North Coast Imports, Inc.

We've updated a few webpages on some favorite cuckoo clocks. There are better pictures now, and movies... Check them out:

I love visiting "TrumpeterMan" and his shop and personal collection of fantastic Black Forest and Viennese artifacts! He maintains an astounding collection of Black Forest Trumpeter Clocks, Flute Clocks, Carillon Clocks, musical Vienna Regulators, Picture Frame Clocks (with animation and music), Whistling Bird Automata, Musical Chairs (real carved ones), Cuckoo Clocks... I mean, it's really unbelievable! Here, he cares for the heritage and Golden Age of the Black Forest Clock Industry. I was able to take some snapshots of his shop and collection, and he has a YouTube channel .

 The artists at work! You can see the creators at Romba and Christophe's creations!

Here's a great little video on the two World's Largest Original Cuckoo Clock... http://dw.de/p/19XrR

Sometimes we're asked, "What is the difference between those clocks which are VdS certified and those that aren't?" This can mean many things in an age of outsourcing and Chinese manufacturing, but in our case VdS certification means that the clock has been certified by the Black Forest Clock Association of clockmakers as being an Authentic Black Forest Clock. While all of our cuckoo clocks from North Coast Imports are made in Germany and have the highest-quality mechanisms that are made in the Black Forest, some of our cuckoo clocks may have parts from other regions of Germany, Italy, and possibly Eastern Europe. The VdS certified clocks have a higher percentage of parts that come from the local Black Forest area.  Cuckoo manufacturing is a matter of strong local pride for Black Forest artisans. It is a cottage industry that all takes place within a few square miles. The VdS also provides a wealth of extra support and information on their Authentic Black Forest ...

We're pleased to be announcing some new cuckoo clock models early this year. We don't have them ready yet, but our workshops in Germany are busy putting them together. We've got a NEW clockmaker commissioned to make some Sternreiter models, so we're very excited!  There are more coming, so be sure to stay tuned either here or on our Facebook and/or Twitter feeds.  

Here's a cute new clock. We are having a Pre-Order Special on them before they arrive from Germany. Ask your favorite clock dealer for more info...

Here's a really interesting piece, again from Dug North's inestimable blog . The monkey is shaving!  It's really a complicated movement, similar to a Black Forest dumpling eater ( or rat eater ) but more colorful.  I wish there were pictures of the clock too!

Here's a nice article about our friend Justin and his NEW BOOK! From the article: Collectors Weekly : Was Johann Baptist Beha a well-known clockmaker? Miller : Yes, he’s definitely the most prominent cuckoo clockmaker in the Black Forest, and his clocks are collected aggressively. His clocks are usually regarded as the pinnacle of cuckoo clock making, whether deservedly or not. If you look at Black Forest clocks as a whole, a lot of them were very cheaply done. They were made for middle- or lower middle-class customers, and most manufacturers were competing with each other, racing to have the lowest price. And how do you lower price? Well, you cut quality and you cut costs. One of Miller's most exotic clocks is a cuckoo with a three-train movement and a life-size bird perched on top, designed by Johann Baptist Beha around 1880. But Beha basically said, “We’re not going to race to the bottom. We’re going to make clocks of high quality for people who can afford them...

Our supplier Ingolf Haas of Rombach und Haas has a nice interview about the current state of the Cuckoo Clock industry here.

Schiffer LTD . has just released a new book on the subject of Black Forest Horology. It promises to be a lovely book with great pictures and information on very rare clocks. You'll probably recognize a few clocks that have been featured here on GermanClocks.org, as well as our online museum at www.NorthCoastImports.com/museum . Pre-order Rare and Unusual Black Forest Clocks, by Justin Miller at the author's website.

Crafter Mezcraft did a great Instructable on building this edible delight. Here's what she has to say: Over the past year I have been brainstorming about what I would do this year and what I am came up with was a Gingerbread Cuckoo clock with working gears. I couldn't get this idea out of my head and so I went forward and began planning and figuring this out! I have never actually made anything with gears before, so I will talk about how I tried to figure this out and my trials and tribulations in the process.

The Badisches Landmuseum at Karlsruhe has an excellent website where you can listen to some exceptionally rare and fascinating mechanical musical instruments and musical clocks. Here you can listen to a Musical cabinet by the Veith-Langenbucher company, Augsburg, circa 1620... or an Elephant Clock, c. 1760, Clock case: Antoine Foullet, Mechanism: Tibeauville-Lamy... or an Apollo Clock, c. 1780... or a Chest with Flute Mechanism, c. 1804, Davrainville workshop, Paris. The website has this to say about the Musical Chest: After Napoleon was crowned Emperor he is said to have commissioned this model and given it to the Duchess of Bordeaux. The metal pin roller, also known asa cob, has eight melodies by Joseph Haydn which he specifically composed for this mechanical instrument. I wish there were better pictures available to post, but the sound files are definitely worth checking out!

(This model also has some NEW pics on our website - check it out! ) (We've blogged about this new option before. We are offering several of our cuckoo clocks with the option of authentic bone hands and wooden weight shells !) (Also, more pictures available here! ) (...and more NEW pictures for this one too.)

Here's a great organ clock at one of our favorite museums in Triberg - the Heimatmuseum. There is even a zither player!

We're adding new photos and video footage every day. This way you can see more of the very fine details in our timepieces. Still, nothing compares to seeing them in person. Contact us to find a dealer in your area today!

We love to provide video footage of all of our clocks online. Here are two more for your viewing pleasure!