keith

Today Rebecca and I went around to a bunch of antique stores. I was looking for clocks and other wind-up things that were maybe broken that I could take apart and see how they work. We were directed to a clock shop on MacArthur and Hefner, and it was wonderful. When I told one of the employees about my interest in the subject, she gave us a complete tour of the place, including the repair shop, where several clocks were in various stages of repair. One in particular disassemblement they referred to as the "small house". When I asked why they said that it was worth upwards of $40,000!! Then, it turns out, the National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors is having its national convention next week at the Cox Center here in OKC! And it's the first they've ever had it here! At this meeting, they'll be having workshops on such subjects as Basic Watch Repair and Reverse Glass Painting! Talk about timing!

They showed me some absolutely gorgeous clocks. They also sell some new ones that I wasn't too excited about, these Japanese "Rhythm" clocks that make all kinds of shrill noise and gaudy lights... what really got me were the "Mystery Clocks". Many were French in origin, from the 19th century, and looked much like this..



Also fascinating were wound cylinder music boxes and steel nickelodeans. God, this is so my thing.

I asked if they would be willing to take on an apprentice, even unpaid, but she said they had six technicians now and used every bit of space. From the tour she gave it looked to be true, sadly. I also asked one of the men about the British Horological Society I spoke of in an earlier post, and he said he wasn't a member of that because he "wasn't good enough". So I'll take that as an endorsement of them, then. He said their classes were excellent though and got very advanced and esoteric.