better pictures , but I assume it has
always been that way , after all it has run for many years that way ,
when I wind it up each Sunday as my Grandfather taught me how 
I always go slow and carefull , also never wind the weights all the
way up , but close . Thanks again , Bob


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## rationaltime (May 1, 2008)

Hi Bob,

I think it is typical to find the movement is not square in the case.
I would use the beat indicator as relative rather than absolute.







You can begin by orienting the case to put the stopped pendulum
at the center of the beat indicator. Then start the movement and 
adjust the case position so that the click (as the escapement
releases) occurs just before the pendulum reaches the end of its 
swing and is equal on both sides. You will likely find the beat
indicator is off center.

There is probably enough oil left in an empty plastic quart bottle of
motor oil to give you a lifetime supply. That should be free, though
you might get some strange looks for asking.

Thanks,
rationaltime


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## Robert L (Jan 25, 2017)

Hi rationaltime , Thank you for all your advice , I've learned a lot , am going to
put the case all back together , lubricate as sugested ( Think I'll try and find 
a small bottle of " clock oil " ) re-hang the clock and hope for the best , if it 
doesn't want to run then I'll have to find somebody to take it apart and clean.
I'll post some pictures after I get it back on the wall . Bob


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## Herbalizer (Jul 24, 2010)

Let me just say that is one nice clock and you should be proud to have it make its way to you. Regarding your questions, what you do next depends on what you want out of the clock. If the goal is just to get it running again, then yes some oil here and there might do the trick. However. The clock stopped for a reason and that reason is most certainly that friction is binding within the wheel train from the power source to the escapement - or a worn out spring - or something failed. Adding oil to a dirty movement and then running it can do more serious damage that will cost more to fix... which brings me to the value the clock has in your eyes. If the clock has value to you, I would leave it alone until you find a clock repair person to do a service to the movement which is part and has always been part of owning a clock.

Another option is just to hang it on the wall and enjoy as a non-running clock until it gets fixed.

thanks


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## Robert L (Jan 25, 2017)

Hi Herbalizer , Thank you for your complement about the clock , Yes I'm extremely
proud to be the caretaker of this family clock , it has quite the story , it was a new
purchase in the old country and made its way to the United States by boat when
my Great Grandparents immigrated . I plan to keep it in the family , so the last thing 
I want to do is cause damage to it . I'm going to put it all back together re-hang and
save up to get it serviced . Any sugestions as how to find a good " clocksmith " , I 
don't want to take it to just anyone and run the chance of them being a hack , are there
certified people in the field ? Thanks , Bob


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## Herbalizer (Jul 24, 2010)

My story.. I've fixed things all my life and always had cars and motorcycles to keep my hands busy. Then I moved to NYC in 1994 and gave all that up. Was in Prague in the mid 90's and went to a clock museum... that was it, I was hooked. a few decades later and I have a small shop area, with a lathe , milling machine and all the tools and work on restoring my own purchases.... and have worked my way up to more advanced challenges and expensive timepieces like French Table Regulators.

There is an esoteric component, in that much knowledge is passed down and the tricks of the trade are difficult to acquire if you are not in the field (if there is such a thing).

To your question, I can only say most clock makers also work on watches. I would try to find one that has a lot of clock business. and references. I would also say don't go with the cheapest price... good work is priced accordingly. Depending on your location, you may have to drive a bit. There are Certifications, however, it does not work like other professions, it's more like "I have a certificate" or not and that is that.

The good news is that the modern synthetic oils last a long time.


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## Herbalizer (Jul 24, 2010)

If you let me know your town or city... I can look around and may be able to recommend


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## Robert L (Jan 25, 2017)

I would appreciate that , I'm in Washington State on the east side close to
Pullman ( very close to the Idaho border ) I'm going to start looking around 
to see who I can find as I need to save up for the service . Thanks, Bob


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## Robert L (Jan 25, 2017)

All back together and on the wall , not running , did try a number
of times , still the same result , runs for about a minute as it loses
momentum , couldn't see anything missing or out of place in the
clock works itself . Bob


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## John MS (Mar 17, 2006)

One more thing to try. When the clock is running do the ticks sound equally spaced? Or are they more unequal or loping? If the latter try shifting the base of the clock back and forth a bit on the wall to get the ticks evenly spaced. Ignore the white beat indicator inside the case.

If that does nothing then gummy lubricants are reducing the power transmitted up the gear train. It is possible to to disassemble. clean and repair a clock movement like yours at home. It would take some reading and buying the right tools. Otherwise a trip to a reputable clock maker is called for.


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## Robert L (Jan 25, 2017)

Hi John , I tried shifting the base back and forth as you suggested
still no luck . Thanks Bob


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## slavko sremački (Jul 30, 2020)

respected
my name is slavko sremački and i live in serbia. I am a new member. please help. a few days ago I found a wooden box of an old wall clock in the attic of an old house. the box is in poor condition and has no clock mechanism. there are clear meanings on the back of the box that I can't really explain. I searched the internet for what the tags mean and I just found out that it was a Gustav Becker watch. can anyone help me find the meaning of all the marks on the watch and what year the watch was made. which is a watch model from the gustav becker catalog. very grateful, regards.


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## nanoy (5 mo ago)

Robert L said:


> Hello all , I'm new to the forum , and don't know anything about clocks ,
> I inherited a Gustav Becker wall clock from my Father , who , recived it
> from his Parents many years ago , all the time my Dad had it , it always
> ran and kept good time , after he passed it was carfully stored in a
> ...


I think I didn't post all photos before. Not to savvy at thos stuff. Purchase clock at garage sale in pieces. Going to try to put it together but was trying to establish age of click.


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## Mr.Regulator (12 mo ago)

Robert L said:


> All back together and on the wall, not running, did try a number of times, still the same result, runs for about a minute as it loses momentum, couldn't see anything missing or out of place in the clock works itself.


Bob -
► You have a wonderful clock which is very highly thought of in the clock world. Even with falling clock prices, you have a very unique and *highly *collectable piece for several reasons:
• It's a marked and signed GB. Even in 1890, their designs were highly copied. Unmarked imitators are still offered for sale where the owner assures you it's a Becker with zero documentation.
• It's weight-driven, the most accurate way to power a clock. The accuracy of timekeeping is what made GB famous.
• It's all there. As you can see it's easy to loose the "topper" and finials. It's also easy to bust out the original glass. Your clock has it all.

In short, what you have inherited is the clock world's equivalent to a Rolls Royce limousine. Highly imitated, but rarely found. This is one of the five "Holy Grail" clocks every collector is hoping to discover. *So in a sense, with your very first clock, you can stop collecting because every clock after this will be worse in every department !! *

► These clocks have use very fine, needle-like pinions, which are half the size of American clocks. Thus your average clock repair hobbyist is likely to do more harm than good. Because of the name, construction and refinement, you don't want just anyone working on this clock. That is to say, someone you find in the phone book. I urge you to contact your local NAWCC Chapter and ask them for assistance. Follow this link: Local Chapters - National Association of Watch & Clock Collectors, Inc.

► One of the steps you can take yourself is to replace the weight cords. The older cords are typically natural fibers (cat gut, twisted cotton, etc) and these bio-degrade over time. The result is that the cords break and weights fall, damaging the case and often busting the antique glass, which all contribute to the clock's high value. Either remove the weights OR replace the cord with modern, woven, continuous *synthetic *fibers, such as used for fishing leader.

Bottom Line: You are not the owner, so much as merely the _*present **caretaker*_. Once the movement is set running, regular cleaning and lubrication (which you can learn to do) is all that's required once every 6-8 years. Barring any calamity, you'll certainly be passing this treasure down to your children.

_*Congratulations !*_


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