It is with great excitement and satisfaction that I introduce you to the Howard Miller Flip Clock - now part of the Flip Clock Fans collection!
This is a bucket list clock and I frankly thought that I'd never see one in person.
I wrote an article and made a YouTube Video about this "Enigmatic" clock
I made an verbal (email) contract with an older gentleman (he says he's 83) for me to take the clock and send him the payment if I liked the clock. It had the motor replaced, but the secondary motor had stopped working. The "new" motor also did not have the red on it. When it arrived the wood was darkened, the plastic cylinder dirty - the digits discolored and, of course not working.
Here's what I learned:
This is the most surprising - It's a smallish clock. I thought it would be much bigger. The size is due to anther surprising detail - the mechanism is just a 2nd generation Copal 101 - Exactly! The only difference is that there is no light on the Howard Miller clock. I was incredulous.
Because the seller included the original motor I learned that the red is simply painted on the rotor. I used to suppose that it was a plastic covering or something.
The rosewood, under all the oil and grime was simply beautiful! The wood is very hard and dense. It cleaned up very easily with soap and water. All I had to do was apply a wax to the wood to bring out it's color. That's all. No oil, nothing but a protective wax. I did some light sanding in places. This was a bit edgy. You're just not going to be able to replace this rosewood.
Oh... and I heard that if you scratch even old rosewood you'll get the scent. Well I sure did. My son said he liked the smell. It was sweet but didn't remind me of roses. The wood dust was red/brown and carried the scent.
I thought of simply swapping a whole mechanism to get better looking digits (they were very discolored). But I learned the the simple handle to set the clock is a metal bar that has been crimped on the shaft. I didn't want to take a chance with that.
Do I have to mention that all the motor needed was a couple drops of oil?
Other problems - the framework had picked up some oxidation. But I cleaned it with q-tips and Deoxit. That worked pretty good. Then I applied a light coat of oil.
I painted the rotor with a deep rose red color enamel paint (had to go to a Train Hobby shop in Louisville, KY for a good paint selection).
When I was in negotiations for the clock I saw what looked like discoloration on the base. I was thinking that the rest of the base and wood had been stained. But after reading up on rosewood more, I find that this is one of it's charms. There are often may variations in the grain and color. There's no staining rosewood - what you see is what you get. It's amazing really. I actually like the stripe now. It's very distinctive - like a highlight in a woman's hair.
What can I say... I'm just glad to be able to share my find.
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