S.J. Arnheim, Berlin, Germany

Below are photos showing comparisons of the internal structure of the S.J. Arnheim time lock and that of a Yale 3 movement lock. Notice the great similarities. Both mount the movements within a solid unit that is in turn mounted between springs located at the corners within the case. The design of the mount, even down to the flange is identical. The bolt dog release is virtually identical in function and appearance. The Arnheim using as spring - assist  with the Yale relying on gravity. It is possible that this spring was added at a later time. Some differences are in the construction. The Arnheim uses a two piece construction for the movement mount as seen in the third photo, note the four screws that secure the rear piece to the flat, front plate. Yale, as did all all United States manufacturers at the time, used a mount milled from a solid block.

A very rare example of a foreign made time lock from the pre-W.W.II era. The reason for the rarity is that the US makers completely dominated the time lock market through aggressive marketing and patent litigation. This example dates from around 1910 - 1920. It was clearly a copy from the Yale line of time locks. Yale's design, as exemplified by these pictures, was established by 1904. The main differences are in the shape of the time lock movements. The German example being rectangular with Yale using the rounded bottom, commonly known as the 'coffin' style. Note, however that the top of the front movement plates share the same curvilinear design, the balance and escapement cocks are similarly designed (although this is a very common configuration for this type of lever escapement). The dials are secured by the same style of a three screwed escutcheon. The dimensions of the case makes this a direct drop-in replacement for the Yale Model Triple K - one of Yale's most popular models. Interesting how the case size is exact in English verses metric measurements!  This company was probably poaching off the safes that would have used Yale time locks. Litigation would have limited the number of these locks produced before injunction.

It was not until well into the 1950's that foreign makers began to make inroads into the time lock business. Some examples were Kromer, Rench, and Kumahira.

There are no movement numbers, case has two numbers stamped on the rear, #10760 and 330/82, 6 1/2" w x 4 1/2" h x 3 1/8" d. file 135