Wall clocks powered by quartz crystals became available to the public at around 1970. As homes and offices grew in size, so too did wall clocks. It is likely that protective lenses were considered to be a necessity, due to the absence of air conditioning and intake filters. Homes did not have large, bright flourescent or LED lights, so having a protective lens at the time was prudent because of dust and dirt protection, as well as very little glare to obscure the clock face.

 However, as fitness facilities/gyms started becoming more widespead in the late 70s and 80s, quite a while after Joe Gold opened his gym in Venice in 1965, wall clocks became somewhat common. Glare was not a big concern, as lighting was not nearly as bright as it is now. Clocks were used to tell the time, not act as timers.

 Fast - forward to the proliferation of much larger fitness facilities and bright flourescent lighting. Telling time is not always easy to do if you just so happened to be looking at a wall clock at the wrong angle.

 Now imagine that you are diligent about timing your rest periods, which should be somewhere between 45 seconds to 3 minutes, depending upon your goal. Refer to table on this page. Not seeing a very large second hand because of glare generated by a glass or plastic lens could be very frustrating.

 

    When designing the Conceptual Polymer Fitness clock, my decision to offer these clocks without a lens was based upon the following:
1. Personal experience with lensless wall clocks that have been in operation for more than 5 years without any performance issues
2. Investigation of glare-reducing films for windows revealed that such film is prohibitably expensive and reduces clarity of objects behind the lens
3. Trial testing in a large gym, here in San Diego using both lens-equipped and lensless wall clocks

Results: CP fitness clocks without lenses provide superior clarity, even at severe angles.

This is why I do not recommend the use of wall clocks with lenses in the average fitness facility. New Blue clocks can be ordered with a glass lens if desired.

Dave