Aircraft Clock Service

I am a watchmaker in Baltimore who specializes in mechanical aircraft clocks
for collectors. It dawned on me that I could do something useful and make
my services known to owners and restorers of vintage aircraft. While I can
arrange to have clocks needing certification (non-experimental aircraft)
sent to a licensed repair facility that would then contract with me, I
prefer to look to the owners of exempt aircraft first.

My question is, where should I advertise? I just joined EAA to get the
magazine and will likely take the Vintage and Warbird mags as well. I have
no clue if these mags have classified ads and display ads are not practical
for my service.

Any thoughts will be appreciated.

--
Regards,
Dewey Clark http://www.historictimekeepers.com
Ebay Sales:
Restorations, Parts for Hamilton M21s, Products for Craftsmen
Makers of Historic Timekeepers Ultrasonic Clock Cleaning Solution

I am a watchmaker in Baltimore who specializes in mechanical aircraft clocks
for collectors. I could do something useful and make
my services known to owners and restorers of vintage aircraft. While I can
arrange to have clocks needing certification (non-experimental aircraft) sent
to a licensed repair facility that would then contract with me, I prefer to
look to the owners of exempt aircraft first.

My question is, where should I advertise? I just joined EAA to get the
magazine and will likely take the Vintage and Warbird mags as well. I have
no clue if these mags have classified ads and display ads are not practical
for my service.

We are all "experimental" and we sure are "collectors" so don't limit yourself.


Ask the question, just that, on this forum: Which airplanes must have a
certified clock? Instrument flying would be my guess, but ask.

Type clubs. All type clubs I have ever accessed would like to know of the
capability, limitations, and prices for overhaul.
Examples;
Cessna170.com (I think)
Cessna140.com (I know)
http://www.cessna120-140.org/ (I know)

If you go to those sites, you can arrange to discuss ads and such in
newsletters and/or on-screen.

Most have a search function and you can type in "clock" and find the strings
where the question was raised as to where to send them. You can append a new
message to the string and that will show up as "new" item in the forums.

Trade-A-Plane has both a widely read twice a month printing, and is THE place
most owners go to find out where to get something done. Note, especially, the
instrument outfits, some of whom would like to have a resource like yours.

List what you can do. Do you have the lamps for the mil-spec WWII clocks?

I have one by my elbow that does not run long anymore, but its a nice friend to
have. Its an aerosonic 8-day clock with the weirdest arrangement of the timer
portion reset...beyond my fixing for sure, and has (memory) three volt lamps
inside with a power connector to them.

Neal

Thanks, this is good info. No, I do not have lamps; the WWII A/C clocks I
have serviced (Hamilton/Elgin 37500, Elgin, Waltham CDIA, Lecoultre, etc)
must have been lit by light posts; there is no internal lighting.

I am certainly going to follow your suggestions.

I had called Flt Stds here in Baltimore and they put in touch with SkyTech.
While I can likely work through SkyTech for "normal" rated planes
(non-experimental class) that require documented instruments for IFR, it is
easier to work with those who own exempt aircraft. But most "normal" rated
aircraft use electronic clocks these days anyway.

As to what I can do. I make parts. In addition to the examples parts
manufacture I show on my website, I make mainsprings to replace those broken
in service and which are now obsolete. For instance, for the Hamilton/Elgin
37500 elapsed time clock, there is a spring of the correct length and
thickness, but too high. I run this through my surface grinder and then
spot weld the correct form of barrel attachment on the free end. I did have
NOS 60 year old springs for this clock, but they tended to break about two
weeks after the clock was returned.

Again, thanks.

If others have thought, I would like to hear them. I will be out of town
for a few days so I won't be able to respond immediately, but I will.

--
Regards,
Dewey Clark http://www.historictimekeepers.com
Ebay Sales:
http://cgi6.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAP...ems&userid=dsc
Restorations, Parts for Hamilton M21s, Products for Craftsmen
Makers of Historic Timekeepers Ultrasonic Clock Cleaning Solution

"COUGARNFW" wrote in message
...
I am a watchmaker in Baltimore who specializes in mechanical aircraft
clocks
for collectors. I could do something useful and make
my services known to owners and restorers of vintage aircraft. While I
can
arrange to have clocks needing certification (non-experimental aircraft)
sent
to a licensed repair facility that would then contract with me, I prefer
to
look to the owners of exempt aircraft first.

My question is, where should I advertise? I just joined EAA to get the
magazine and will likely take the Vintage and Warbird mags as well. I
have
no clue if these mags have classified ads and display ads are not
practical
for my service.

We are all "experimental" and we sure are "collectors" so don't limit
yourself.


Ask the question, just that, on this forum: Which airplanes must have a
certified clock? Instrument flying would be my guess, but ask.

Type clubs. All type clubs I have ever accessed would like to know of the
capability, limitations, and prices for overhaul.
Examples;
Cessna170.com (I think)
Cessna140.com (I know)
http://www.cessna120-140.org/ (I know)

If you go to those sites, you can arrange to discuss ads and such in
newsletters and/or on-screen.

Most have a search function and you can type in "clock" and find the
strings
where the question was raised as to where to send them. You can append a
new
message to the string and that will show up as "new" item in the forums.

Trade-A-Plane has both a widely read twice a month printing, and is THE
place
most owners go to find out where to get something done. Note, especially,
the
instrument outfits, some of whom would like to have a resource like yours.

List what you can do. Do you have the lamps for the mil-spec WWII clocks?

I have one by my elbow that does not run long anymore, but its a nice
friend to
have. Its an aerosonic 8-day clock with the weirdest arrangement of the
timer
portion reset...beyond my fixing for sure, and has (memory) three volt
lamps
inside with a power connector to them.

Neal

Ask YOURSELF the question ... where are the requirements for a clock to have
some sort of certification? Last I looked, the only requirements were for the
clock to have a "sweep second hand", which has later been interpreted to be a
digital readout of seconds.

Ask YOURSELF the question ... where in the regulations is the definition of
"certified" for ANY application.

Jim


(COUGARNFW)
shared these priceless pearls of wisdom:

-
-Ask the question, just that, on this forum: Which airplanes must have a
-certified clock? Instrument flying would be my guess, but ask.



Jim Weir (A&P/IA, CFI, & other good alphabet soup)
VP Eng RST Pres. Cyberchapter EAA Tech. Counselor
http://www.rst-engr.com

Because if you call the FAA they'll tell you they need certification,
rather than spoil our horologists, let everyone else ask themselves
the question of whether or not they're going to put that clock back
into the panel of their certificated aircraft after they get it up and
running properly. I know I absolutely would never do such a thing,
the aircraft may fall out of the sky trying to give time! So for me
there is no need to worry about any jerkie certification. The moronic
thing is that a CRS will send him clocks to repair and they'll mark
them up 5 or 6 times and sell them with a cert.


On Wed, 16 Jun 2004 08:13:53 -0700, Jim Weir wrote:


Ask YOURSELF the question ... where are the requirements for a clock to have
some sort of certification? Last I looked, the only requirements were for the
clock to have a "sweep second hand", which has later been interpreted to be a
digital readout of seconds.

Ask YOURSELF the question ... where in the regulations is the definition of
"certified" for ANY application.

Jim


(COUGARNFW)
shared these priceless pearls of wisdom:

-
-Ask the question, just that, on this forum: Which airplanes must have a
-certified clock? Instrument flying would be my guess, but ask.



Jim Weir (A&P/IA, CFI, & other good alphabet soup)
VP Eng RST Pres. Cyberchapter EAA Tech. Counselor
http://www.rst-engr.com

Stu Gotts wrote:

Because if you call the FAA they'll tell you they need certification,

That's not true. There are several battery-powered clocks which are not "certified"
that directly replace the old windup models. The only time certification issues come
into play is if you tie into the aircraft electrical system. Even that may not be
true in all FSDOs (but it is with the clowns at Teterboro).

George Patterson
None of us is as dumb as all of us.