Lexington, KY - If you've spent any time walking down the south side of Short Street, between Upper and Limestone, chances are you've stopped to peek into the fabulous window display of The Clock Shop. The puppets, dolls, gadgets and clocks reveal the uniqueness of the eclectic shop, but don't be fooled -
fixing clocks is the shop's primary business, and one that owner Edgar Hume has been practicing for more than 30 years.
"Maybe it's an egotistical thing, but we want to do the best possible work that you can possibly do," he said. "We've been doing this for so long that hopefully we've got a really good reputation."
While the small specialty shop, which also features a large selection of magic tricks and toys, may not have a particularly high volume of business, they have many repeat customers, those who are attracted to the shop for the the high level of customer service and guarantees offered by Hume -
if he fixes a clock and there is a problem with it later that he either caused or exacerbated, he will rebuild it at no charge.
While prices to fix clocks vary depending on the problem, Hume said he's usually able to provide an accurate quote when the item is brought in; if he finds, while working on a piece, that the problem is more complicated than he originally thought, he will call the owner with the new quote and put it back together at no cost to the owner if they decide it's more than they want to shell over. The most common problems he sees are due to heat, air conditioning or moisture, which can warp a wooden clock and "put it out of it's tick tock." Other common problems include a natural wearing down and reshaping of the plates that the internal gears rest in.
The shop, which also does repairs on watches and music boxes, specializes in top-of-the-line museum accepted restoration, and Hume mentored under Lexington master clockmaker Newt Nowell years ago before branching out to start his own business. He said when he sends a fixed clock back to its owner, he looks at it the way a parent would look at a child they are sending out into the world.
"They better do well," he said, wagging his finger.