Chapter 135 - Meetings

Chapter 135 Meetings

We welcome visiting members of NAWCC or anyone with an interest in Horology to join us at our meetings.

To expand accessibility to our meetings were currently trying a hybrid system of zoom and in person meetings. Membership in the chapter is not required to attend.

The regular meetings for Chapter 135 are held monthly. The meetings are normally on the 1st Saturday of the Month. On occasion, other activities will replace the regular meeting, so it is important to check the Meeting Schedule on the Home Page.

Nancy Thorn, a Master Gilder, is a gilding conservator and consultant for museums and collectors. She has owned Gold Leaf Restoration in Portland, OR since 1980, where she makes authentic period frames and specializes in conservation and restoration.

Her Gold Leaf Restoration Studio is Located at: 544 S. E. Oak St., Portland, OR 97214 and her website is www.goldleafdesigh.net

Conservation of Historic Clocks and Automatons
Brittany Cox
Brittany Nicole Cox

Brittany, a WOSTEP and West Dean College graduate will cover her most interesting projects (a smoking automaton, a clock owned by Marie Antoinette, a five tier pagoda clock from the forbidden city, the world’s only miniature automaton ship.... and more) with photos and will talk a bit about an exhibition she has been putting together. It will feature musical clocks by Charles Clay with music composed by George Frederick Handel and will open in London later this year. She will be talking about the workshop she has been setting up and the objects she specializes in.

Brittany, in 2010 and while a student at North Seattle Community College WOSTEP (Watchmakers of Switzerland Technical Education Program) training program, attended some of our Chapter 135 meetings. At one of our meetings (see the picture above, she showed an early English watch she had restored during her time in the WOSTEP Program. After graduating from WOSTEP, Nico enrolled in the prestigious Conservation of Clocks Program at West Dean College in South East England with a focus in Automatons and Mechanical Music. Britney's website is http://mechanicalcurios.com/

Phil Johansen

Phil Johansen - Phil, one of the longest-standing NAWCC members in the Pacific Northwest is a master craftsman as well as an award winning designer and maker of clocks. At the 2008 NAWCC Craft Contest, Phil was the First-in-Class winner for his Single-Train Regulator Movement clock. Phil’s design incorporated an internal gear regulator with two pinions, plus the escape wheel, all running on precision ball bearings. also in 2008 he is the First-in-Class winner for his Other Material Clock Cases Top, bottom and sides and rear molding are machined aluminum. The back is .10 aluminum sheet. The movement mount is Delrin. The case is hinged to the back, thus the whole case swings our totally exposing the movement, weight and pendulum.

Then in 2014 Class 4: Complicated Clock Movement First Place for his long duration (6 month) single-train movement with moon phase display. The moon phase display is driven by an integral to the falling weight. The moon phase/weight is rigged by a pulley system that attaches to the case at the bottom and the top to keep weight facing properly as the Kevlar line unwinds from the drum in the clock movement. The movement is wound by a secret crank disguised as a rosette on the case.