Clock type · Specialist

Spring-Driven Clocks

Verified

A mechanism category, rather than a single clock form, describing any clock powered by a coiled mainspring instead of a falling weight — enabling portability at the cost of a less constant driving force.

Movement & mechanism

Mainspring housed in a barrel, delivering torque that decreases as the spring unwinds
Fusee-and-chain commonly used historically to equalise torque; later going-barrel construction accepted the torque variation as the lever escapement became less sensitive to it
Stop-work (e.g. a Geneva stop) sometimes fitted to prevent use of the weakest and strongest parts of the spring's range

Identification

Absence of a weight and pulley system distinguishes spring drive from weight drive at a glance
Presence of a fusee (a grooved conical pulley) indicates earlier or higher-grade spring-driven work
Winding is via a key or, in the going-barrel era, sometimes directly by a squared arbor

Terminology

Mainspring — the coiled spring providing motive power
Fusee — a tapered pulley equalising mainspring torque via a chain or gut line
Going barrel — a simpler spring barrel driving the train directly, without fusee compensation

Known variations

Fusee spring-driven clocks
Going-barrel spring-driven clocks

Collecting notes

As a mechanism category rather than a form, spring-driven clocks are collected under their specific type (bracket, carriage, mantel, etc.); the presence and quality of a fusee is itself a collecting and dating consideration.

Spring-driven wall clock Sault Museum — Fungus Guy, CC BY 4.0. Wikimedia Commons file page

Spring driven, striking table clock with quarter chiming by William Speakman, London, c. 1695 - Clockmakers' Museum - London, UK - DSC05442 — Spring-driven wall clock Sault Museum — Fungus Guy, CC BY 4.0. Wikimedia Commons file page

Sources & references

Britten, F. J., Old Clocks and Watches and Their Makers

Where sources disagree, the disagreement is stated rather than resolved silently.