What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

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MichaelPawelek
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What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

Post by MichaelPawelek » Mon Nov 22, 2021 8:11 pm

Curious as to the hives opinions from experience. Question does not include electronic timers please….


Dave S
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Re: What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

Post by Dave S » Mon Nov 22, 2021 8:31 pm

New Day works for me.

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Mark Gregush
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Re: What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

Post by Mark Gregush » Mon Nov 22, 2021 8:41 pm

New Day or roller type.
I know the voices aren't real but damn they have some good ideas! :shock:

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Re: What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

Post by Norman Kling » Mon Nov 22, 2021 9:08 pm

I use the older New Day with the brown cover. They work for years without any maintenance. I also use Anderson flapper timers. Also good. I always carry a spare timer and brush in my T's, but so far have not needed to replace when on the road.
Norm

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Re: What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

Post by Steve Jelf » Mon Nov 22, 2021 9:59 pm

New Day is very good if your cam seal doesn't leak. They don't like oil.
The inevitable often happens.
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Re: What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

Post by John kuehn » Mon Nov 22, 2021 10:03 pm

New days for me I guess. I bought 4 at Chickasha for 25.00 that are the originals and 2 are nearly new. They will probably last for me for several more years besides the ones in use now on my cars.

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Re: What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

Post by StevenS » Mon Nov 22, 2021 10:43 pm

Steve Jelf wrote:
Mon Nov 22, 2021 9:59 pm
New Day is very good if your cam seal doesn't leak. They don't like oil.
New Days are very good, and I agree with Steve on the oil with one exception "they do not like dirty oil". I have an oil leak but when the oil gets some carbon in it, It starts getting a miss and timing problems.
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Re: What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

Post by Petrah Phyre » Mon Nov 22, 2021 10:52 pm

Opinion on the Tiger Timer?


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Re: What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

Post by ModelTWoods » Mon Nov 22, 2021 11:07 pm

Steve Jelf wrote:
Mon Nov 22, 2021 9:59 pm
New Day is very good if your cam seal doesn't leak. They don't like oil.
Steve, Truer words have never been written or spoken. I found out the hard way that what you write is so true.

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Re: What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

Post by Steve Jelf » Mon Nov 22, 2021 11:27 pm

...when the oil gets some carbon in it, It starts getting a miss and timing problems.

Boy, howdy. I phoned Mike Bender and asked him, "Can you hear this?"
He said it sounded like it was firing on one or two cylinders. It was.
:D
The inevitable often happens.
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Re: What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

Post by TWrenn » Tue Nov 23, 2021 7:15 am

I had a "new- New Day" on my Fordor to replace a worn out roller. It worked fine for about 250 miles. Had to open it up, clean off carbon wear, re-face the brass contacts. Worked fine, 259 miles, repeat. Did this like 3 or 4 times and took it off. I located a TW timer and no more problems. I still say Tony's (RIP) timer is by far the best, with the same exception also with the N.D.--- oil. Keep a good seal and you're good to go. The brush on the New Day is cheap and sloppy, hence the wear.
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Re: What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

Post by speedytinc » Tue Nov 23, 2021 8:18 am

New day (old rebuilt) Polish contact face. Replace the copper brush with a carbon generator brush. Contacts will last way longer, many more refaces.
Check for carbon dust every 1000 miles. Must stay dry.


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Re: What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

Post by Chris Paulsen » Tue Nov 23, 2021 8:38 am

I’ve had great success with Anderson timers. I have about 6,000 miles on one, and I’ve checked it once. I’ve got about 15,000 miles on another, and I check it every few years, or about every 4,000 miles. By check it, I mean I look at it and put it back on.

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Re: What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

Post by Humblej » Tue Nov 23, 2021 10:19 am

I have had good experience with several different types and brands of timers, including modern New Day, Crystal, modern Tiger, Ford, and Anderson. I consider them all dependable, but they all had different life expectancies. The longest life being an origional Anderson, shortest life being a modern New Day and a Crystal. Roller type Ford and modern Tiger had a life about half the Anderson and twice the New Day and Crystal. All were equally dependable. The Crystal was by far the more interesting and a delight to show off, particularily at night when you can see the sparking thru the Pyrex body.
Last edited by Humblej on Tue Nov 23, 2021 4:51 pm, edited 1 time in total.


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Re: What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

Post by Kuhner » Tue Nov 23, 2021 11:06 am

I like the TW, the earlier ones (large rectangular brush)seem to be more prone to oil fouling than the new round brush at least for me. I like the old New days also.
I would love to find a NOS roller timer to see how long lasting they were. I’ve tried the new roller timer and didn’t think much of them. I lubed with, oil, grease, and Vaseline. Never really made a difference.
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Re: What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

Post by Jerry VanOoteghem » Tue Nov 23, 2021 4:10 pm

Petrah Phyre wrote:
Mon Nov 22, 2021 10:52 pm
Opinion on the Tiger Timer?
To answer your question... original Tiger Timers are thought to be pretty good, if oiled and cleaned regularly. New/reproduction Tigers have mostly been frowned upon. By "new", I mean maybe from the 70's onward. They tend to wear out quickly, especially the rollers.

(Didn't I hear however that someone is reproducing a high quality version??)


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Re: What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

Post by greenacres36 » Tue Nov 23, 2021 5:08 pm

I had ok luck with a Turner 2 in 1. Kind of like a New Day.


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Re: What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

Post by R.V.Anderson » Tue Nov 23, 2021 5:15 pm

Original, surfaced New Day, with an original brush. I hear the new ones made in WA State are also good, but I have had no experience with them. The maker has a top notch reputation though.

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Re: What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

Post by Oldav8tor » Tue Nov 23, 2021 5:57 pm

I have a new New Day made by Tip Top Timers of Spokane (509) 220-0892‬) - I have 5100 miles on mine with no complaints. I've cleaned it 3 or 4 times - gently polishing the contacts with a piece of fine sandpaper on a wooden disc chucked into a drill. After that I simply blow it out with compressed air and put it back on. Truthfully, the contacts usually looked good enough I could probably have skipped the polishing.

Along with the Anderson, the New Day is a favorite of the Montana 500 I believe.

What you don't want is a New Day with an"S" on the cap - the plastic material is too soft.
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Re: What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

Post by Caswell » Tue Nov 23, 2021 6:05 pm

Ford roller packed with grease.

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Re: What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

Post by RajoRacer » Tue Nov 23, 2021 8:06 pm

To verify old Tiger timer - insulation ring is maroon - newer repro insulator is orange.


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Re: What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

Post by Tom_Carnegie » Thu Nov 25, 2021 2:46 am

As the manufacturer of the "newest" New Day timer, I would like to point out, as I did in September when Tim Wrenn posted the exact same picture of a New Day brush, that that kind of brush has never been supplied with a Tip Top Timer New Day timer. Although Tim did not say that the brush came from a Tip Top Timer, one could infer that it had, since he says that it came from a new- New Day timer. We are currently making the newest New Day timers. To my knowledge, all of our customers are satisfied with the brushes that we supply with our timers.

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Re: What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

Post by Oldav8tor » Thu Nov 25, 2021 8:37 pm

This is the brush that came with my new "New Day" timer before I installed it. After 5100 miles it shows little wear and I see no need to replace it. I'm a happy customer.

For any New Day, old or new, just make sure the spring holds the brush pin against the top of the slot.
brush.jpeg
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Re: What Do Yo Consider the Most Dependable Mechanical Timer?

Post by Mountainrider » Fri Nov 26, 2021 7:54 am

I’ve run a TW for three years with great luck. Had the bad repo New Day for one season. Now have a good shape old one with a good brush as a spare. Took the brush apart and put a slightly stiffer spring in it and test ran it. Ran as good as the TW.

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