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An aluminium-cased longcase clock?


2131tom

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My reaction was: 'It shouldn't be allowed' but am I being a traditionalist stick-in-the-mud?  

See:  http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/323699767134?ViewItem=&item=323699767134

What's your thoughts?  The clock is still being produced and does have a high-end price.  No disrespect intended to the maker, but I'm not sure about the value of the Hermle movement  

Aluminium longcase.jpg

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I gasp in horror at this. Hermle tells me right away its modern and the movements are not that good. In 30 years it will need to be replaced. To me it is not a Longcase clock. It is a modern case that is supposed to resemble a Longcase clock. At that price, you could get yourself a genuine antique Longcase.

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Putting my antique restorers hat on, I can see a few issues as time goes on, the case looks to be solid timer  that will warp over time due to the aluminium cladding that would have to have been glued to the timber, therefore the timber not being able to expand and contract due to moisture content in the air, most likely the aluminium veneer will come off the timber and show bubbles on such a highly polished surface. The movement, well have a look at this 20 year old Hermlie movement, mind you it has not seen a service in that time, also the cheap construction of the way they attached the seconds hand, how are you supposed to hit in the bush without bending the small plate, well I used engineers clamps to push it in, however if it was held by a few screws you could have taken it off and hit the bush in on the flat.

KeithsClock2.jpg.5b52853e530d33b5c23d11eca8fb0e33.jpg

KeithsClock3.jpg.8450c7672664288739c4479f953e806a.jpg

 

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I had another look at the case, it is doubled skinned so the timber can breath, I just hope the inner skin is not glued to the drawer unit as it will surly crack/split, it should be slot screwed to allow for the expansion and contraction

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Its a over priced piece of tat, designed to part the gullible of large amounts of cash, it is nigh on valueless as the seller will find out, he could list it till the end of time at that price and it will not sell, if this came up at auction it would fetch £100 -£200 at best purely because some will find it decorative.

To part with over £13,000 when new really does prove the old adage that some people do have more money than sense.

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