I will never be a master craftsman, but I can learn by doing. But, as a hobby I am willing to invest in nice tools, books and old watches in order to improve my skills. In the case of watchmaking I am an eager student of the craft, but am not willing to invest the money and time necessary to advance my skills by attending a school. I am not downplaying the importance of an education, but it is good to be able to focus on your trade.
However, the best at their trade seem to be the old guys and girls that learned a trade from a master craftsman. “It’s a real problem.From a purely philosophical perspective, apprenticeships in skilled trades have gone by the way-side in favor of those with degrees in the respective fields. “What young folks are interested in antiques, in time pieces, when they have cell phones and don’t need pocket watches or clocks?” he said. Konicek hopes younger people see the same potential. “I’ll never make a lot of money at it, but maybe it will supplement my retirement income,” he said. The longtime woodworker, whose school in Alameda folded during the recession, volunteers at Livermore’s Classical Clocks & Antiques in Livermore, and hopes to open his own shop one day. And at 61, he is hoping his new skills in horology will open up a new career for him. Jerry Konicek of Hayward has been a member of Chapter 107 for about two years has bought 20 cuckoo clocks and so far fixed only one. He has a couple dozen clocks that are functional and a bunch of old parts. Meetings of both chapters are open to the public.Īs an analytical chemist, Russ has long been interested in the mechanics of clocks, which he began to study after taking a broken clock into a Walnut Creek repair shop only to be invited by the owner to take an adult school course on clock maintenance. Many members of the Diablo Valley chapter are also members of the association’s largest of five Northern California clubs, Chapter 5, which meets in San Leandro every other month. Local members are versed in the history of clocks, and others are interested in buying and selling at the members-only mart that precedes each club meeting. Russ said the interests of 18,000 association members worldwide range from repairing to collecting to ensuring clocks are precise. Local chapters are encouraging members to enroll in clock repair classes or take up the hobby with younger generations in their families. Membership in the organization is dropping off nationally as electronics have threatened to make traditional clocks more obsolete, Russ said. Hayenga had a 1996 patent for inventing an adjustable suspension fork for a 400-day anniversary clock.
His father and his late grandfather, Lubertus Hayenga, owned hundreds of clocks between them. “Even though we’re going toward the digital age now, when I was exposed to the style and beauty of those clocks, the designs on the faces, that got me interested - how much work was put into making the clocks,” Max said. Jay Taylor of Alameda, a club member since the 1980s, said repair specialists are in demand within the high-end watch market. Even folks in their 30s would be a welcomed change for the club.Ĭlub leaders say learning horology - the generations-old study of how clocks, watches and other time pieces are made, repaired and keep time - during the long recession could prove to be a new and promising career track, as well as a fun hobby. It is setting up displays at local libraries to attract young people who largely tell time using cellphones or other electronic gadgets. The chapter, which has about 45 members and meets every other month in Danville, is ramping up its website and other outreach efforts. “They are a lot of old men and a few old ladies,” Russ said. Price Russ, president of the Diablo Valley Chapter of the National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors, said that at 65 he is “on the younger end of people who have been in the organization for a considerable time.” The Walnut Creek resident said there are a few teens who have expressed interest, and the club wants to increase their numbers. Looking around the room at their bimonthly meetings and buyers mart, the mostly elderly and middle-aged members of a local watch and clock collectors group can tell its time to get some new blood.
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