Frequently Asked Questions
Please read until the end. Thank you!
Because we sell so many different sizes, shapes, and weights of items our website is not able to give accurate shipping prices. It is never our intention to make money from shipping. We pass on our commercial discount to our customers, and we add a $2.00 handling fee to each order. We will ship the least expensive way unless you request expedited shipping or a particular carrier.
If you would like a quote before ordering, choose the “Call with Total” option, submit the order, and will call or email a quote for shipping with handling included. If you wish to proceed you can then either re-enter the order on our website or call and give us your payment information over the phone. Orders cannot be modified after they are submitted.
You can also email us your parts list along with your zip code, and we will give you a quote before you place the order.
We offer USPS Ground Advantage, USPS Priority Mail, FedEx, UPS, and USPS Media Mail.
We do offer FedEx and UPS Next Day, 2nd Day and 3rd Day Air on orders placed BEFORE 11am, but we do charge a rush delivery fee of $5.00. If you place the order on our website and you need rush delivery service, please leave us a note on your order AND call us to make sure we can honor your request. You can also just call the order in to us @ 800-334-0135. Please do not rely on emails alone if you need a rush delivery.
Books and videos are always sent Media Mail (5-21 days delivery time). If you need your book shipped faster, please leave us a note when you place your order.
All solutions must be shipped via ground service only. That includes our concentrated solutions and aerosol spray cleaners, etc
OUR SOLUTIONS OR AEROSOL SPRAY CLEANERS CANNOT BE SHIPPED INTERNATIONALLY.
Orders placed on the website will be marked as “Completed” while we work to fulfill your order. You will receive an automated email when we have processed the order through our internal secure invoicing program.
Please allow at least 24 hours for the processing of your order. Orders placed after 12pm on Friday will be processed and shipped the following Monday or Tuesday.
When an item is OUT OF STOCK you will be notified. When we send back orders out to customers, we do charge our cost to ship, but we do not charge a handling fee. We are not able to offer free shipping on back orders.
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No, we do not have a minimum.
No, we only have a shipping warehouse.
No, but we can refer you to some excellent repairman in our area or yours.
No, but we occasionally will have some complete clocks under the closeout section on our website.
Yes, we ship worldwide, however, as of July 9th, 2022 we have stopped shipping to Germany due to recent laws requiring strict registration requirements and fees. Also, if your order is over $100 please ask if we will ship it to your country. Some countries, and we may have to ship using a carrier other than USPS. If you would like a quote before placing your order please email us the item numbers, quantities and your location.
Please also check with your local customs office to see what duties, Vat Tax, and other fees will be. Those fees are separate from your order with us and will be collected when you pick up or recieve the package,
You can download a free copy of our catalog HERE. Please check for availability and current pricing. We are working on a new catalog and hope top have it soon.
No, this will strip the gears and void any warranty available on the movement.
You want the shaft of your movement to be long enough that it will come through the dial or face, allow you to screw the hex nut onto the threads but not be too long and hit any glass or cover you may have over the front. The shaft of the movement should be approx. 1/16″ to 1/8″ longer than the thickness of whatever you are mounting it through.
Most quartz movements have the ability to run a second hand. It is your choice to use one or not. If you feel the step second motion would be a distraction then don’t use one. A special closed nut is available to cover the small hole at the end of the movement shaft.
The clock hands are easily bent; carefully bend them back to the correct shape. They should not touch each other when working.
Possibly. We deal mostly in the latest battery operated quartz movements and do not sell complete mechaincal movements due to their high cost, however, if you are needing parts to repair your mechaincal movement we may be able to help. We sell mainsprings, barrels, pendulums, weights, some internal parts such as gears, suspension springs, hands, etc. for mechanical movements. The maker, model number, pendulum length required, etc. will be stamped into the back plate of most mechanical movements. Please provide all information on the back of your movement to help us and let us know what tpe of clock it is: wall, mantle, Grandmother, Grandfather, etc.
The first step is to remove the old movement from your clock. Remove the clock hands first by gently pulling them off. Sometimes the minute hand is held in place by a cap nut. Just unscrew it and continue to remove the hands. The movement itself is normally held in place by a hex nut on the hand shaft, or it can “snap in” which means it is being held in place by little plastic “fingers”. Either unscrew the hex nut to remove or just pry away from the case until snaps free.
The next step is to determine the size of the movement you have. The most important dimension is the shaft length. If your movement was held in place by a hex nut, then you need to measure the height of the threaded portion of the shaft that the hex nut was mounted to. This is referred to as the threaded shaft length. If your movement was a “snap in” the shaft may be all plastic with no threads so just measure the overall length.
Model numbers change frequently by the manufacturer on these types of movements and are not a help to us. We can match it best if you provide the movement case size, shaft length, hand size it needs to run, and features (such as chime, non-chiming, pendulum, non-pendulum, smooth sweep, step sweep, etc).
Now that you know the critical dimension of your movement, look in the movement section of our web site to find a movement that suits your needs and budget. Please remember that the old hands from your movement may not fit the new movement. Hour and minute hands are included for under a $1.00 with movements, so pick out a pair when you order.
Choosing the right battery for your clock: There are many brands of alkaline batteries available on the market today, but there are several brands out there that just don’t perform well in clocks. We recommend using Rayovac or Duracell brand batteries in your battery operated clock. Other brands, such as Energizer, have extra plastic coating on the negative end of the battery, which can cause clocks to malfunction or not work properly at all. Alkaline batteries are the only type of battery that should be used in clocks. Lithium powered or re-chargeable batteries will cause your clock to malfunction, or not function at all. Lithium & rechargeable batteries are meant for “high-drain” devices, such as digital cameras, etc. Alkaline batteries are best used in “low-drain devices, which includes clock movements.
There are many brands of alkaline batteries available on the market today, but there are several brands out there that just don’t perform well in clocks. We recommend using Rayovac or Duracell brand batteries in your battery operated clock. Other brands, such as Energizer, have extra plastic coating on the negative end of the battery, which can cause clocks to malfunction or not work properly at all. Alkaline batteries are the only type of battery that should be used in clocks. Lithium powered or re-chargeable batteries will cause your clock to malfunction, or not function at all. Lithium & rechargeable batteries are meant for “high-drain” devices, such as digital cameras, etc. Alkaline batteries are best used in “low-drain devices, which includes clock movements.
Please let us know and we can email or fax it to you. Most, but not all of our movements come with basic instructions that show you how to mount the hardware, mount it in your clock, set the chime options, etc…
If, within 10 days after receipt of your order, you are not completely satisfied, return it and we will exchange it or promptly refund your money. Please make sure you double check orders before finalizing them. We do not refund shipping for items ordered in error. We do not accept returned merchandise that has been modified or altered from its original design.
If returning, please include the following:
Your name, address and phone number,
a copy of the invoice receipt, a brief note stating the reason for the return and what you’d like to do.
We do not cancel back orders unless customers request it or unless we know that the product will not be in stock within a reasonable amount of time. If we cancel an item on an invoice we always leave a note at the top of the invoice stating that the item was cancelled.
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