Ask Brian Boyett what his favorite clock is out of the hundreds in the Ballard Time Shop, the store he co-owns with his wife, and he’ll tell you a No. 2 Seth Thomas, of which he has two.
“Runs well and doesn’t chime,” said Boyett, after nodding toward the identical wall-hanging clocks. Though he has a favorite, he doesn’t dismiss the other grandfathers, cuckoos and electric clocks lining the small shop off Market Street.
“We do anything that ticks,” said Boyett. And with the number of watch repairmen on the decline, Boyett said he has seen an increase in traffic to his shop.
Brian Boyett and wife Donna take a look at an antique mantle clock a customer has brought in to get fixed.
His grandfather first opened the Ballard Time Shop in 1924, and after a stint in the Coast Guard Boyett returned home and took over the business. A true Ballard shop, the store has only moved three times in its 86-year history, all within a block from its current location at 5405 20th Ave. Northwest.
“It’s always been in Ballard,” said Boyett.
Increasingly expensive rent prompted the latest move from across the street, but the Boyetts said it was for the better. The new store is smaller, but they said they like how it makes for more personal interactions with customers. And they had quite a few come through the shop, even at 1 p.m. on a Wednesday.
Over the span of half an hour the couple helped Ken, who jokingly identified himself as “an old codger,” replace two watch batteries, and attended to a couple who brought in a broken mantle clock to be diagnosed, all while fielding a half dozen calls.
Bryan Boyett shows off one of his most recent projects — A clock from 1875 that he is fixing up for a customer.
While they have a few returning customers, the Boyetts said that most of their business is one-time repair visits. Customers come in for small repairs, like Ken, who got new batteries, advice and a chance to admire the clocks, or as he called them, “beautiful machines.”
Every Monday Boyett makes his house calls, where he repairs larger clocks that can’t make it to the shop. He’s gone as far as Montana to fix clocks, because, Donna Boyett explained, there are just so few people who specialize in antique clock repair.
While Brian Boyett is the repairman, his wife, daughter and even granddaughter help run the shop.
“We have three generations working here,” Donna Boyett said — along with many cats who have lived in the shop throughout the years. Their current cat, a grey tabby, does more lounging than watch repair, and the cats are well known by customers.
Though business is good, Boyett said he still feels fewer people value antique clocks. “These days things are changed and there’s not as much love for mechanical things.”
Boyett has this love, and shares it with many of his customers. He points out a 19th century wall clock resting against his workbench. “This clock – there’s someone who still loves it.”
Visit the Ballard Time Shop Monday through Saturday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. or give them a call at (206) 784-6520.
(Contributor Erin Johnson is a student in the University of Washington Department of Communication News Laboratory.)