Show HN: Glashütte Trash Clock – A 30-Minute Pendulum Clock Made From Trash

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Artist and inventor Niklas Roy says he built the Glashütte Trash Clock, a working mechanical clock from discarded and found materials in Glashütte, Germany. The mechanism runs for about 30 minutes, shows seconds and minutes, strikes a gong at the top of each minute and triggers an external randomizer shortly before its energy runs out.

Artist and inventor Niklas Roy has presented the Glashütte Trash Clock, a working mechanical clock made from discarded materials and objects he found in Glashütte, Saxony. Roy says it runs for about 30 minutes per winding, displays seconds and minutes, strikes a gong when the minute hand reaches 12, and activates an external randomizer just before its stored energy runs out.

Roy describes the project on his website as a clockwork mechanism assembled from trash and found items during a 2026 artist residency in Glashütte. The town is known for mechanical watchmaking, and Roy says the residency invitation came from wristwatch manufacturer NOMOS. He brought basic hand tools and supplies, then used materials available at the site to work through the clock’s design.

The clock uses a pendulum and escapement to regulate and count its motion. Roy explains that the escapement releases the wheel in steps and gives the pendulum a small push on each swing, keeping it moving. He says the design uses a seconds pendulum and a 30-tooth escapement wheel, allowing the wheel to make one rotation per minute and drive a seconds indicator. The mechanism also has a minute display and a gong that sounds at the top of each minute.

Roy’s report says the device runs for only around half an hour. It also describes an external randomizer triggered shortly before the clock runs out of energy. Roy introduces “GTC,” a time scale he says blends GMT and UTC, and names the clock as its global reference. The report does not provide technical performance measurements or explain how that proposed scale would be used beyond the project.

A Clock Built From Discarded Parts

The project is a practical demonstration of how familiar clock mechanisms can be adapted to improvised, low-cost materials. Roy’s description focuses on the engineering challenge: an escapement must be sturdy and precise enough to release the wheel consistently, while the pendulum needs a reliable impulse to keep swinging. The result is presented as a functioning clock, though one with a deliberately limited run time rather than a conventional daily timekeeping cycle.

Its location gives the work an additional connection to Glashütte’s watchmaking identity. Roy’s account sets a clock assembled from found objects against a town associated with finely made mechanical timepieces. That contrast is part of the project’s setting, not evidence that the clock meets commercial watchmaking standards. The report describes an art and engineering project, not a product launch or a claim of precision comparable to manufactured watches.

The short operating period also shapes how readers should understand the device. Its gong and randomizer make the clock more than a simple time display, while its limited stored energy is a stated constraint. The project may interest readers in mechanical design, reuse and creative fabrication, but the available account does not establish its accuracy, durability or suitability as a practical clock.

A Residency in a Watchmaking Town

Roy links the project to his family history: he says his great-great-grandfather Henri Roy and great-grandfather Eduard Roy were Swiss watchmakers who later moved to Herrnhut in Saxony. In 2026, Roy says, NOMOS invited him to an artist residency in nearby Glashütte, giving him an opportunity to make a clock of his own.

His account describes learning about pendulums from a vintage clockmaking textbook and testing a simple pendulum before constructing the mechanism. It identifies a Graham-style escapement as the basis for the design. An escapement controls the release of energy from a wheel while maintaining a pendulum’s motion; Roy says he adapted the established mechanism to materials at hand, including paperclips for the escapement wheel’s teeth and a bent metal rod for the anchor.

Glashütte’s name also has a specific watchmaking association. Roy notes that the designation “Glashütte/SA” is protected and applies to clocks and watches made there. His project’s title invokes that local tradition, while its materials and construction distinguish it from the town’s commercial timepieces.

Accuracy and Randomizer Details

Roy’s report describes the mechanism and its approximate 30-minute operating time, but it does not state how accurately the clock keeps time, how often it was tested, or how much its performance varies. It also does not give a complete inventory of the materials or provide independent verification of the clock’s operation.

The report says the clock triggers an external randomizer shortly before its energy is depleted, but it does not explain what the randomizer controls or how the connection works. Roy’s description of GTC as a new time scale blending GMT and UTC is presented as part of the project; its definition, practical use and relation to established time standards are not detailed.

Further Technical Details Could Follow

The project page is the available account of the clock’s construction and function. It does not announce a release schedule, commercial production or a formal technical evaluation. Further information would be needed to establish the clock’s measured accuracy, materials, operating tests and the role of the randomizer.

For now, the confirmed development is Roy’s public presentation of a working clock project built during a Glashütte residency. Any broader application of GTC or plans to extend the clock’s run time remain unreported.

Key Questions

Who made the Glashütte Trash Clock?

Artist and inventor Niklas Roy says he built the clock during a 2026 artist residency in Glashütte, Saxony.

How long does the clock run?

Roy says it runs for about half an hour before its stored energy runs out. The report does not provide a measured range or test results.

What does the clock display and do?

It displays seconds and minutes, strikes a gong when the minute hand reaches 12, and Roy says it triggers an external randomizer shortly before it stops.

What materials were used?

Roy describes using trash and items found in Glashütte. He specifically mentions paperclips for escapement-wheel teeth and a bent metal rod for the anchor, but does not publish a complete materials list.

Is GTC an established time standard?

Roy calls GTC a time scale blending GMT and UTC and names the clock as its reference. The project report does not explain a formal definition or show that GTC is an established time standard.

Source: hn