On May 6, 2006, we shipped our first No. 6 battery kit–the Model 1900–for self winding clocks. That was 17 years ago! Since then, our product line has expanded to include a remarkably unique No. 6 rechargeable Model 1900R series (and we are on our 3rd generation now), ultra capacitor-electronically regulated units (the Model 1900G being the most popular), and of course the Model 1900S Clock Synchronizer. It’s an outstanding product line with no equivalent. And we are still offering them today, going strong in our 17th year!
At about that same time, Energizer discontinued production on their EN-6 alkaline No. 6 replacement, leaving clock customers with no good solution, forced to jury rig solutions which prove much less than reliable. Meanwhile we have witnessed the emergence of Chinese replacements, air batteries made in Spain and elsewhere, and even a few eBay sellers with less than professional solutions produced on their kitchen tables. These have come and gone, but some Chinese versions–and the air cells–still seem to be in circulation. Caveat emptor!
Our emphasis on self winding clocks has driven this innovative product line. We don’t claim to power model rockets, cars, lanterns or other things, but customers sometimes use them for other applications besides clocks. That’s probably ok, especially with lanterns, where they do very well. Not sure about model rockets though! We don’t recommend them for that.
We have had early customers contact us with units where batteries had leaked (internally–the package protects the clock from leakage of course) or the unit was dropped, etc. We have always been willing to generously repair them for customers (even outside the already generous 5-year warranty), placing them right back into operation. The last one was a 2011 unit that we were able to repair, update and send back for another 12 years or more of use! And, anything we learn over time from this support gets incorporated as improvements to the products.
With this product line, we are here to support early battery electrics and self winding clock enthusiasts. We’re aiming for another 17 years, and have no intention of discontinuing any of the battery product line as long as interest continues. We’ve had challenges with sustaining some models, but have always been able to find a way to resolve these issues in order to continue supplying the highest quality No. 6 batteries out there today. We ARE and will continue to be the No. 6 battery of the 21st Century!