How do analog clocks/watches tick at exactly a second?
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A pendulum clock with a long enough pendulum (0.994 m = 39.1 in) will try to swing at exactly one second intervals, regardless of the weight. Until friction saps its energy and slows it down, that is. It’s one of the cool things about pendulums.
To keep supplying energy to the pendulum so that friction doesn’t make it slow down and stop, they use a special gizmo called an [escapement mechanism] (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Escapement). This can also be used with a shorter pendulum to keep it running at 1 second periods.
An analog watch that uses springs to supply the energy also uses an escapement mechanism to regulate how fast the gears move as the mainspring slowly uncoils.
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