pendulum length

Posted: Mon Dec 19, 2011 1:44 am     Post subject: pendulum length

Can I use a shorter pendulum with a quartz movement without affecting the movement's performance? I want to buy a new movement for an old clock. The original pendulum is 10" and all the new movements have longer pendulums.

Posted: Mon Dec 19, 2011 7:31 am     Post subject:

On quartz clocks, the pendulum length makes no difference. The pendulum is independently driven and has nothing to do with the time.

Also, I don't know about other places, but many of the quartz pendulum movements at Klockit.com have "breakaway" rods (carefully read the description). The backside of a "breakaway" pendulum rod has notches, you bend the rod back and forth at the notch for the length you want, until it breaks.