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Andre
 
Posts: n/a
Default AA battery clock conundrum

"Sofie" wrote in message ...
Ian 2:
Any radio clock that I have seen needs more voltage than a single AA (1.5
Volt) battery can deliver...... are you certain that it is indeed a single
cell 1.5 Volt AA battery and not a similar size 6 volt or 12 volt battery
similar to those found in cameras and smoke detectors??? Make certain that
you observe the correct polarity.... it can be confusing at times.
--
Best Regards,
Daniel Sofie
Electronics Supply & Repair
--------------------


"Ian.2" wrote in message
...
To be honest, I'm not really expecting this to get working again, but

mostly
it's just baffling me. So if anyone can offer any light onto what might

be
going on here... I'm posting from the UK, in case any of the wording

seems
a bit odd to you

Some years ago I bought a radio-controlled analogue clock module from
Maplin, and used it to replace the standard clock module in a cheap and
cheerful wooden wall clock I'd bought from Argos. The clock synchronises
itself with the Rugby radio time signal, so always keeps exact time - even
adjusting between BST/GMT. It's fun to listen to the radio time pips and
see the second hand of my clock in perfect syhnchronisation with them.
Well, there's so much tat on telly these days, what else would I look at?

I noticed the other day that the clock was about 10 seconds behind the

hour
countdown on BBC News 24, but assumed that, being digital, there was a

delay
with the TV signal. Then today I realised that my clock was in fact slow,
as it was behind the pips I could hear from the radio in the kitchen.

Time
for battery replacement, I assumed.

Indeed it was, as the alkaline AA battery in there barely gave a flicker

on
my meter. I put in a new Ever Ready one. Nothing. Every Ready battery

is
fine on meter. Try an almost-new Rayovac. Nothing. Put original "dead"
battery in the clock. Clock starts ticking.

Despite fidgeting the batteries in the battery case, cleaning contacts

with
emery paper, and trying several other brands in case it was some bizarre
physical contact thing, the only battery that will make my clock tick is

the
practically dead Sanyo one I took out of it. None of the new or semi-used
batteries will make it work!


Puzzling. I'd have put a very small solder blob on the positive pip on
the battery, just in case.

-A


Any suggestions before I throw the clock module away and seek a new one?

Ian