Zoom Meetings 2021

Wednesday Evening, December 15, 2021. "An Evening with John Losch and the 75mm Tool Makers Lathe".

John Losch will talk about his Waltham Watch Company 75mm tool maker's lathe. He has some tooling that he made and some useful attachments that he will show and discuss. John will entertain questions during his talk, the answers to which will expose attendees to his wide range of horological knowledge.

John described himself modestly as a "retired clock maker," but a short conversation with him will prove that experience does not retire. Losch has been repairing clocks for over 75 years, having started out working with his father at the age of 12. He worked and trained at the Howard Clock (Products) Co., Waltham MA, and studied with the late H. J. Olsen of Watertown, who learned clockmaking in Roxbury and Boston from the men taught by the Willards. He was associated for 35 years with the Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments at Harvard University as a restorer of clocks and early scientific apparatus and ran his own clock and instrumentation business from 1954 to 1997 with a short interlude as an instructor at the NAWCC School of Horology. He has held local town offices and was a state legislator in his spare time. He continues to maintain a full working shop and performs specialized repairs and restorations upon request. John is a frequent attendee at the Third Wednesday Webinars and has been known to provide knowledgeable and humorous repartee with presenters and attendees alike.

https://vimeo.com/657255792

Wednesday evening, October 20, 2021. "The Future of Auctions Amid the COVID-19 Pandemic, Part II"

Daniel Horan is owner and president of Schmitt-Horan & Co. and a licensed auctioneer. He has managed auction houses specializing in antique horological items for more than 20 years, and this has provided him with the unique experience of working with some of the top watch and clock experts in the field. As a 15 year member of the National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors and board member of Chapter 8, Dan has given many presentations on selling at auction, appraisals, and how to share the love of antiques with the younger generations.

Since acquiring Schmitt-Horan in 2017, Dan created a specialized and proprietary auction software that assists in the firm’s ability to provide frequent online auction and high-quality opportunities for horological enthusiasts and collectors. This software proved critical during the outbreak of Covid-19 and helped keep his company afloat. In June of 2020 during the onset of the pandemic, Dan gave a presentation titled The Future of Auctions Amid the COVID-19 Pandemic. Now that over a year has passed, Dan will revisit the topic, review events of the past year and take the pulse of the current market with you.

https://vimeo.com/637467996

Wednesday Afternoon, September 15, 2021. "Waltham MA - The City of Horological Opportunity"

Andy Dervan will discuss the individuals, the "little guys," who came to Waltham and used their mechanical and/or business expertise in different ways to start a business and/or work in the Watch Factory. Andy began collecting antique clock in 1997 and joined the NAWCC. He found clock collecting was a fascinating hobby, and his principle collecting interest is 19th and 20th Century weight driven clocks, particularly banjo clocks. Researching the manufacturing histories of various makers and companies was more challenging than simply collecting; he has published many articles in NAWCC Watch and Clock Bulletin, American Clock and Watch Museum Electronic Timepiece Journal, and Clocks Magazine. In 2011, he retired from DuPont Performance Coating and now volunteers at Henry Ford Museum, runs a clock appraisal business, and continues his horological research. In 2011, he became an NAWCC Fellow, in 2016 he was awarded NAWCC James W. Gibbs Literary Award, and in 2017 he became an NAWCC Star Fellow. 

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Wednesday evening, August 18, 2021. "Reverse Engineering Complex Watch Movements"

Steve McGowan will discuss how he reverse engineers complex watch movements to fabricate 3D printed parts which allow him to make working models of the subject watches. He will review several of his designs. Steve is an electrical engineer who designs computer IO systems for a living. For the last 5 years he has been working for a company that makes chips for noise cancelling headphones, and prior to that he worked in the Intel Research Labs for 20 years, primarily on their USB development team. In his spare time, he has pursued a variety of interests, including watch design and 3D modeling. Initially he would create 3D models of interesting escapements that he discovered on the web to better understand how they worked. The modeling program he uses helps him to visualize how mechanisms work by allowing him to animate them, and see how their various parts interact. After discovering 3D printers Steve realized that I could use them to turn his 3D models into physical parts without a huge investment in tools or time. The additive manufacturing approach offered by today's hobbyist quality 3D printers allows him to turn a model of a very complex part into a physical part in a matter of hours, with a very small investment in tools and materials. 3D printers also allow Steve to spend more time designing, and less time fabricating his ideas. Of course, brass is beautiful and elegant, but even if he were to master the necessary machining skills, the materials costs would be prohibitive.

Here are some links to Steve's projects:

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/mcmaven.pdx/

YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5MKgj9IucEnde7mCR1N1VQ/videos

Thingiverse - Repository of Steve's free designs. https://www.thingiverse.com/mcmaven/designs Cults3D -

Some overlap with Thingiverse, but also includes some designs that charge for. https://cults3d.com/en/users/mcmaven/creations

https://vimeo.com/589544690

Wednesday Evening, July 21, 2021. "Timing the Revolution - The Role of Timekeeping and Time Keepers During the American War of Independence"

Bob Frishman will present a richly-illustrated, special preview of “Horology 1776” an international symposium to take place in Philadelphia, on October 7-9, 2021, at the American Philosophical Society’s Franklin Hall and at the Museum of the American Revolution.

Subjects of the symposium include the contributions of eminent clockmakers such as David Rittenhouse; the key role of a gold pocket watch in Benedict Arnold’s treason; the constant noting of exact times in correspondence and diary entries by both George Washington and King George III; the first use of time synchronization in military maneuvers; timekeeping aboard British warships; the use of silver-case pocket watches as currency; and much more. Bob will offer us exciting summaries and related images in advance of the two-day October symposium.

During the past forty years, Bob Frishman has established a reputation as one of America’s leading practitioners and scholars of horology: www.bell-time.com. He has repaired and restored more than 7,000 antique clocks and watches, published over 100 articles on the history, technology, and cultural importance of mechanical timekeeping, and has lectured on the subject to more than 100 audiences. As Chairman of the NAWCC Time Symposium Committee, Bob created and organized groundbreaking horological conferences at the Winterthur Museum, the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, and the Henry Ford Museum. Bob is a Fellow of the NAWCC and a Freeman of The Worshipful Company of Clockmakers, a London guild founded in 1631. He is also the holder of share #8 of the Library Company of Philadelphia. Bob is currently working on a biography of Philadelphia clockmaker Edward Duffield.

https://vimeo.com/629391957

Wednesday Evening, June 16, 2021. "Waltham 1899/1908 Model - Part 2"

In the second part on June 16th, Chris Carey will discuss the mainspring and barrel, the train and motion works, the balance, the escapement, replacing a balance staff, balance end-shake, closing worn bushings, then in the third session of this series of Zoom meetings, Chris will work interactively with participants who want to try to dismantle and assemble one of these watches step-by-step at home. This will be a great collaborative series for those just starting out in watch collecting, repair, and maintenance.

Chris Carey was taught watch repair as a boy by his grandfather, Pat Caruso, a watchmaker at Waltham Watch. In 1993 he opened his own clock and watch repair shop, Watertown Watch and Clock, and now operates the shop with his wife, Christine, in Waltham, Massachusetts. Chris has served as the Secretary for AWCI, he is a member of the Massachusetts Watchmakers-Clockmakers Association, The Greater Boston Watch and Clock Collectors, NAWCC Chapter 87, and currently serves as the President of NAWCC New England Chapter 8.

Event Not Recorded

Wednesday Evening, May 19, 2021. "The Constant Obsession with Constant Force"

Jon has a PhD in solid state physics which led to a career in scientific instrument sales and aerospace engineering. He joined the NAWCC in 1971 and has been an officer in several chapters and the Antiquarian Horological Society. At the present time he is a member of the board of directors of Chapter 8. He has published several articles in the Watch and Clock Bulletin, one the Swiss Journal, Chronometrophelia. Jon’s interest in constant force timekeeper began with a chance encounter with the first prototype tucked away in a museum in Basle on a list in 2011. On his return home he learned of the remarkable history of this item from its creation in the mid 1700’s through the 1960’s and still spawns papers. The talk will briefly summarize this history but will focus primarily on current production of various watches incorporating various forms of constant force, most known in the 1700’s but with a few new concepts.

https://vimeo.com/629380882

Wednesday Evening, April 21, 2021. "Joseph Ives and the Looking Glass Clock"

Mary Jane Dapkus, Independent History Researcher and Author discusses her research about Joseph Ives and his Looking Glass Clock. Mary Jane has uncovered much new information about clockmaker Joseph Ives, all unavailable when the 2nd edition of the late Kenneth D. Roberts' otherwise excellent book on Ives appeared in 1988, and all centered on the previously untold story of Ives' looking glass clocks. How did the clocks relate to future Bristol clock making? Who was Lott Newell, and why was he so angry with the clockmakers? When and why was Ives imprisoned in New York City? What was the real reason the looking glass clocks were never very successful? These matters and more are the subject of the talk, and of Mary Jane's book Joseph Ives (1782-1862) and the Looking Glass Clock with 100% of the proceeds going to benefit the American Clock & Watch Museum (ACWM). For further information about the book or to obtain a copy, please phone the Museum at 860-583-6070, or email: info@clockmuseum.org.

https://vimeo.com/629411037

Wednesday evening, March 17, 2021. "Waltham 1899/1908 Model - Ab Ovo Usque Ad Mala" 

Because pocket watches are fun, Chris Carey will present the first in a three-part series of practical classes on the repair of the Waltham 16 size model 1899/1908 pocket watch. The series is aimed at the novice, hobbyist, and others who are interested in learning to repair antique pocket watches or just want to gain an understanding of how they work. In the first part, Chris will discuss the identification and features of this model, how to open the various case styles, the stem/sleeve and crown, and crystal installation. Time allowing, he will review the various parts of the mechanism, letting down the power, and operation of the setting mechanism. In the second part on June 16th, he will discuss the mainspring and barrel, the train and motion works, the balance, the escapement, replacing a balance staff, balance end-shake, closing worn bushings, then in the third session of this series of Zoom meetings, Chris will work interactively with participants who want to try to dismantle and assemble one of these watches step-by-step at home. This will be a great collaborative series for those just starting out in watch collecting, repair, and maintenance. 

Chris Carey was taught watch repair as a boy by his grandfather, Pat Caruso, a watchmaker at Waltham Watch. In 1993 he opened his own clock and watch repair shop, Watertown Watch and Clock, and now operates the shop with his wife, Christine, in Waltham, Massachusetts. Chris has served as the Secretary for AWCI, he is a member of the Massachusetts Watchmakers-Clockmakers Association, The Greater Boston Watch and Clock Collectors, NAWCC Chapter 87, and currently serves as the President of NAWCC New England Chapter 8. Beware: his family is sick of hearing him talk about watches and clocks, so he is happy to have found a new audience through Zoom.

Event Not Recorded



Wednesday Evening, January 20, 2021. "Benjamin Banneker (1731-1806) Early African-American Astronomer, Philomath, and Clockmaker"

Mary Jane Dapkus, Independent History Researcher and Author discuss the misinformation about Banneker’s life and work has appeared in print. In her talk Mary Jane will attempt to dispel some of it and to trace what is known about Banneker’s extraordinary journey from tobacco farmer to astronomer, almanac maker, and surveyor who earned the respect of some of Colonial America’s greatest scientific minds. She will also attempt to describe the one and only clock known to have been produced by Banneker.

Mary Jane Dapkus enjoyed a career as an analyst in the environmental science field before serving briefly as curator of the American Clock & Watch Museum (ACWM) in Bristol, CT. An independent history researcher specializing in early American clockmaking, her articles have appeared in the NAWCC’s Clock & Watch Bulletin, the Cog Counters’ Journal, and in the ACWM;’s Timepiece Journal, of which she also serves as editor. Together with the late Snowden Taylor, she is co-author of the book Antebellum Shelf Clock Making in Farmington and Unionville Villages, CT (NAWCC, 2019).

https://vimeo.com/629436309