Westclox | Baby Ben Style 4 | Base Bottom Color | Most Style 4 Baby Ben bases are painted gold on the bottom. Starting in 1937, some are painted the same as the case. Gold bottom bases have a brass nut in the center. Ivory and Gunmetal bottom bases have a nickel nut in the center. Some of the Ivory and Gunmetal bottom bases have a plated outside edge (like the gold bottom bases), others are unplated. |
Westclox | Baby Ben Style 4 | Base Cavity Number | Lettering "1", "2", or "3" has been observed on the bottom of the bases on the left or right side. Max Schlenker said these are "cavity numbers" to identify the cavity used to cast the base. |
Westclox | Baby Ben Style 4 | Lettering at Bottom of Dial | The "A" in "MADE IN U.S.A." has either a dot or a dash after it. Early ones have a dot. This applies only to non-luminous dials with "MADE BY WESTERN CLOCK CO., . . . " at the bottom of the dial. |
Westclox | Baby Ben Style 4 | Trip Staff Nut | Long or short nut on trip staff. Early examples have a long nut, and a correspondingly shorter alarm set knob. |
Westclox | Baby Ben Style 4 | Width of "BABY BEN" on Made by Westclox dial | The very earliest "Made by Westclox" dials have the name "BABY BEN" the same width as "Westclox" below the center. Most have "BABY BEN" wider than "Westclox". This applies to the plain (non-luminous) dials; MAY apply to the Ivory Brown Band Luminous dial; and PROBABLY doesn't apply to the Black Luminous dial, which started out with different widths as a "Made by Western Clock Co. . . ." dial and continued with different widths as a "Made by Westclox . . ." dial. |
Westclox | Baby Ben Style 3 | Back Type | The first ones don't have a Loud-Soft control on the back. The Loud-Soft control was added in December 1932 |
Westclox | Baby Ben Style 3 | Base | The style 3 Baby Ben has two types of base lettering on the bottom. Most of the bases are painted gold on the bottom, I've seen one painted black, on a case without a movement. |
Westclox | Baby Ben Style 3 | Base Cavity Number | Baby Ben Style 3 bases have cavity number "A.1" or "A.2". |
Westclox | Baby Ben Style 2 | Back Type | Patent dates or patent numbers are on the backs. |
Westclox | Baby Ben Style 2 | Base | Style 2 Baby Ben bases have differences in lettering on the bottom. At least two companies made the bases. |
Westclox | Baby Ben Style 2 | Base Bottom Color | Some are black on the bottom and some are gold. The first nickel clocks are black on the bottom. As far as I know, all painted finish clocks have gold bottom bases. Later nickel clocks have gold bottom bases. |
Westclox | Baby Ben Style 2 | Base Cavity Number | The Doehler (61-A) bases have either "1" or "2" as a cavity number. The other bases have nothing, or a small dot, or a large dot and a small dot. |
Westclox | Baby Ben Style 2 | Base Hole | Some of the Doehler bases have a hole located half way between the mounting screw holes. |
Westclox | Baby Ben Style 2 | Cast Base Metal Condition | The Baby Ben Style 2 was an early use of a die cast base by Westclox. Some of these bases are in bad condition, and some are remarkably good. These conditions are a rough way to track how well the bases aged. |
Westclox | Baby Ben Style 2 | Inner Shell Type | Variations in the spring on the alarm sliders, no hole or hole at lower right. |
Westclox | Baby Ben Style 2 | Movement Type | No hole or hole for alarm pull switch |
Westclox | Baby Ben Style 2 | Number of Base Corners Gone | Sometimes one or both front corners are broken off. This is a rough attempt to track how well the style 2 bases aged. |
Westclox | Baby Ben Style 2 | RD 1927 | The Doehler bases may or may not say RD - 1927. The other bases may or may not say "RD 1927" The bases without RD 1927 are earlier. |
Westclox | Baby Ben Style 1 | Back Type | Baby Ben style 1 backs have various patent dates or patent numbers. Early examples have a "Made By" line behind the rear leg. Some examples ca. 1913 have a $2.50 price seal. |
Westclox | Baby Ben Style 1 | Center Pinion Construction | At first, cast lead with steel wires; later, solid steel. |
Westclox | Baby Ben Style 1 | Dial | Baby Ben style 1 dials were first celluloid covered, then plain paper. At first, the dials just say "baby Ben" with the first "b" lower case, and the back of the "4" is curved. Later, the back of the "4" was made straight, followed by the first "B" in "Baby" being upper case. The trademark "Westclox" was added to the dial in late 1917. Lettering at the bottom of the dial started in 1915. |
Westclox | Baby Ben Style 1 | Hairspring Material | First a blued steel hairspring was used, then a copper color hairspring. The transition was ca. 1920 to 1922. |
Westclox | All Westclox | Maker's Name on Dial | In late 1936 or early 1937, the lettering at the bottom of the dial changed from "MADE BY WESTERN CLOCK CO. LA SALLE, ILL. U.S.A" to "MADE BY WESTCLOX, LA SALLE, ILL., U.S.A." |
Westclox | All Westclox | Westclox logo on dial through ca. 1931 | The name Westclox was first used on dials ca. 1917. At first, the font was italic. Ca. 1923 the font became Roman. Starting in 1927, the x in Westclox had a tail on it. |