Datsun Roadster Forum-311s.org

So in a stroke of bordom and/or stupidity I decided to try and fix the clock in my roadster. Dispite there being an overwellming number of gears and springs inside, to my amazment after cleaning and lubricating the internal pieces I was able to get it running again and has been running now for 4 days! I have figured it to be running a little slow (about 1 min. per day) but not bad considering!
On the down side now my wife says I have no excuse for coming home late from a drive.
Just thought I would share the good news!

Steve:
Always fun to get a little mechanical surprise, eh? Good luck. Sam

mine runs about that slow too. Maybe they all do?

When I had it open I notice an adjustment screw on the back that could probably be used to get it to run more on-time. I think I will give it a try tonight.

Congrats!! A working clock is always a nice touch. I am completely amazed to report I have 3 cars with working clocks right now. My wifes '67 1600 clock is a tad slow and you usually have to tap it about once a week to get it restarted, but it will hold time very nicely throughout that week. My '70 2000 clock works great, but runs about 2 minutes fast over the course of a week.. Maybe it's time to try that adjustment. Finally, a '68 1600 project car I have has a running clock, but I don't leave the battery connected long enough to see if it holds correct time.

Eric

On the subject of clocks: there is a guy that updates/restores 240z clocks with a later Z quartz motion (I believe) and I am pretty sure he does roadster clocks as well. His website is: http://zclocks.com/.

Amazing what there is in the archives...
Anyone use this service mentioned?
www.zclocks.com
Linda

I reached out to him when I was restoring my car and he said he didn’t do Roadster clocks. I took mine to North Hollywood Speedometer. They converted it to a quartz movement - still works great five years later.

Well he has a link..…:
http://www.zclocks.com/roadster.html
Linda

Great! As a point of reference, I think NHS charged me something like $50-$75 to do my clock. They replaced the plastic lens with glass, and removed the winder stem from the middle (which is a horrible design). They installed an electrical adjuster button on the end of a wire that I routed over to my glove box.

The 12v electrical "winding" mechanism on the roadsters was a terrific idea. There is one downside to look out for, if you take your car out of service for an extended period. When my water pump failed, I figured I would fix the pump in "short order," That was 5 years ago. About 3 years ago, I noticed that the battery was showing signs of corrosion, so I cleaned up the terminals & cables, charged it up & checked for "phantom shorts," I found that the only drain on the battery was the clock, so I pulled the battery. Of courses the battery is still out while I try and make some headway on the pump replacement. Biggest obstacle now, is getting the shroud off the radiator without chewing my hands up on the alternator fan.

Garry S.

Having the stem sticking out of the middle of the face of our little clock (where it partially obstructs the driver’s view of the face) was the only way to do provide a way to set it at the time. I wouldn’t characterize that as a “terrific idea,” maybe the “only idea?” Point is, you don’t have to live with that anymore if you get your clock redone by NHS. The same NHS that does all the gauge work for Jay Leno btw...

In a sense, the ONLY purpose for the clock( given modern technology) is to drain the battery (LOL) - unless you are in a serious concours where they check the clock at the beginning of the inspection and then at the end!

mraitch wrote: ↑Thu Oct 04, 2018 10:37 am In a sense, the ONLY purpose for the clock( given modern technology) is to drain the battery (LOL) - unless you are in a serious concours where they check the clock at the beginning of the inspection and then at the end!

...said the Concours judge.

My restored 68 1600 Roadster's battery stops after a day or two when garaged. Then, when I go out driving again, it takes about ten minutes and it starts running keeping good time....obviously you have to set it again. When I garage it again in about two days the clock stops. When it stops in the garage it is no longer pulling even a milliamp. I guess that's OK with me...I have a functioning clock that hibernates.