Successful DIY clock repair on my 64 Coupe

[Bill H.]

Greetings all: I recently acquired a 1964 Coupe that had been sitting with little use for about the last 10 years. One of the things that did not function was the original clock. After checking the price of clock rebuilds and quartz conversions ($95-175, depending), I came to the conclusion that there would be little harm done if I tried a few, basic repair steps myself. First off, I verified both +12v power and proper grounding at the 2 prong plug at the back of the clock. I then removed the clock, by first removing the center dash side panels on both sides of the radio, then reaching up on both sides to remove the 2 clips that hold the clock in place. After removing the 2 prong plug from the back of the clock and the 2 bulb sockets on either side, the clock slipped out easily. To disassemble the clock, I had to remove the winding knob from the stem at the lower front of the clock, accomplished by gripping the stem with padded needle nose pliers, and unscrewing the knob with another pair of padded pliers. Then, looking at the clock body, there are 3 locations where the steel front half of the case is crimped around the steel back half of the case. Gently pry up on the crimped areas with a medium blade flat screwdriver, and you will be able to separate the clock into 2 pieces: The bezel and lens, and the back half containing the clock works with face and clock hands. To gain acsess to the works, unbolt the + power lead from the back and carefully separate the case from the works...BE CAREFUL!! this thing is fragile! Looking at the back of the clock works where the electrical connections are, there is a small box with a set of contact points, one contact attaches to this little electrical box, the other on an arm that activates the winding mechanism. These points were corroded, not allowing a good contact. I sprayed the contact set with Caig De-OxIt, and very gently cleaned the contact points with a fingernail board. I then sprayed the complete mechanism with WD-40. After letting it all set for a few minutes, I used a small bottle of compressed air (Of the type used to clean your computer keyboard) to remove the excess lube. I then cleaned the underside of the ground lug on the inside of the clock body and reassembled the back half of the clock. Looking at the numerals on the face, there was dust and tiny paint flakes present. I used a VERY fine bristle brush my wife gave me from her make-up kit to remove these, cleaned the inside of the lens (It is plastic, so be careful), and reassembled the clock, recrimped the 3 crimps, and reinstalled the knob on the stem. I tested the clock prior to reinstall, and began ticking! I reinstalled the clock back in the car, plugged it back in, and it has been functioning perfectly ever since! So for a few hours work and some careful, gentle handling, I have a 49 year old clock that functions as it should. You can find Caig De-OXIT at Radio shack...it is an excellent all around contact cleaner that is ideal for working on old Corvette electrical contacts. CHEERS!!

[Joe R.]

Re: Successful DIY clock repair on my 64 Coupe

Bill,

Strong work and excellent report! Maybe we could make a Restorer article out of this. Hint, hint!

Joe

[Bill H.]

Re: Successful DIY clock repair on my 64 Coupe

Hi, Joe: Thanks ! Be glad to make an article out of it...how do I do that?

[Philip P.]

Re: Successful DIY clock repair on my 64 Coupe

Bill
I remember doing a similar thing to the clock in my 1960 very satisfying to say the least. here is a interesting article that I used a few years ago for the same problem. http://www.oldcarsweekly.com/restora..._old_car_clock
The only thing I can say is that WD-40 may not be the best it tends to gather dust and the clock works need very little oil. From my experience the lub quallites of WD-40 are not long lasting light machine oil ie 3 in 1 may be a better choice. I also used a burnishing tool on the contacts the one in the 1960 rewinds about every 7 minutes or so, so the contacts get a pretty good work out.
Phil
Phil

[John F.]

Re: Successful DIY clock repair on my 64 Coupe

Very good article. You also need strong reading glasses to work on these things.

[Joe R.]

Re: Successful DIY clock repair on my 64 Coupe

Hi, Joe: Thanks ! Be glad to make an article out of it...how do I do that?

Hi Bill,

Contact Vinnie Peters! Let me know if you need help with that.

Joe

[Edward B.]

Re: Successful DIY clock repair on my 64 Coupe

Please, please, please, ditch the WD-40. It was never intended for that purpose as it is not a long-term lubricant and will capture dirt.

[Terry M.]

Re: Successful DIY clock repair on my 64 Coupe

Greetings all: I recently acquired a 1964 Coupe that had been sitting with little use for about the last 10 years. One of the things that did not function was the original clock. After checking the price of clock rebuilds and quartz conversions ($95-175, depending), I came to the conclusion that there would be little harm done if I tried a few, basic repair steps myself. First off, I verified both +12v power and proper grounding at the 2 prong plug at the back of the clock. I then removed the clock, by first removing the center dash side panels on both sides of the radio, then reaching up on both sides to remove the 2 clips that hold the clock in place. After removing the 2 prong plug from the back of the clock and the 2 bulb sockets on either side, the clock slipped out easily. To disassemble the clock, I had to remove the winding knob from the stem at the lower front of the clock, accomplished by gripping the stem with padded needle nose pliers, and unscrewing the knob with another pair of padded pliers. Then, looking at the clock body, there are 3 locations where the steel front half of the case is crimped around the steel back half of the case. Gently pry up on the crimped areas with a medium blade flat screwdriver, and you will be able to separate the clock into 2 pieces: The bezel and lens, and the back half containing the clock works with face and clock hands. To gain acsess to the works, unbolt the + power lead from the back and carefully separate the case from the works...BE CAREFUL!! this thing is fragile! Looking at the back of the clock works where the electrical connections are, there is a small box with a set of contact points, one contact attaches to this little electrical box, the other on an arm that activates the winding mechanism. These points were corroded, not allowing a good contact. I sprayed the contact set with Caig De-OxIt, and very gently cleaned the contact points with a fingernail board. I then sprayed the complete mechanism with WD-40. After letting it all set for a few minutes, I used a small bottle of compressed air (Of the type used to clean your computer keyboard) to remove the excess lube. I then cleaned the underside of the ground lug on the inside of the clock body and reassembled the back half of the clock. Looking at the numerals on the face, there was dust and tiny paint flakes present. I used a VERY fine bristle brush my wife gave me from her make-up kit to remove these, cleaned the inside of the lens (It is plastic, so be careful), and reassembled the clock, recrimped the 3 crimps, and reinstalled the knob on the stem. I tested the clock prior to reinstall, and began ticking! I reinstalled the clock back in the car, plugged it back in, and it has been functioning perfectly ever since! So for a few hours work and some careful, gentle handling, I have a 49 year old clock that functions as it should. You can find Caig De-OXIT at Radio shack...it is an excellent all around contact cleaner that is ideal for working on old Corvette electrical contacts. CHEERS!!

I don't know about C2 clocks, but the C3 clock mechanisms are mounted with rubber O-ring isolators for vibration dampening. WD-40 will cause those O-Rings to swell over time and lose their vibration isolating properties. If you sprayed the mechanism with WD-40 I suggest you take your clock apart again and replace those isolators -- that is if C2 clocks are built like C-3 clocks. It is really a good idea to replace those isolators any time you have the clock apart because they will harden with heat and time even without the help of WD-40 unless the car is stored in temperature controlled conditions all the time. Otherwise your story is fine and worthy of submission to Vinnie. The proper lubricant is clock oil, and this is just one supplier that Google produced: http://www.clockoil.com/ I am sure there are many others.

[Mike G.]

Re: Successful DIY clock repair on my 64 Coupe

FWIW my '65 clock needed the ratchet pawl arm tweaked back into alignment to restore proper operation. Cleaning was by controlled immersion in alcohol to keep the face dry. Oiled sparingly with a clock oil pen and it's running strong 2 years later.