[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] Ticklefish:
Yuck...that's a lot of white space! Let's tidy this up a bit first before we start changing things.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<com.android.systemui.statusbar.phone.PhoneStatusBarView android:id="@id/status_bar" android:background="@drawable/status_bar_background" android:layout_width="fill_parent" android:layout_height="fill_parent" android:focusable="true" android:descendantFocusability="afterDescendants" android:fitsSystemWindows="true"
xmlns:android="[URL]http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android[/URL]"
xmlns:systemui="[URL]http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/com.android.systemui[/URL]">
<ImageView android:id="@id/notification_lights_out" android:layout_width="@dimen/status_bar_icon_size" android:layout_height="fill_parent" android:paddingLeft="6.0dip" android:paddingBottom="2.0dip" android:src="@drawable/ic_sysbar_lights_out_dot_small" android:scaleType="center" android:visibility="gone" />
<LinearLayout android:id="@id/icons" android:layout_width="fill_parent" android:layout_height="fill_parent" android:paddingLeft="6.0dip" android:paddingRight="6.0dip" android:orientation="horizontal" >
<LinearLayout android:id="@id/notification_icon_area" android:layout_width="0.0dip" android:layout_height="fill_parent" android:orientation="horizontal" android:layout_weight="1.0" >
<com.android.systemui.statusbar.StatusBarIconView android:id="@id/moreIcon" android:layout_width="@dimen/status_bar_icon_size" android:layout_height="fill_parent" android:src="@drawable/stat_notify_more" android:visibility="gone" />
<com.android.systemui.statusbar.phone.IconMerger android:id="@id/notificationIcons" android:layout_width="fill_parent" android:layout_height="fill_parent" android:orientation="horizontal" android:layout_alignParentLeft="true" android:gravity="center_vertical" />
</LinearLayout>
<LinearLayout android:id="@id/statusIcons" android:layout_width="wrap_content" android:layout_height="fill_parent" android:orientation="horizontal" android:gravity="center_vertical"/>
<LinearLayout android:id="@id/signal_battery_cluster" android:layout_width="wrap_content" android:layout_height="fill_parent" android:paddingLeft="2.0dip" android:orientation="horizontal" android:gravity="center">
<include android:id="@id/signal_cluster" android:layout_width="wrap_content" android:layout_height="wrap_content" layout="@layout/signal_cluster_view"/>
<include android:id="@id/signal_cluster_text" android:layout_width="wrap_content" android:layout_height="wrap_content" layout="@layout/signal_cluster_text_view"/>
<TextView android:id="@id/battery_text" android:layout_width="wrap_content" android:layout_height="fill_parent" android:paddingLeft="4.0dip" android:gravity="left|center" android:textAppearance="@style/TextAppearance.StatusBar.Battery" android:singleLine="true" android:layout_marginRight="-3.0dip"/>
<ImageView android:id="@id/battery" android:layout_width="wrap_content" android:layout_height="wrap_content" android:paddingLeft="4.0dip"/>
</LinearLayout>
<com.android.systemui.statusbar.policy.Clock android:id="@id/clock" android:layout_width="wrap_content" android:layout_height="fill_parent" android:paddingLeft="6.0dip" android:gravity="left|center" android:textAppearance="@style/TextAppearance.StatusBar.Clock" android:singleLine="true"/>
</LinearLayout>
<LinearLayout android:id="@id/ticker" android:layout_width="fill_parent" android:layout_height="fill_parent" android:paddingLeft="6.0dip" android:orientation="horizontal" android:animationCache="false">
<ImageSwitcher android:id="@id/tickerIcon" android:layout_width="@dimen/status_bar_icon_size" android:layout_height="@dimen/status_bar_icon_size" android:layout_marginRight="4.0dip">
<com.android.systemui.statusbar.AnimatedImageView android:layout_width="@dimen/status_bar_icon_size" android:layout_height="@dimen/status_bar_icon_size" android:scaleType="center"/>
<com.android.systemui.statusbar.AnimatedImageView android:layout_width="@dimen/status_bar_icon_size" android:layout_height="@dimen/status_bar_icon_size" android:scaleType="center"/>
</ImageSwitcher>
<com.android.systemui.statusbar.phone.TickerView android:id="@id/tickerText" android:layout_width="0.0dip" android:layout_height="wrap_content" android:paddingRight="10.0dip" android:layout_weight="1.0" android:paddingTop="2.0dip">
<TextView android:layout_width="fill_parent" android:layout_height="wrap_content" android:textAppearance="@style/TextAppearance.StatusBar.PhoneTicker" android:singleLine="true" />
<TextView android:layout_width="fill_parent" android:layout_height="wrap_content" android:textAppearance="@style/TextAppearance.StatusBar.PhoneTicker" android:singleLine="true" />
</com.android.systemui.statusbar.phone.TickerView>
</LinearLayout>
</com.android.systemui.statusbar.phone.PhoneStatusBarView>

Much better.

This is a fairly standard bunch of code, to be honest. It follows the normal layout of one LinearLayout with all the icons in it, and one other LinearLayout with the notification text.

The simplest way of centering the clock in this is to use the Simple Method. We'll move the clock line to just above the first LinearLayout, make some tweaks to its parameters and add a background to the second LinearLayout. Quick and easy.

Our code will now look like this:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<com.android.systemui.statusbar.phone.PhoneStatusBarView android:id="@id/status_bar" android:background="@drawable/status_bar_background" android:layout_width="fill_parent" android:layout_height="fill_parent" android:focusable="true" android:descendantFocusability="afterDescendants" android:fitsSystemWindows="true"
xmlns:android="[URL]http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android[/URL]"
xmlns:systemui="[URL]http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/com.android.systemui[/URL]">
<ImageView android:id="@id/notification_lights_out" android:layout_width="@dimen/status_bar_icon_size" android:layout_height="fill_parent" android:paddingLeft="6.0dip" android:paddingBottom="2.0dip" android:src="@drawable/ic_sysbar_lights_out_dot_small" android:scaleType="center" android:visibility="gone" />
<com.android.systemui.statusbar.policy.Clock android:id="@id/clock" android:layout_width="fill_parent" android:layout_height="fill_parent" android:gravity="center" android:textAppearance="@style/TextAppearance.StatusBar.Clock" android:singleLine="true"/>
<LinearLayout android:id="@id/icons" android:layout_width="fill_parent" android:layout_height="fill_parent" android:paddingLeft="6.0dip" android:paddingRight="6.0dip" android:orientation="horizontal" >
<LinearLayout android:id="@id/notification_icon_area" android:layout_width="0.0dip" android:layout_height="fill_parent" android:orientation="horizontal" android:layout_weight="1.0" >
<com.android.systemui.statusbar.StatusBarIconView android:id="@id/moreIcon" android:layout_width="@dimen/status_bar_icon_size" android:layout_height="fill_parent" android:src="@drawable/stat_notify_more" android:visibility="gone" />
<com.android.systemui.statusbar.phone.IconMerger android:id="@id/notificationIcons" android:layout_width="fill_parent" android:layout_height="fill_parent" android:orientation="horizontal" android:layout_alignParentLeft="true" android:gravity="center_vertical" />
</LinearLayout>
<LinearLayout android:id="@id/statusIcons" android:layout_width="wrap_content" android:layout_height="fill_parent" android:orientation="horizontal" android:gravity="center_vertical"/>
<LinearLayout android:id="@id/signal_battery_cluster" android:layout_width="wrap_content" android:layout_height="fill_parent" android:paddingLeft="2.0dip" android:orientation="horizontal" android:gravity="center">
<include android:id="@id/signal_cluster" android:layout_width="wrap_content" android:layout_height="wrap_content" layout="@layout/signal_cluster_view"/>
<include android:id="@id/signal_cluster_text" android:layout_width="wrap_content" android:layout_height="wrap_content" layout="@layout/signal_cluster_text_view"/>
<TextView android:id="@id/battery_text" android:layout_width="wrap_content" android:layout_height="fill_parent" android:paddingLeft="4.0dip" android:gravity="left|center" android:textAppearance="@style/TextAppearance.StatusBar.Battery" android:singleLine="true" android:layout_marginRight="-3.0dip"/>
<ImageView android:id="@id/battery" android:layout_width="wrap_content" android:layout_height="wrap_content" android:paddingLeft="4.0dip"/>
</LinearLayout>
</LinearLayout>
<LinearLayout android:id="@id/ticker" android:layout_width="fill_parent" android:layout_height="fill_parent" android:paddingLeft="6.0dip" android:orientation="horizontal" android:animationCache="false" android:background="@drawable/status_bar_background">
<ImageSwitcher android:id="@id/tickerIcon" android:layout_width="@dimen/status_bar_icon_size" android:layout_height="@dimen/status_bar_icon_size" android:layout_marginRight="4.0dip">
<com.android.systemui.statusbar.AnimatedImageView android:layout_width="@dimen/status_bar_icon_size" android:layout_height="@dimen/status_bar_icon_size" android:scaleType="center"/>
<com.android.systemui.statusbar.AnimatedImageView android:layout_width="@dimen/status_bar_icon_size" android:layout_height="@dimen/status_bar_icon_size" android:scaleType="center"/>
</ImageSwitcher>
<com.android.systemui.statusbar.phone.TickerView android:id="@id/tickerText" android:layout_width="0.0dip" android:layout_height="wrap_content" android:paddingRight="10.0dip" android:layout_weight="1.0" android:paddingTop="2.0dip">
<TextView android:layout_width="fill_parent" android:layout_height="wrap_content" android:textAppearance="@style/TextAppearance.StatusBar.PhoneTicker" android:singleLine="true" />
<TextView android:layout_width="fill_parent" android:layout_height="wrap_content" android:textAppearance="@style/TextAppearance.StatusBar.PhoneTicker" android:singleLine="true" />
</com.android.systemui.statusbar.phone.TickerView>
</LinearLayout>
</com.android.systemui.statusbar.phone.PhoneStatusBarView>

Compare the two sets of code and see if you can spot the changes that have been made.

Change your status_bar.xml to the above, compile, prepare, etc..and your clock will be centered.

However, there is a imageview just above the link with the clock in with the id, "@id/notification_lights_out". I can't spot this on your screenshots so it may be something that only shows on certain occasions. If you end up having a clash with this, we'll need to look at doing something a bit more complex. Which I can help you do, don't worry.

---------- Post added at 08:41 AM ---------- Previous post was at 08:34 AM ----------

There's nothing I can do with just a SystemUI.apk on its own. I need your resource files as well.

That may be the issue you're having. If SystemUI stops, it's most likely to be an issue with the way you compiled, decompiled or pushed the apk file. So you need to answer three questions..

What resource files are you installing before you do the initial decompile?

What device and rom are you on? (ie stock, MIUI, Sense, etc)

What do you do after you recompile the apk (and don't just say you put it back on your phone..I want to know how!)

This is a very simple mod, it may just be what you do before and after changing the code may be slightly wrong. Once I know what you're doing, I can tell you where you're going wrong and you can start doing all kinds of modding! :D