WW2 Imperial Japanese Navy – SHIPBOARD RADIO BEACON TIMING CLOCK – VERY RARE!

Description

You are bidding on a VERY RARE example of a WW2 Imperial Japanese Navy Kubota Special Clock Mechanism / Radio Beacon Timing Clock, as manufactured for the Japanese Navy! This specialized timing instrument was manufactured by the Kubota Wireless Electric Company of Tokyo for use in conjunction with Japanese military wireless and communications equipment used on Submarines, Aircraft Carriers, Battleships, Destroyers, Cruisers, and other vessels!

During WW2, accurate mechanical timing devices were an important component of military radio and navigational systems, allowing transmitters and signaling equipment to operate according to predetermined time intervals. This specialized Kubota clock incorporates both a conventional time display and a separate timing mechanism, and is believed to have been designed for use in connection with Japanese naval radio signaling or navigational beacon equipment, automatically controlling transmissions at predetermined intervals. This principle was also employed by other wartime forces, including the German Luftwaffe and Kriegsmarine, whose large Pintsch Funkfeuer-Geberuhr radio-beacon clocks mechanically controlled the switching of Morse and navigational beacon transmitters at specified times. Kubota Wireless Electric Company of Tokyo was an established Japanese manufacturer of military wireless and electronic equipment during WW2, producing specialized apparatus for the Japanese armed forces.

Made of aluminum, brass, and steel, by Kubota, this clock is in VERY GOOD used condition! The original blue-gray painted metal housing shows normal wartime use, age, paint loss, scratches, and surface wear throughout. The front features two separate dials, consisting of the main clock display and the additional timing mechanism used for seconds. The reverse retains its original Japanese data plate, clearly marked;

Special Clock Mechanism
Serial number 734
May 1944
Tokyo Kubota Wireless Electric Company 

The original mechanism is presently 100% FUNCTIONAL as it sits, although the date of its last cleaning or servicing is unknown. The original crystal is damaged and missing a large section, with the remaining portion cracked. The black mounting base presently fitted beneath the clock appears to be a post-war addition and is not represented as original to the wartime instrument. Everything else present appears to be 100% ORIGINAL wartime manufacture. An EXTREMELY RARE piece of specialized Imperial Japanese Navy communications and radio-navigation equipment, it would make a  PERFECT item for any collection or display!