Richard
Elite Member
- Joined
- Apr 6, 2000
- Messages
- 4,955
- Location
- Knoxville, TN
- Tractor
- International 1066 Full sized JCB Loader/Backhoe and a John Deere 430 to mow with
Wife found "the most adorable" (sigh) Cuckoo clock at an auction. This meant....that I got to drive roughly two hours away.....to retrieve it and pay for it. Get it home and of course, it's not working, though I think this fact was known when she bought it AND it was only like $20/30 so not a huge deal.
Got it home, she puts it into a drawer for six months...
Took it out a week ago and slowly took some things apart. I didn't disassemble anything, just removed the (entire) movement from the clock/box. While holding movement in hand and pulling on one (of only two) weights, you could see it operational. Pulling on the other weight would make it try to 'ring the bell' so to say.
I put it back together, did some research and saw they are supposedly "very critical" of being put plumb/square on the wall. Nothing is/was rubbing and the bottom line, if you push the pendulum, it only swings 10/15 'clicks' before it's done.
I'm about ready to dig into it again (with zero clock experience I might add.. but then, I also just got done taking her Jura Espresso apart (WAY apart) and cleaned everything by hand.... it was 100% not working.)
My questions:
1. (I presume this answer is "no") Is there a spring buried inside/behind the weights such that the weights keep the spring wound as the weight 'falls'? Or, is it the weight itself that operates the movement, which is my expectation.
2. What is a good oil to use? I've poked around a bit and found "Priory Antique Clock Oil" and when I go looking for it, see other oils listed, including some synthetics. I have no clue if Priory Antique Clock Oil is a synthetic.... but I might be easily swayed that a synthetic version of the correct oil would be better than the mineral version, hence my question.
I'm looking to oil any/all points of movement without disassembling the entire thing. Not afraid to take it apart, but would want to document it with video so I could see how I did it on putting back together and THAT part strikes me as a real pain in the hiney!
Then again..... what if I take entire assembly, get a large pot that will hold it and instead of taking it apart, dunk entire thing in a mild sudsy ammonia solution (like you'd maybe have in an ultrasonic jewelry cleaner) and attempt to clean entire thing intact....
There does happen to be someone 20 miles away that advertises fixing/cleaning these things.... but I'm a highly curious type and love to take things apart, put back together and take on the challenge of seeing if I can improve them.
Yes, sometimes, to the items detriment I will admit but I figure that's how I/we learn!!
Got it home, she puts it into a drawer for six months...
Took it out a week ago and slowly took some things apart. I didn't disassemble anything, just removed the (entire) movement from the clock/box. While holding movement in hand and pulling on one (of only two) weights, you could see it operational. Pulling on the other weight would make it try to 'ring the bell' so to say.
I put it back together, did some research and saw they are supposedly "very critical" of being put plumb/square on the wall. Nothing is/was rubbing and the bottom line, if you push the pendulum, it only swings 10/15 'clicks' before it's done.
I'm about ready to dig into it again (with zero clock experience I might add.. but then, I also just got done taking her Jura Espresso apart (WAY apart) and cleaned everything by hand.... it was 100% not working.)
My questions:
1. (I presume this answer is "no") Is there a spring buried inside/behind the weights such that the weights keep the spring wound as the weight 'falls'? Or, is it the weight itself that operates the movement, which is my expectation.
2. What is a good oil to use? I've poked around a bit and found "Priory Antique Clock Oil" and when I go looking for it, see other oils listed, including some synthetics. I have no clue if Priory Antique Clock Oil is a synthetic.... but I might be easily swayed that a synthetic version of the correct oil would be better than the mineral version, hence my question.
I'm looking to oil any/all points of movement without disassembling the entire thing. Not afraid to take it apart, but would want to document it with video so I could see how I did it on putting back together and THAT part strikes me as a real pain in the hiney!
Then again..... what if I take entire assembly, get a large pot that will hold it and instead of taking it apart, dunk entire thing in a mild sudsy ammonia solution (like you'd maybe have in an ultrasonic jewelry cleaner) and attempt to clean entire thing intact....
There does happen to be someone 20 miles away that advertises fixing/cleaning these things.... but I'm a highly curious type and love to take things apart, put back together and take on the challenge of seeing if I can improve them.
Yes, sometimes, to the items detriment I will admit but I figure that's how I/we learn!!