Today’s Competition

[oldhippy]

See if you can put the correct names to these clocks.

[wls1971]

This is what I think they are,

1 Lyre form clock

2  Lantern clock

3 Gorge case carriage Timepiece if no strike or clock if it strikes

4 Vienna Regulator

5 Banjo clock

6 English Single Fusee Skeleton clock

7 Fusee wall clock

[Tmuir]

Well I knew the names for half of them...

[oldhippy]

30 minutes ago, Tmuir said:

Well I knew the names for half of them...

Well give it a go.

[oldhippy]

Well done wis1971 you are spot on. You certainly know your clocks. Are clock repairs part of your work? I thought the Lyre might have caught some out. It is just a pity many did not have a go. I assume it was too difficult.  Thanks for taking part.  

[wls1971]

18 hours ago, oldhippy said:

 Are clock repairs part of your work?

No clocks have always been a secondary interest to watches for me, but recently I bought and serviced a French two train 8 day clock, and two things struck me whilst working on it, the first thing that I noticed was the quality.  I paid £40.00 pounds for it and wasnt expecting much when it arrived. When  dismantleing it I noticed the thickness of the plates and sheer quality of the finish, I polished the plates and they came up nice and shiny, when looking at them I noticed that they almost looked as good as the day they where made with no wear to the pivot holes and indeed there was no wear to the pivots I cant think of anything I could go out and buy made today for £40.00 that would have that quality and last over 100 years.

The second thing I noticed was the simplicity and elegance of the striking parts of the clock, many years ago I worked on a Perivale westminster chime, and as I know now its not a very good clock to start to learn on It was a absolute nightmare for a beginner to work on. Setting up the striking train on that was a 3 day nightmare and it put me off clocks until recently, its quality also is nowhere near what I found with the French movement.

I have been lucky with the french clock because  had it needed rebushing I would have been stuck as I dont have the right equipment yet to attempt that level of repair infact I lack some quite simple tools such as mainspring winder, luckily I work with someone who repairs clocks as a hobby I had to give the barrels to him to inspect and grease because of my lack of tools, but I am developing a mix of admiration and respect for these clocks that will I know bring me round to buying what I need to attempt more than just cleaning and oiling.

I have also worked on recently Elliot platform timepieces I like these and have five of various designs, bought cheaply from charity shops, Ebay, and auctions, altough simple platform movements I found it very enjoyable to work on these and would recomend anyone wishing to have ago with clocks to buy one of these they seem to be bullet proof as far as the movement goes and with them being platform escapements there is much for hobbyist watch repairers to relate to.

Wayne

[oldhippy]

French clock movements have a high quality not only with the brass but also with the steel. I have two Elliott timepieces with fully jeweled platforms. Some of their platforms are not fully jeweled. So remember there could be wear in some.  A good type of clock to start on is just a timepiece then a strike (a smith’s strike is a simple movement) then progress to a chime. Then move up in quality and in complication.    

I see 85 views and only 1 answer.

[clockboy]

Only just seen the post. Just to late as the answers already given. Time is also an issue for many.

[oldhippy]

5 minutes ago, clockboy said:

Only just seen the post. Just to late as the answers already given. Time is also an issue for many.

The next one I'll let it run for a few days.