Another clock Quiz

[oldhippy]

What is wrong with this. It happenes a lot with very old clocks. There is something major. 

There are a few bits missing but that is not the quiz. 

[Murt]

What is wrong with this. It happenes a lot with very old clocks. There is something major. 
There are a few bits missing but that is not the quiz. 

Is the spring barrel being held together by wire. Very dangerous.


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[oldhippy]

Is the spring barrel being held together by wire. Very dangerous.

Sorry wrong. I will explain why latter.

[Tmuir]

No the wire is part of the fusee system, but as to exactly what is wrong I don't know.

I've not yet worked on any fusee clocks, but I'm interested to find out.

[wls1971]

I can see that the back cock ( I think that is the term ) is upside down. I think this would suggest wear on the escapement and the drop on the anchor has had to be adjusted and the only way to do it has been to turn the back cock upside down.

[oldhippy]

WIS1971 you are close but its not the right answer.

[oldhippy]

Here is another photo of the movement to help you.

[Lenj]

Never worked on a fusee, but is there something wrong with the escapement missing??

[wls1971]

If I'm close then, and the clock has had a major change, it never started life as a anchor escapement  the alterations are crude there are holes in the plate and the back cock is upside down so never belonged to the clock in the first place .

[oldhippy]

Lenj and wis1971 you are both so close.

[wls1971]

Well its a bracket clock movement do longcase clock pillars and bracket clock pillars correspond in style and date ? if so this clock judging from pillar style would be about 1660 to 1740 because the pillars are "Finned" ?

The clock must be rack striking because there is no evidence of an outside count wheel so that would put the clock to 1680 to 1740, the anchor escapement didnt start appearing in bracket clocks until the 1780's onward, so from date alone I would say the clock was originally a verge that has been converted to a anchor escapement because from 1660 to 1750 the verge was the dominant form of escapement in bracket clocks.

 

[oldhippy]

Spot on and well researched.  The conversion is very crude. 

The other thing that stood out a mile is the so-called pattern that the back plate has. That has been added at a later date, I expect it was added at the same time that converting it to an anchor escapement happened.

 

Fusee clocks, Many run by a chain, they also have steel wire, bronze wire or gut. You might think they look dangerous, but they are quite safe. 

[oldhippy]

Here is a verge escapement in action.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8LOVjIXiKg