Clock - Take away for a service

Longcase [Grandfather] Clock - Taking it away for a service, starring Martin Heath Sept 2007. disassembly of the crown.

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Howto & Style

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• Longcase
• Grandfather
• Clock
• Heath

[lws133]

Do you have a film that the clock is back ? :D

[dnicholsoncole]

@lws133 Oh yes, sorry... should have completed the story. we need a movie of the clock in its position and being wound up! It is perfect now and keeping excellent time, for a 250 year old mechanism!

[dnicholsoncole]

Roberts of Ruabon. some time about 1780s. The Moon and Date movement doesnt go round.

Very sorry, of course, we should have made a video of the clock being put back up. it has been in place since Feb 2008. Perhaps I should do one of it being wound, just to complete the series.

[msaxmatt3]

let us know when the clock is back. the moon phase part of the movement had problems?

[dnicholsoncole]

We are having the window in the room enlarged (not enough daylight from the south direction) so it would be wrong to reinstal the clock and then have builders dust from the window work. Its being stored by Martin, the clock man a bit longer.

[msaxmatt3]

that is a welsh clock?

[dnicholsoncole]

Yes. from Ruabon in Wales... its still away.. the whole clock. the works are being cleaned, and the wood part is being worked over by a specialist too..

[PopeMarmalade3rd]

Ahh did you not have the balls to actually reply, just slip in a new comment so you'd have the last word, well aren't you the pompous little ass? " you are now dismissed" LOL talk about having notions of yourself!! I restore some of the finest clocks in Europe which are shipped to my workshop from national museums and private collections, my work speaks for itself. Next time you look at an english escape wheel check the tips for bending and chips and ask yourself how that happens? what a fool.

[PopeMarmalade3rd]

You'd be surprised how easily they are damaged! usually due to contributing factors such as the pallets being resurfaced with springsteel which is left burred, teeth that have been damaged before by mishandling, lack of banking pins, or even just poor casting of the brass in the manufacture, it is a good idea to treat them with the same respect as a vienna regulator, I restore one every 3 weeks and the amount of time I spend undoing other peoples botching is truely unbelieveable.

[lws133]

Great ! , I have self a clock collection , pair of clocks have a old, mechanism ( i have a Westminster clock, Dutch zaanse clock , A dutch bimbam clock, and a regulateur.

and olders have a battery , and electric hourwork ! :D I come self from Holland :D

[PopeMarmalade3rd]

No problems, best of luck whatever you do!

[davidgoodman85]

thankyou, that is both logical and very helpful, i doubt however i'd be fortunate enough to find another clock like mine for £10 in any condition, although 100% profit minumum does have an appeal it doesn't amount to very much. Perhaps i should just keep it as it is, then i could always sell it down the line or still have the option of having it fixed if i were in a financial position to justify it. Thank-you again it's very kind of you to respond to all my messages, it's been most helpful.

[PopeMarmalade3rd]

Its all to do with where you buy or sell a clock, if you go into a car boot sale, sure, you'll see any amount of chimers for £10 in unknown condition, go into an antique shop and a well restored one could cost you £150-250, put it this way if you slap it on e bay and get £20 for it thats 100% profit, and then start again with a different clock ....if you pay £175 you'll never make 100% profit. reasonable approach?

[davidgoodman85]

Well it only cost me £10 but to get it fully fuctional will cost £175 So essentially it will be a £185 costing clock. My main concern is that it's not worth £185 because i don't know whether i could sell it for that. As ive'd said my knowledge on this topic is less than laverage. As long as it's worth more than £185 i'm happy to go and get it fixed, the trouble is i just don't know.

[PopeMarmalade3rd]

If you don't have a particular attachment to it then yes the economics of it is questionable especially if you bought it recently on the grounds it was going . At the end of the day beware of quarter chiming clocks if speculating on them, it can be very hard to turn a profit and some of them simply didn't have the quality of materials to deliver long term reliability iv'e seen some with pinions worn after only 70 years running. I generally only take them on if owned by an existing customer.

[davidgoodman85]

Thank you for your reply, i think i shall have to find out how much it would b worth selling if fully working and then see if it is worth paying for it to be repaired.

[PopeMarmalade3rd]

Hi there, As there are 3 sets of wheels in the clock ( time, strike and chime ) there are quite a lot of parts and correct servicing of the clock (assuming they dismantle it fully to polish the pivots and bushings etc) is a a time consuming exercise, in that sense 175 isn't that much to ask, if the clock is of sentimental value then it is obvoiusly a personal choice but bear in mind a modern German clock is going to cost in excess of this anyway so yeah i'd say go for it.