Clock repair blog

Seth Thomas clock that has paper in the back that says Eight Day Half Hour
Strike . Has 5 7/8 ½ stamped on the movement plate (lower strike side) . The strike
mainspring and the time mainspring are the same. .018in. by .690in. by 116in. long. The
suspension spring is .003 inches strong by .250 inches wide by .860 inches long
(pin to pin) . The leader plus susp is 6 5/8 inches long ; the pendulum is 2.5 inches
in diameter and weighs 5.5 ounces. the length of the adjusting threads is 7/8 inches ;
the length of the brass portion of the suspension is 5.5 inches. This particular
mechanism has a retaining lever that holds the strike trip lever stable . It rides on
the shaft of the idler gear in the time train. There is a steel pin protruding from
this lever that allows the trip lever to rest on it. This clock has an alarm in it .
The spring for the alarm is
.250 inches wide and .012 inches strong and when fully wound the spring has a
diameter of .660 inches.

Seth Thomas time and strike Mantle clock with fishing scene on the glass
(silver color).
Has 5 7/8 stamped on the movement . Made in Thomaston Ct. Has the Seth Thomas
emblem stamped on the plate immediately below the suspension post. The mechanism
has Lyre shaped plates ; and the main wheels are the ribbed type. The pendulum is
silver colored with circle designs on it. The strike mainspring is : .019 inches strong
by .690 inches wide by approximately 96 inches long.
The time mainspring is .016 inches strong by .690 inches wide by
approximately 96 inches long. One of the plate screws is directly below the escape
wheel . To get the screw out without damaging the escape wheel simply loosen the
screws on the other 3 posts then move the escape wheel out of the holder by bending
it up just enough to clear the escape wheel pivot so the wheel will drop back far enough
to loosen the screw.
This mechanism does not have return springs on the shutoff arms.

Very large grandfather clock called Jacques named after the designer
Charles Jacques . The mechanism was made in Europe and the rest of the clock was
made in America. This particular model has seven melodies ; one for each day of the
week. It automatically changes each day. There are 13 tubes in this particular one.
the wall thickness of the tubes is .040 inches and the outside diameter of the tubes is
1.1275 inches. The order of hanging of the tubes is as follows: looking at the front of
the clock take note of the dial ; and the position of the 12 , 3 , 6 , and 9 : shortest tube is located on the left side (or the 9 side) . The tubes will be given
numbers here for reference purposes the shortest being #13 and the longest being #1.The
order of position from left to right is :
13 ; 10 ; 7 ; 5 ; 2 ; 1 ; 3 ; 4 ; 6 ; 8 ; 9 ; 11 ; 12.
The top of the pendulum is held to the rest of it by a thumbscrew : be sure
that the indents are in the top and bottom holes and the thumbscrew is in the middle
hole or the clock may run either very fast or very slow.

Waterbury LARGE time only with second hand . Called the walnut regulator #9.
The suspension is .0025 inches strong. The distance between the pins on the suspension is
very critical because of the way the pendulum hooks on to the suspension. The distance
should be .895 inches. The thickness of the brass used in the suspension should be
.060 inches. The pendulum is extremely heavy. It attaches to the suspension by means
of a screw and a hook.

The Waterbury time and strike tambour mantle
clock with steel plates and brass bushings that has the name Cheyene on the
bottom of the case along with the number 12934 stamped on the paper has a
strike mainspring not quite as strong as the typical 8 day
american clock. The time mainspring measures the same: .016 INCHES STRONG
PLUS OR MINUS .0005 INCHES BY .075 INCHES PLUS OR MINUS .010 INCHES
BY 96 INCHES LONG PLUS OR MINUS 3 INCHES.

E ingraham 8 day time and strike tambour mantle with hammer and bell.
The mainsprings
measure .018 inches by ¾ inches by 96inches. The pendulum length is 5.25 inches
with 2.5 ounce pend . Printing stamped on the mechanism: E. Ingraham co. Bristol
ct. usa.

Assorted Specifications

International Time recording company of new york (of Endicott New York) :
worked on a clock that had this name on it. Four patent dates on the bottom of dial
panel: October 4 1904 ; March 28 1905 ; May 19 1908 ; September 28 1909. It is a
dual mainspring time only unit with run down indicators on the dial face. Has winding
stops. The mainsprings are .035 inches strong by ¾ inches wide and approx. 8 feet long.
it has a dead beat escapement. Has a chrome colored pendulum weighing about 8 pounds.
The key is huge ; the arbors measure .275 inches square with diagonal measurement
of .375 inches. The key measures .290 inches square and the diagonal measurement
of the key is .385 inches. The entire clock weighs about 40 pounds or so and the case
is made of Oak. The numbers stamped on the mechanism are 88 10810 and .037.

types of oil to use:

The clock oil that is available through the suppliers that is made specifically for clocks is the only type , in my opinion , to use. The synthetic oil that is designed for brass on brass , brass on steel and steel on steel is the best. Do not use wd-40 , ever. It is a good lubricant , but not for clocks. It thickens up rapidly and will add enough friction to stop the clock in a few months. Be sure that oils are not mixed ; often the combination of two oils can cause chemical reactions that will corrode the steel pivots. Avoid oiling cuckoo clock mechanism levers whenever possible. The majority of these mechanisms use gravity to make the levers drop. An excessive amount of oil on a trip lever , for example, can cause it to fail. picture. How much oil is too much? If the oil is running out of the oil cup then it is too much. If there is no substantial oil cup then only oil enough to fill the space between the bushing and the pivot. Oil the hand clutch so the hands move smoothly when setting the time on the clock.Do not oil moon dials.Do not oil calendar mechanisms. DO NOT EVER USE WD-40 ON ANY CLOCK.

gears:

If oil is placed on brass gears (gear teeth) in a slow moving gear train, the gear teeth will very likely be destroyed in several years. This applies particularly in the area of the higher power gears ; the main and second wheels.

levers:

Levers that are attached to sleeves that ride on shafts should not be oiled : particularly those levers that depend on gravity to operate. The reason for this is that when the oil thickens up slightly the lever will not drop every time; or it will drop too slowly . A classic example is the count arm, or the rack as it is sometimes called. It will work just fine at first: then after several months the oil will thicken and the common complaint is: the clock only strikes 1 sometimes. If you feel you must oil the lever ; be sure that it is only the thinnest possible film; and .at that, you will be taking a chance. The more oil the more the chance of a problem.