Just re-viewed your video. The combination of repair and restoration is inspiring. I made replicas of our family's Ogee clock and incorporated at "French cleat" in the back of the case. The clock can be wall-mounted without any holes added to the case. Because the cleat on the wall is (deliberately) narrower than the opening in the clock's back, the clock can be positioned a bit to either side, if doing so helps it fit into its setting.
This video is great. Fascinated with these older pieces, and also the knowledge and skill of the repairman. Would like to see more of these older clocks.
Hi James just watched this video on my TV and again I have to say your a master. I have three clocks to repair but only learning I have repaired a few pocket watches and repaired a spring in a Goliath watch. But like the clocks more I have a Japy Freres and a Remus rack and snail 8 day to strip and clean. I'll keep watching your videos and thanks for all the tips there priceless.
OMG, MR MARTIN you did it again.How you repaired that old OGEE was amazing. I want to be able to repair old clocks just like you!! I love old cuckoos mainly cuckoo quail clocks. I would love to see you do a cuckoo not a simple Regula but a three weight musical or a Quail. You make it look so simple with a screwdriver and a pair of tweezers.
I am amazed at how there was precision machining tools so long ago to make delicate clocks, etc. way back then. The gears had to be all perfectly machined, and the machine screws were so tiny. It would seem that machinery in the early 1800's would be so coarse, but here is another piece of evidence as to how precise & delicate machinery was made way back then....
I've always been amazed at the ingenuity of the people back then as well. Seems many times history doesn't cover these people responsible for this type of work so have a tendency to get forgotten to history.
Yep it's amazing what the lack of money will drive a man to achieve, money didn't come easy back in those days. I'll add: "And Boredom" The lack of a TV taking up free time also motivated man better back then..lol
I really enjoyed watching this video as I have a very similar clock by Seth Thomas. After researching some years ago, I also put this clock at around 1845 or so. Mine is a 30 hour clock without the alarm function. There is no cutout in the dial for the alarm ring, so it never had one. The dial of mine uses the same rotating pins to hold it in, but the dial is simply a metal plate with no wooden backing. My clock also uses the exact same wooden block with a slot that the top of the back plate slides into. The bottom of the movement also sits on a similar shelf using J-hooks and someone also used small nails to hold it in place on one side. Since the other side still had a wood wedge, I fashioned one just like it for the other side. I noticed that your clock still had the original paper with the maker which also indicated the city of Terryville as the place of manufacturer. Terryville refers to Eli Terry, whose movement design were copied by Seth Thomas and apparently this maker too. Seth Thomas worked for Eli Terry and may have bought out his factory, but I see references that Welton did the same. I'm not sure what the truth is. Anyway, I enjoy many of your videos and will watch them as they appear. Thank you.
Wow you had your work cut out for you in cleaning and repairing the movement. When placing the hands back onto the clock how do you know where to place the hour hand and minute hand so it chimes correctly?
Hour hands are friction fit, so it can be rotated at any time and it just slides around independent of the hour wheel mounting tube. Minute hand if fitted with square so it is mounted after you test the chime to see where it needs to be.
@@jamesmartin5370 Oh ok i I understand. The grand father clock i told you about the hour hand spins freeley on the peace that attracts to the tube. I if you apply very light pressure to remove the hand it will not come free. The minutes hand is held on buy a nut. But the nut is missing when i got the clock.
The minute hand you pulled off is an “I” shaft battery clock hand. At least they didn’t drill the usual screw hole to attach the Rathbun bushing. Easily removed.
Mr. Martin first I'd like to say you got some of the best videos. now to my dilemma. I have an OG clot it's missing The Verge plate pin The Verge and the Pendulum rod. And I have a the Ingram mantel clock with the corner of The Verge broke off I don't know if it's one that goes straight up or if they've been back maybe you could do a video on how to get the right parts and how to bend those wires in the right spots or does that matter for the placement of the foot
I had heard that the reason for the “ogee” contour was to set the door (and latch) back from the forward-facing surface of the sides. This allowed more efficient packaging of clocks in a large box for shipping.
Very possible, I have heard that as well, those clocks were shipped to many markets so saving space would have been a large issue. I am not sure where or if its documented any place for the ogee contour. I had also heard that it was the ogee contour that made room for the weights inside.
Well done sir. Can you please make a video on how you exactly make and install clock bushings. Thank you very much and I look forward to seeing more videos from you.
Wow a clock came in today and you are on it already. My local clock shop wants to keep my clock for 8 months before they even touch mine. Shame your on the other side of the planet 🤠
@@jamesmartin5370 Nice to watch someone who knows what they are doing and takes care with their work. To be fair the guy at the shop said “Kevin” works on these. He does one per day and he has a bit of a backlog. We are really missing the hourly strike at home. I bought a very similar non running clock off the net fairly cheap. I’ll see if I can get it going and learn some new skills. It can be our stand by until my Grandfather’s clock comes home. Thanks again for your effort making videos. 🤠
Very interesting and informative. I have a Seth Thomas clock that looks exactly like the one shown in this video. It needs cleaning and oil. Is there a product that I can spray on the gears and movement to clean everything without having to take it all apart? I’m not able to take it to a professional clock repair shop. Thank you.
Hello! What keeps the suspension spring from just sliding out of the channel once the weight of the pendulum is on it? Just that little notch at the very top of it? Thanks!
Yes,. In this one there is a small pin hole punched through the spring material, hole is punched with a sharp pointed punch and left unfinished so creates an interference fit with the channel. I have seen some that have had a piece of small wire inserted through the hole to keep it from sliding out.
Hi Mr. Martin, I'm having a hard time finding a repair person in my area, hoping you can offer some advice. I have a Tempus Figit wall mounted clock -31 days that I recently acquired. The winding mechanism seems tight and resistant to turn with the key. The clock will run and chime for a few hours when I swing the pendulum. Can you offer any recommendations? Thanks much.
To my knowledge Tempus Fugit is not a brand or type of clock. Tempus Fugit is Latin for “time flies.” Its a motto, clock companies started adding to clocks sometime in the 1940s. However it sounds like it might be possible the winding arbor may need some lubrication where it goes through the barrel or mainspring may need cleaning and fresh lubrication, not 100% sure, its a starting area, and you will need to start trouble shooting to find the source. If it only works for several hours and mainspring winds stiff, sounds like the source is in the mainspring area.
I see where you restore different kinds of clocks and so I wondered if you happened to have run across mine. I'm looking for a Takano wall clock that is made of dark wood - ebony? It has grooves going down the body of it vertically and little beads of wood as detail - kind of scalloped at the top and bottom and has a tan colored face. It doesn't say Takano - it has a maker's mark. I tried to buy it on eBay and lost. Wonder where I can find another one - maybe a book? I had a photo of it but lost it due to a phone quitting on me.
I've watched several of your videos. I like your work ethic and precision. I have a miniature Vienna regulator (33 inch). Is there a chance you could repair? How do I contact you?
So how many of these sorts of repairs like you see on that governor do you think are the dregs of the watch repair business vs owners trying to do their own fixes without the proper understanding of what they are doing? My bet here is that the chime was being run with a heavy weight and they put these extra leaves on it to try to compensate for that so the chime would slow down. I say that because I have a Seth Thomas where the original weights were replaced by sawn steel square billets with bits of nail material MIG welded to them for hook loops. Each weighs 4.5 pounds and, at that weight, the interval between chimes was maybe a half a second. Quite unnerving to listen to! And, because of the heavy weight, the ticking was also a fair bit louder than it should have been and doubtlessly was also adding wear to everything. Side note... "Ogee" is said "oh gee". It specifically describes the "S" shape of that curve on the front. Weir dams often have that shape to smooth the flow of water over it, and it appears in a few other areas as well.
I agree, owner or local blacksmith may have done this repair. Back when these clocks were made, there were many isolated farm homes. For many, it was a one or two day trip on a horse to the nearest town. Many towns had no watch or clockmaker, so many of these clocks were fixed by the homeowner or taken to the local blacksmith. LOL I have always had issues pronouncing certain words.
@@jamesmartin5370 Another note... my clock has the same trunion pin wear that the one in this video did, though not as bad and is still serviceable. I take this as another sign of excess weight.
Not all, but a lot of these clocks were in homes that were in very remote areas of the country. Some homes had dirt floors, conditions not good for a movement. No facilities for several days ride on a horse, so probably last thing they wanted to be packing around was a clock. When their clock stopped, some were terribly tinkered with. A lot of these old clocks were kept going by home owners who had limited and primitive tools on hand.
