I stared at it a few times during the day . . . was certain that there must be some clues in the dial / recorder / regsiters / hands / keys . . . mental images of horses or employees or rallies or something being timed (or a time being recorded) . . . but at the end of the day, I still have absolutely no idea what in the world this thing is . . . will try it again tomorrow.

thanks for posting this puzzle!!

Jeff