Being able to narrate the history of the repairs and butcherings ads another layer of time to this timepiece. Best clock restoration I've ever watched. I am also blown away by the semi manual lathe skills. Never seen use it that way for metal, only wood.
Thank you for recording stuff like this, which then can be rewatched for years to come. It's hard telling how many clocks will be kept or start running again just from a couple of video's. What an amazing world we live in, thanks for making it better. 🕰😀
Thanks, A lot of these old clocks are being converted to quartz movements by clock repair people. Interesting to bring them back to working order, amazing that this trade was as advanced such a long time ago.
Hello Sir. The Great Job of Restoration. Again the old vintage clocks get their life back and start working like a new one. I can say it's a re-birth of the old and utmost dead condition clocks from your restoration job. Great Work, it's our fortune to see such a versatile number of clocks from your RU-vid channel. It will enrich our knowledge and keep motivating us to do things.
@@jamesmartin5370 Dear Sir, I need an inform that if the clock wish to run for 15Days what shall be the appropriate length of the chain. Please it is possible to inform me about it sir. Because, I am a commerce graduate, but having an interest in Mechanical Clocks and its works. So If you have shared the information it will helps us and gain our knowledge base. Thank You Sir.
WOW amazingly complex striking arrangement can't imagine the mechanical genius that went into designing this. Also, amazing that you are able to make heads or tails of this and restore to original condition. Once again thanks for another awesome video, James please keep them coming.
Thank you so much for the video. That poor clock may have been butchered many times during its almost two centuries of existence. It met with a real master here. Love the soundtrack by the way, feels like we are really there.
Great job replacing the collar on the crutch. That is a very interesting and unusual clock that every 15 minutes first counts the quarter then strikes the hour.
Thanks Paul, I didn't mention this but, gear teeth had some irregular contours on this movement, signs of partial or all hand work on each tooth. Its an amazing movement all around.
Thank you for showing how meticulous you are examining the movement. I am wondering if you had to remake or somehow repair the lifting piece for the rack @3:30 that was split or were you able to use it? Thank you for suggesting the videos on this clock. All the best, Norm in Arizona
I discussed that lifting piece with the owner, that it should be corrected. At his direction it was used as is. He has had this clock for many years and he ran it continuously until he took it in for a cleaning and it came back in pieces. Owner said he would be back if it failed to have it fixed.
Great videos on a fantastic clock! I believe this is one of my favorites that you have worked on. IMO, A near perfect blend of engineering and beauty. The works, the face and the case all just go well together. To be reminded that most likely every single part on this clock was individually hand crafted just leaves me in awe. Your restoration and preservation skills always amaze me. I cannot thank you enough for sharing these clocks and watches as well as your approach to saving each one. 1. Did you run into issues straightening the pins and teeth on the wheels? 2. Did you find or remake the missing matching wheels for the Geneva stop mechanism? 3. Where were you able to find information on such an old clock? 1 day, 3 train, 2 gong, grand alarm.... 4. Did you do any further research into the maker? Thank you again James.
Pins and teeth straightened out just fine, customer was happy without the matching wheels for the Geneva stop mechanism so left as is, I found a clock museum in Europe that had some information on the movement, I didn't do any research on the maker but that museum had several Austrian made clocks of same vintage and the makers all had hand signed and dated the backplates similar to this one.
Excellent job. I want a lathe very much. They are so useful when it would be impossible to buy replacement parts. I've watched a few of your videos but you never seem to show main spring replacement? That would certainly be of interest to me, both the condition of the old spring and the method of removing and re-installing, what tools you use etc. Of course I might have missed it, since the sound of all the clocks in the background often gifts me with a very restful snooze in the middle of the video. ;-) So far I've been able to work out that clock spring winders are a lot cheaper than Bergeon watch spring winders, but that you need to be able to handle a wider range of styles and sizes.
I hope you enjoyed working on this remarkable movement. Was it marred by all the butchery you encountered? I have not seen the pendulum held by threads before, very interesting and obvious once seen.
Yes, Great clock to work on, it has seen a lot of different repair people, each adding their marks on it. Surprising it ended up being quite functional and keeps good time as well.
Fantastic video! One question, if you have the time: Do you strip and then re-apply lacquer to the plates when cleaning them? Or were clock plates even lacquered at all in this era? In any case, they come out so shiny in the end!
Yes, most were lacquered back then in the 1840s. received If lacquer is in excellent shape, I use a lacquer friendly solvents to clean movement so as to not damage the lacquer. I put a urethane finish on this movement to protect the brass from tarnishing, urethanes are a better product than the old lacquers. Most later movements had gold gilt added to protect brass from tarnishing. Movements with gold gilt don't need a clearcoat unless the gold gilt is damaged.
It's unbelievable that all the watches you so professionally and beautifully repair have previously been abused and raped by someone who calls himself a watchmaker but is actually a butcher.
I agree, I receive a lot of clocks and watches that have been condemned as un-repairable by others in the business. Many of them crippled by poor workmanship.
I am not a historian on those empires but agree with you, the pendulum looks like could be from the Ottoman Empire, very strong arabic art work in it. Owner purchased it in an antique shop in Austria sometime in the 1970s and had it shipped to USA.
I am from Austria there are different ways to say the time. When it is a quarter past 4 we say quarter five half past 4 ist half five and a quarter to five is three quarter five. The change of the hours might be not on full hour bud also on quarter past full hour.
Interesting. Owner of this clock said it took some doing to be able to export this clock out of Austria in the late 60s when he made the purchase. Are there many of these still around in Austria?
