Which grandfather clocks are the best? Who is considered the highest-end manufacturer of grandfather clocks?  Is there a big difference between brands?  What about German mechanical grandfather clocks with movements made by Kieninger or Hermle — is one better than the other?  What about the difference between grandmother clock and grandfather clocks?  And cable driven floor clocks vs. chain driven grandfather clocks?

These are all great questions, and by far the lions share of questions come in about Howard Miller grandfather clocks, or is it Herman Miller grandfather clock the name – this is a question we still get almost daily.  Grandfather Clocks by Howard Miller Clocks are by far the best known grandfather clock name out there, and generally speaking have enjoyed the reputation as being the highest end of any grandfather clock makers who produce grandfather clocks in any quantity.  Certainly not far behind, and logically on a par, are Ridgeway Grandfather Clocks, which was an independent grandfather clock company, but was purchased by Howard Miller Clocks about 8 years ago, and in recent years have had both the cases and movements made in the same places and have used the same German Kieninger grandfather clock movements for comparable models.  Essentially these Ridgeway Flooor Clocks are simply different models of the same clocks made by Howard Miller, but with the Ridgeway Clocks name on the dial instead of the Howard Miller Clock name on the face of the clock.

Hermle grandfather clocks are, we believe, on a par with the quality and worksmanship of Howard Miller and Ridgeway Clocks.  All of their higher-end models use cable-driven mechanical movements made in Germany, with Hermle Grandfather Clocks having their own German Hermle mechanical movements inside.  Hermle and Kieninger mechanical grandfather clock movements are extremely comparable.  Kieninger Clocks is nowadays owned by Howard Miller Clocks, while interestingly, Howard Miller used to have only Hermle mechanical movements in their own grandfather clocks.  Sligh grandfather clocks and Bulova Grandfather Clocks have also has the German made Hermle mechanical movements in their grandfather clocks.

Chiming mechanical grandfather clock movements are also comparable whether one is comparing Hermle Grandfather Clocks, Ridgeway Floor Clocks, or the Howard Miller Grandfather Clock selection.

Hermle Floor Pendulum Clocks and mantel clocks and wall clocks is a company and name with a tremendously long and rich history, making clocks since the mid-1800s.  Many antique grandfather clocks still around today were made by Hermle.  Today,  Hermle grandfather clocks are a choice and serious grandfather clock or grandmother clock shopper should look at when considering alternatives.  When looking at grandfather clocks on sale, and at discount grandfather clocks, it’s always a good idea to see what specials are going on for each of these brands.  The good news is that one really cannot make a bad choice when choosing any of a Howard Miller, Hermle or Ridgeway Grandfather Clocks.  On other grandfather clock makers, stay tuned for further developments.

Press Release.  We have some exciting grandfather clocks news to report.  As background, the Sligh Furniture Company stopped making Sligh Grandfather Clocks perhaps 6 to 8 years ago.  Then about 5 years ago, the Bulova Grandfather Clocks Company, a division of Bul0va Clocks, bought the design rights to the Sligh Grandfather Clocks, and continued to make many of the same grandfather clock models made by Sligh, only with the Bulova name.  Now stick with this, because it gets complicated and is quite interesting.  When Bulova began introducing many of the same Sligh Grandfather Clocks models with the Bulova clock name, the clocks were identical, and made by the very same people in the very same place with the very same materials in the very same location.  These Bulova grandfather clocks, in addition to being identical to the Sligh grandfather clocks as described above, also used the identical German-made Hermle movements that had been used in the comparable Sligh Clocks.  Then, about 6 months ago, Bulova clocks itself decided to exit the grandfather clocks market place.  Currently, we at 1-800-4CLOCKS.com have only a handful of the Bulova grandfather clocks in stock.

Now for the exciting new grandfather clock news.  The company and individuals that actually made the clocks both for Sligh Gramdfather Clocks and later Bulova Grandfather Clocks has just shared with us that they will very soon be introducing many of the same grandfather clock models made earlier by Sligh and Bulova.  Not only that – they will also be offering new designs of grandfather clocks, and some of the same previous designs but also for the first time in a choice of wood and finish.  These grandfather clocks will still have the same German Hermle mechanical grandfather clock movements, and will still be made by the same people in the same place that the Bulova and Sligh grandfather clocks were made.

We presume that many of the grandfather clock models, especially when the same grandfather clock model is offered in, say, oak or cherry or walnut, will in some cases require a special order with some lead time for grandfather clock construction and delivery.

Some of the nicest floor clocks made by Bulova are of the size that they can be considered grandmother clocks or grandfather clocks.  Tallcase and Long case clocks that straddle roughly the 80 inch size in height are what we use as the defining characteristics of free standing weight driven pendulum clocks that can be termed grandmother clocks or grandfather clocks.  Floor clocks is another common term used to describe both, as is Hall Clocks.

These clocks will also offer an excellent alternative when grandfather clock shopping to Howard Miller grandfather clocks, Hermle grandfather clocks, the Ridgeway grandfather clock collection, and the special order Kieninger grandfather clocks.  For those that may be wondering, and we get this question quite frequently, Seth Thomas is no longer making grandfather clocks, and new Seth Thomas grandfather clocks have not been made or sold for well over a decade.

Another wonder feature of many of the old Sligh grandfather clock designs is that many were reproductions of antique grandfather clocks.  Some of them had pretty incredible and historic grandfather clock designs.

We can also expect these grandfather clocks to be offered with both the Westminster Chime, as well as many models also having the traditional grandfather clock triple chimes, which also include the Whittington and St Michaels option built in.  This sometimes confuses customers, but the triple chime grandfather clock means that the individual clock purchaser can listen at any one time to any of the three grandfather clock chimes.  The grandfather clock comes built in with all 3 clock chimes (NOTE: one has to be careful about when and how to switch from one chime to another, following the owners manual carefully and never ever switching a chime, or even moving a grandfather clock hand, when the clock is about to or is or just finished chiming its grandfather clock melody or gongs counting the hour or hours).

We look forward to bringing you new information on these new grandfather clocks for sale, as soon as we know more that is worth sharing.  We also expect to be able to offer grandfather clock discounts on these clocks, with greater grandfather clocks discounts than usual, because we will be selling these clocks to you direct from the manufacturer.

The terms Floor Clocks is essentially synonymous with grandfather clocks and grandmother clocks.  Longcase clocks, as they are also known, have a free standing case, with rectangular shaped waist, almost always in wood, with a swinging pendulum and one to three weights.  The chiming mechanical grandfather clocks play Westminster chimes most frequently.  Floor clocks with triple chimes most frequently also have a choice of the Whittington Chimes or the St Michael’s Chimes.  In recent years, Howard Miller has introduced mechanical grandfather cl0cks that also play the Beethoven Ave Maria and Schubert Ode to Joy Chimes in addition to the Westminster Chimes, also known as the Big Ben Chimes.

Grandmother Clocks, simply put, are simply shorter versions of grandfather clocks, which may also include signature designs such as being thinner.  Yet grandfather clock height, with the dividing line we generally use being eighty inches, in where one may cross the height line between grandmother and grandfather clocks.  It is worthy of note that many other experts may use different height, or even trait, definitions of the distinctions between Floor Clocks known as grandmother clocks and grandfather clocks.

Granddaughter Clocks, which are generally much much smaller, maybe two to four inches in height, have also been popular at different points in clock and horological history.  At the time of this writing, it is really only antique granddaughter clocks that one is likely to find for sale.  None of the major high-end grandfather clock makers, including Hermle Clocks, Ridgeway Clocks, Bulova Clocks, and Howard Miller Clocks offer granddaughter clocks for  sale.

It is worth noting here that 1-800-4CLOCKS introduced successfully Grandson Clocks™ a couple of years ago.  In some ways these may be similar to miniature grandfather clocks, but are generally larger than most all of those miniature floor clocks.

Which term do you prefer?  One of the above?  How about Hall Clocks, also used by many high-end makers including Herschede Grandfather Clocks, or Tall Case Clocks, a term used particularly in England and to a lesser extent in Western Europe in general.  Let us know your thoughts.

We got a call from a customer today who was looking for a chiming grandfather clock that also had atomic time.  Do we have such a grandfather clock?  No.  Do we wish we did?  Absolutely.

Not one to be deterred, this same customer asked if we had a chiming wall clock with radio controlled or atomic time.  After pausing for a moment, I realized we not only do not carry such a wall clock, but we have never seen such a clock, or standalone clock movement which could be fitted with a case, ever with our vast experience and deep knowledge base.

An atomic grandfather clock with chimes, or an atomic chiming wall clock, both sound to us as something that could be a solid seller.  There would be the issue of keeping the chimes in exact sequence with the timing of the clock, but isn’t that what clockwork is all about anyway.

Seiko Clocks are you listening?  Howard Miller Clocks, what do you think?  LaCrosse Technology and Infinity Instruments, how would you feel about adding such items to your lineup.  Perhaps Seth Thomas Clocks can make these a gangbusters hit and help revive the clock industry to its previous glory days when it was the preeminent manufacturer in the USA.  Hermle Clocks, what do you think? Rhythm Clocks and Bulova clocks would also be logical manufacturers of such innovative products.

The next question is if only one could be developed, should one go for the grandfather clock or the wall clock with chiming and atomic time?  What are your thoughts?  We would be very interested in knowing your points of view.

Bulova Clocks, known informally both as the Bulova Clock Company and Bulova Watch Company, has pretty much exited the grandfather clocks marketplace. We are deeply disappointed with Bulova’s decision to stop manufacturing these high quality gorgeous grandfather clocks.

Bulova took over the designs of the Sligh Grandfather Clock Company, also known as Sligh Furniture, when Sligh itself decided to exit the grandfather clock marketplace several years ago. Sligh had a great reputation in the business, and Bulova carried on with the same quality and worksmanship in the making of these Floor Clocks, with the same German mechanical movements made by Hermle and with the cases being made in Canada.

There still are other makers of grandfather clocks with many many offerings of super high quality grandfather clocks, including Howard Miller Clocks, the Hermle Grandfather Clock Collection, Ridgeway Grandfather Clocks, and Kieninger Clocks. All of these high-end mechanical grandfather or tall case or longcase clocks have mechanical movements that are German, and have solid wood cases of excellent quality. They offer both cable driven and chain driven weight driven grandfather clocks. At a lower price point, they also offer quartz or battery operated grandfather clocks.

We hope another grandfather clock maker will take over many of the design, and perhaps even use the same manufacturing facility-plant in Canada to keep making these great clocks. It is worth noting that Sligh had made some clocks many years ago which were wonderful reproductions of other classic clocks. While that may be wishful thinking, perhaps these much older designs could also be brought back to life.

We will continue to be an Authorized Dealer for Bulova Mantel Clocks and Bulova Wall Clocks. As we will for Bulova wristwatches and Accutron watches and Wittnauer wrist watches and Caravellenwrist-watches as well.

Our assumption is that Bulova, with a history more in wristwatches and watches than clocks, wants to focus more on its core competency in wrist-watches.

Bulova, it is not too late, and we hope you will change your mind and stay in the grandfather clock business for many years ahead.

Bulova Villa Grandfather Clock Model G0801

Which is the best maker of grandfather clocks?  This is a question we are asked almost daily.  It is a difficult question to answer, both because there is so much cross-ownership in the world of grandfatherclocks, and because there are so many criteria to take into account when comparing both within single grandfather clock brands as well as between the various grandfather clocks brands.

One “fact” seems simple, and least in the opinion of the writer of this blog post.  Based on overall perception and awareness by consumers and organizational buyers of grandfather clocks, Howard Miller grandfather clocks have the most overall awareness, and are perceived by most — the large majority, is our sense — as being the highest end grandfather clocks maker.

We should point out that the mechanical grandfather clocks we sell all currently have high-end German movements, made either by Hermle (whose grandfather clocks movements were used by Howard Miller Clocks exclusively before they purchased Kieninger about seven years ago) or Kieninger (which also makes its own branded Kieninger Grandfather Clocks).  To complicate matters of comparison further, Ridgeway Clocks (which is owned by Howard Miller Clocks) also currently use Kieninger Clocks movements in their Ridgeway Grandfather Clocks.  And just when you thought you had a grasp on the high-end grandfather clocks market, one should be aware that Bulova Grandfather Clocks have been using high-end Hermle Clocks movements, and not surprisingly, Hermle Grandfather Clocks use Hermle grandfather clock movements.  Also, Bulova Clocks, in recent years, has been making grandfather clocks using the Sligh grandfather clocks designs with Hermle grandfather clocks movements, as Sligh Furniture used to do before they exited the grandfather clocks marketplace.

All of these grandfather clocks makers use solid wood cases, at least for their wooden vs.wrought iron or stone waterfall grandfather clocks.

If you know think you understand the high-end grandfather clocks market, just wait 2-3 months.  It will no doubt continue to be a somewhat wild grandfather clocks ride.

We would suggest the following 3 resources:

1. 1. Look on this page on our website to see if you can find an answer to your question(s): just click on -> http://www.1-800-4clocks.com/page/CLOCKS/ClockFAQ
2. 2. You can locate a Howard Miller Authorized Service Center local to you here -> http://cql.howardmiller.com/HM/ServiceCenterLocator.aspx. NOTE that all mechanical Howard Miller clocks had Hermle movements in them until about 5 years ago, and that most any if not all of these Service Centers should be able to work on any Hermle Clock.  This Service Center Network is a great resource, and we have had an excellent experiences working with Service Centers around the Country (and also Canada) using this Service Center Network.  Probably at least half of these Service Centers can work on antique clocks too, as well as other Brands of Clocks!!!!
3. 3. You can order Hermle (and other) Parts (e.g. movements, weights, pendulum, keys, etc.) from the following 2 suppliers -> www.BlackForestImports.com and www.Merritts.com.  While we have no relationship to them whatsoever, we personally have had good results working with them ourselves.  Their contact information is available on each of the noted  websites.  We would most definitely recommend calling them rather than attempting to order from their websites (which would likely be a fruitless effort).

As Western Civilization is beginning to enter its annual Holiday Season, with the associated crass commercialism and materialism, not to ignore, though, the ever-time and always worthy hopes for Peace on Earth and goodwill to all men and women.  Did not mean for this to sound like a Hallmark Greeting Card.

Casual Shoppers and those more seriously looking at grandfather clocks and wall clocks and mantle clocks are facing an ever growing variety of choices.

More and more “cheap stuff” – not inexpensive, but cheaply or poorly made, are flooding the market with brand names one has never heard before but are named so that they somehow do have a ring of familiarity, and associated legitimacy, for prospective timepiece buyers.  The grandfather clocks discount and sale category have been especially targeted with a flood of poorly made grandfather clocks and grandmother clocks, with many parts made of plastic and generally with battery operated quartz movements not attributed to any maker and not likely to last very long either.  Oh, and don’t forget the instruction book.  We get countless calls from individual aspiring horologists who just purchased one of the poorly made clocks (we won’t name the Stores, but several big-name chain store names keep coming up) and want the instruction booklet that was somehow not inside or with their clock.  If we had it to send, we might actually do so as a courtesy, but in this case we are highly doubtful that these instruction books ever even existed in the first place.

Okay, so if a smart shopper stays away from the no-name cheap stuff, what else should they look at?  Good name brands do make a world of difference both in knowing you are getting a quality clock and also knowing that someone will still be there to service the clock, or replace it if absolutely necessary.   Some of the trusted names we carry and have had overall excellent experience with are Howard Miller Clocks, Ridgeway Clocks, Hermle Clocks, Bulova Clocks, Kieninger Clocks, Movado Clocks and more.  While the movement and casing quality may vary within brand, they are generally reasonably highly consistent, and high-quality, across similar product segments within each line, e.g. traditional mechanical wood-cased grandfather clocks.

Sticking with grandfather clocks, there are 4 basic types of grandfather clocks when considering the movement types.  First, and least expensive, are quartz or battery-operated movements.  These have the advantage of being much lower cost, have volume control, no need to wind,  auto night shut-off, and are usually found in smaller clocks.  The disadvantages include the fact that the chimes are recorded and on a sound chip, and can vary pretty dramatically in sound quality, but really never as good as a mechanical clock where one hears the chime rods actually being hit by hammers.  Second, are chain driven mechanical clocks, which usually have 8 day movements, and are wound by pulling down on each of the 3 chains to bring up each of the 3 weights (some clocks models have 2 weights and some only one).  Many people are drawn to these clocks because they are the type they grew up with.  The chime sound quality is good.  The only real downsides are that the movements are not likely to last as long as a cable-driven grandfather clock movement (discussed next), and these clocks tend to have fewer “bells and whistles”,  e.g. working moonphase dial, and automatic nighttime shutoff.  Since the movements are physically smaller, they tend to be in smaller cases with less depth as well – so they can sometimes be the perfect fit for that special space .

Third are mechanical cable-driven grandfather clocks.  These are the clocks that are wound in the dial-face with a winding crank key.  For practical purposes (keep in mind there is a 4th clock movement type still coming), this is best, or at least tied for the best, type of clock movement.  They can last several generations, have the ability to have multiple chimes, and these clock models have varying degrees of the “extras” or bells and whistles, including illuminated dials and amazing carved wood cases.

Fourth is the little-known tubular chime grandfather clock, where long hollow pipes, made of different metals, act as the chime rods.  These clocks have a much deeper and louder gong sound.  Very few people even know what they are.  They are expensive to maintain, if for no other reason that few people know how to work on them.

This is a very general clocks shopping guide which can be used as a handy reference when looking for grandfather clock discounts and grandfather clocks on sale.  If you go for one of the name-brand clocks, one can be fairly certain that they are getting their money’s worth.

More to come on this horological subject.

Almost everyone has heard of Fashionistas, and has their own different interpretation of the meaning.  Well, watch out, because a new breed on consumers are emerging who  may do to Grandfather Clocks what Fashionistas have done to the world of fashion.  Anyone care to guess how the grandfather clock of the future might be affected?

A GrandfatherClocks-ionista is a person devoted to grandfather clocks, particularly those that are rare and unique, or very high-end. It is a term used to define a person, whether a serious collector or passionate timepiece shopper, with a penchant for grandfather clocks shopping and a natural flair for combining both traditional and contemporary clocks styles.  In today’s society, being a GrandfatherClocks-ionista is by no means a negative term.

GrandfatherClocksionistas simply look at Grandfather Clocks as Art, and the sense of style they develop along the way is the true masterpiece.  They are very knowledgeable and realistic when it comes to timepiece and horological trends, and mixing home decor and interior decorating and design fashions in with their current tastes in clocks.

GrandfatherClocksionista is the lexical combination of the words GrandfatherClocks, and Sandinista, a Nicaraguan authoritarian political party.  Despite recent trends to make this term more acceptable, it should be noted that while its etymology connotes negative political consequences when used in North America, when combined with another term like the horological Grandfather Clocks, it would take on an air of levity and poking fun at the serious grandfather clocks collector.  People might think of this term as more like the Grandfather Clocks Police when it comes to looking at and commenting upon grandfather clock design and trends in timepieces.

Ultimate, the GrandfatherClocks-ionista is one who believes in the power of Grandfather Clocks and the exalted nature of wall clocks, mantel clocks, atomic clocks, and watches too.  They may know, or at least think they know, all of the major Grandfather Clocks brands such as Howard Miller Clocks, Bulova Grandfather Clocks, the Ridgeway Grandfather Clock Collection, and Hermle Floor Clocks.  And also a lot about antique grandfather clocks and grandmother clocks too.

We will advise as we see this trend increasing or tapering off.  Let us know what you see and hear any time about clocks as it relates to this trend and timepieces.

The fashion police.
Fashionista is the lexical combination (see ‘portmanteau’) of the words Fashion, which is the socially decided (see ‘groupthink’) garb to be worn by those wishing to be accepted in high society, and Sandinista, a Nicaraguan authoritarian political party.

OK, this customer visiting with us asked us a perfectly natural question, and it BLEW US AWAY (and yes, we do live reasonably well-rounded and interesting lives).

This grandfather clocks customer asked us, without a hint of any hesitation, if we might be able to secure for him a grandfather clock costume for his child’s upcoming Halloween party.  Now, have we been missing a HUGE marketing opportunity that never even occurred to us, or is this perhaps the only customer on Earth – although we do accept orders from outer space, but with shipping at cost – who might even be in the market for a grandfather clock costume?

Candidly, we have never seen a grandfather clocks costume to be used on Halloween or any other occasion.  Yet we certainly think it is a quite cool idea.  We wonder if any clocks enthusiasts out there have either seen a costume with someone dressed as a grandfather clock or grandmother clock.

If current sources exist, we would love to hear to about them and perhaps feature them on our main website.  If they are not yet in existence, we would still be quite interested if someone could design-make such a costume in time for Halloween this year. We would be delighted to feature this costume alongside our  grandfather clocks.  Whether the “creator” wants to  specifically have a Howard Miller Grandfather Clock, or a Hermle Grandfather Clock, or one from the Ridgeway grandfather clock collection, we would let you decide (after exploring the trademark issues).  We would LOVE to feature a grandfather clocks costume for Halloween in time for this season on our main clocks website, www.1-800-4CLOCKS.com.

Hope to hear from some-many of you soon. And please be safe on Halloween!