The speed of the clock is the only thing that controls timekeeping. Adjusting the pendulum will make the clock go faster or slower. All other factors can be considered constant. This can be seen from the equation relating to the period of swing of a simple pendulum.
T = 2π√(L/g)
where
T is the period in seconds (s)
pi = 3.14 (it is also written as the Greek letter π)
L is the length pendulum in meters or feet
g is the acceleration due to gravity (9.8 m/s² or 32 ft/s²)
Lengthen pendulum to go slower and vice versa
If your antique clocks are correctly set up and are fast and gaining time, you will need to lengthen the pendulums. If your clock is slow, you will need to shorten the pendulum of the clock, to quicken it up.
All clock pendulum rods and bobs prior to the temperature compensated pendulums either will expand or contract with temperature changes. They need to be adjusted accordingly. Most antique clocks in centrally heated houses will be re-markedly accurate though, after you have adjusted to your mean temperature.
Temperature Compensated Pendulums on Clocks
Probably the earliest method for trying to overcome deviations in timekeeping as a result of temperature changes was the wood rod pendulum. In long grain the wood rod will expand only a little.This expansion will be compensated by the addition of a large brass cased lead bob. This brass bob will also expand slightly up and down from the rating nut, with temperature changes.
Every Increasing Accuracy
Refining the accuracy of the very best precision clocks started from the early 18th century with Harrison’s grid iron pendulum. Differing expansions of metals was understood many years earlier. Harrison devised a pendulum with a specific proportion of brass and iron. These two metals would have rates of expansion and contraction that would effectively cancel each other out.
George Graham
In 1722 Graham produced a mercury compensated pendulum. The mercury as seen in a regulator clock in the picture above is contained in a jar. This is effectively acting the same as a normal brass pendulum bob. Mercury will expand roughly 6 times the rate of steel and so in the ratio 1:6. The expansions will roughly cancel each other out. The thermal coefficients of the differing metals is therefore important when building compensated pendulums. Glass being a poor conductor of heat was the only real negative to this invention but this method proved very effective and the pendulums do look stunning. These type of clocks are very collectible.
John Ellicott
There were various other pendulum’s developed like Ellicott’s compensated pendulum and Richie’s compensated pendulum on regulator clocks.Then the eventual use of metals like Invar which is a mix of nickel/iron and small quantities of carbon and manganese.
Conculsion
All these compensated pendulums are just trying to keep the effective length of the pendulum the same. When I say effective length of the pendulum, this will be from the bending point of the feather at the top of the clocks pendulum, to the centre of gravity of the pendulum near its bottom. This is why on some clocks coins or small weights were added on the rod to change fine timekeeping. I will happily answer more question if you contact me.
Setting up your ‘Antique Grandfather / Longcase & Bracket Clock’ at Home
Congratulations on your purchase of a Longcase clock from Pendulum of Mayfair Ltd / Coppelia Antiques. Given proper care and conditions your Longcase clock should give many years reliable service.
1) Winding:
’30Hr’ clocks are generally wound with a rope or chain. This should be done once per day.
‘8 Day’ clocks may either have one weight (typically regulator clocks) or two/three weights. All weights are to be wound by inserting the correct size of key on to the winding arbour. Your clock should arrive unwound, so on winding, the lines should follow the grooves in the barrel (if applicable) ‘8-day’ clocks are usually wound clockwise
‘Month’ duration clocks typically as above but since these clocks have an extra wheel in the train they are generally wound anti-clockwise.
2) Time:
When setting the time never move the hands backwards. If you move the clock hands backwards past a striking section you may cause damage to the movement. Always let the clock strike each hour/quarter etc when setting the time. It is also a good idea to wind the clock prior to setting the time and starting the clock.
3) Calendar:
As the clocks allow for 31 days per month, when there is less than 31 days, you need to adjust the calendar. Depending on the sort of calendar of your clock, this can be done from the front (hand variety) or the rear (square or lunette variety). The calendar disc on the latter sort is attached to the back of the dial. You can move the square or lunette type from the front but you may leave finger prints to the dial, that will leave a mark over time. If the calendar does not want to move, wait for a few hours and try again, it may be in mesh. Generally the calendar can be moved by hand between 3 and 5pm each day.
4) Regulation:
If you notice a day after set-up the clock is running fast by a few minutes, the only thing that controls the timekeeping is the pendulum. (assuming the minute hand is not loose) Stop the clock by grabbing the pendulum and move the nut on bottom of the pendulum anti-clockwise, in effect lengthening the pendulum. Generally 1 turn either way would make the clock gain/lose 1 minute per day. Up= Faster, Down = Slower.
5) Striking:
If your clock is count wheel strike, occasionally the clocks strike may go out of sequence. This can happen if the clock has been left to run out. There is a lever on the movement which you can lift to adjust this. Alternatively if the clock is striking 4 but pointing to three and the time is 3.10 by the clock, move the clock hands past four quickly and on to five before the clock has finished striking five. The clock will now be in sequence again, striking five and pointing to five.
HUMIDITY
You should always keep your antique clock in R.H. 40-65%. Never keep your clock in dry or damp conditions. As a result of central heating over the last 20 years more damage has been done to antiques than at any time in the previous 300 years. Always check your humidity level. It is recommended in dry conditions you purchase a Humidifier or in damp conditions you purchase a DE-Humidifier.
WAXING
Always use a Beeswax polish every few years, never use spray polishes on antiques.
OILING
You should oil your clock movement every year or so with a specialist clock oil. This can be applied with an artists brush. Oil needs to be applied to the pivot holes on the front plate and backplate. (I.e. where the pinions of the wheels go through front and backplate) It is also advisable to oil the pallets and the pulleys that the weights hang on. You do not need to oil any of the gears in the movement. A few drops of oil should oil an entire movement, do not over oil as this will attract dust and cause wear.
SETTING UP YOUR LONGCASE CLOCK ON DELIVERY
Parts of a Longcase Clock:
1) Trunk
2) Hood
3) One / Two / or Three Weights
4) Pendulum
5) Movement
Tools Required to install your Longcase Clock and Fix it to a Wall
1) Drill
2)Wood baton (8inch * 2inch * thickness of skirting (generally 1inch thick)
3) Screwdriver and screw to screw clock into baton
4) 4/5 thin wooden packing blocks to straighten clock and make it lean against the wall
5) Raw plug and screw to fix baton to wall
Introduction
It is always advisable to fix your antique clock to the wall. If this is not done you run the risk of the clock being knocked over. Sometimes if the clock is not firm the clock may stop when the weights are level with the pendulum. The clock may rock slightly. You can avoid the fixing to the wall by just packing up the front feet up and thus throwing the clocks weight to the wall. This is done when you screw the clock to the wall in any case, but I would recommend fixing.
Process
The process outlined below appears very difficult but it is easily carried out by most people. If you do not wish to undertake this process, you can ask any joiner to do this for you. Let them have our instructions if they are unsure of the process.
The first step after unpacking the boxes that the clock is packed in, is to check the clock for any damage in transport. Inform your shipper if there is any. Hopefully this is not the case and you can continue with the fixing of your clock.
Location
Find the most suitable place you would like the clock to be. With the use of the thin packing blocks under the clocks front feet, place the trunk of the clock against the wall in this position.
The second step requires some assistance from a willing family member. Now you have set the trunk straight against the wall. (by eye is fine) Whilst one person takes the movement and places it on the cheeks of the case, the other person brings the pendulum. Do not leave the movement unattended on the cheeks. Keep your hand holding the clock until at least the pendulum is connected. Now thread the pendulum up though the crutch (the slot to the rear of the movement) and finally onto the back-cock of the movement.
Nearly there
Generally it is now safe, if the movement is far back on the cheeks, to let go of the movement. Do so carefully, making sure the movement does not overbalance.
At this stage put the hood onto the trunk and with your hands under the bottom of the seatboard. Lever the movement into the correct position in the mask, making sure the hood is still firmly back. The dial now should be fitting the mask evenly on both sides. At this stage you can carefully take the hood off and if applicable screw the movement down into the cheeks. It will then be stable and in the correct position. This is an optional stage of the process.
Fixing the clock to the Wall
Now comes the time for fixing the clock to the wall. If you do not wish to do this, all you need to do is hang the weights on the clock and follow the latter stages of the process.
Mark the wall through an existing central hole in the clocks backboard. (if there is one about chest height as you open the trunk door) If not drill a small hole through the clocks backboard at this point and mark. Temporarily at this height and to one side of the clock put the baton you are going to use just behind the clock. Leave it there sticking out from one side of the clock for the moment while you check the pendulum is free and not touching the backboard.
Wood Baton same size as skirting board
You have now checked the baton is of the correct thickness. If the pendulum is still touching the back of the clock while the baton is temporarily behind the clock and the movement is correct in the mask. (not been pushed back) use a slightly thicker baton and recheck.
Make sure clock is straight
Now you are happy with the thickness of the baton. Mark the position of where the clock is standing and move the clock to one side. (two people can lift the complete clock to one side or alternatively dismantle in the reverse order you set up). Make sure you know exactly where the clock was positioned. To one side of the mark you have on the wall Make sure you now test the wall so that there is no problem with drilling here. (no cables etc behind)\
Test the wall for cables
Drill the hole to one side of the mark you have made to the correct length of your raw plug. Attach raw plug and screw baton to wall. Re-assemble clock in exactly the original place. With exactly the correct number of packing pieces under the front feet. Screw through the hole in the clock’s backboard into the wood baton now fixed to the wall. Your clock is now secure.
You can now attach the clock weights and wind the clock. The clock should come to you unwound so on winding the lines should follow the grooves in the barrel (if present)
Swing the pendulum to start the clock
Now you can swing the pendulum and listen to the tick. The clock should tick evenly, I.e. tick, tock. Not tick, tooooooock. If the clock is straight and you are happy with this you need to adjust the beat. You will need to bend the crutch away from the sound of the long tock. If the clock is not in beat even if all the hands of the clock are free and not touching the dial or each other. TYe clock will stop within a few minutes. If the clock is in beat though and the clock stops at five past one for instance the hands may be touching. Gently ease them away from each other.
Relax
Now your clock is set-up you can now sit back and relax.
If you want to set the clock up in a corner position, it is basically the same process as above but you will need a T-shaped baton. The baton will be on the wall and you will have a baton on the back of the clock with a adjoining piece of wood connecting the two. The above process may seem complicated but it really is not. You should take no more than 20 minutes for a practical person or 45/50 minutes for fitting in a corner.
SET-UP SUMMARY SHEET
1) Decide where you want clock and fit a wooden baton to wall, similar thickness to skirting.
2) Place case in front of this and fix it to the piece of wood.
3) Place movement in case and get someone else to hang pendulum on whilst you steady movement.
4) Put the hood on and then slide you hand under seatboard to position in the dial in the mask correctly
5) Remove hood and attach weights correctly to pulleys.
Wind Up Clock Only Now
6) Carefully wind up clock making sure the lines are not twisted and winding evenly on barrels
7) Wind the clock to a point where the lines fill the barrel, do not over wind. Leave a gap of about 2inch between the underneath of the seatboard and the pulley.
8) Swing the pendulum gently and listen to see if the clock is in beat. Tick – Tock. If the sound is correct, set-up is complete, if not adjust beat of clock by bending crutch away from the sound of the long tock.
9) If the timekeeping is fast, adjust by lowering pendulum rating nut on bottom of pendulum. Roughly one turn down will make the clock go slower by one minute per day and vice versa
10) Always wind the weights before moving the hands of the clock.
For antique furniture and clocks different types of wood were used in their manufacture. In this handy guide I am going to cover some of the main woods used. These woods can be of solid form but most flamboyant grained woods are used as hand cut veneers. The carcass is generally made from oak or pine in the provinces or oak generally in London.
Woods Used in London and Provinces
In London oak is only used as a carcas material in the 17th and 18th centuries. Whereas in the provinces you will find antique grandfather clocks being made of oak as the finished wood. Clearly oak was veneered on as well, especially in London by English Walnut up to say C1750 . Then from this date fine Honduras and Cuban mahogany veneers are found. On some clocks you will find very early examples to be of ebony construction or ebonized (black stained fruitwood generally)
Chinoiserie Clocks
You can also get oak grandfather clocks in London that were painted and decorated by Chinoiserie or lacquer work. The finest examples were sent out on boats and decorated in China. On some later clocks you will see these veneered in more exotic woods. Rosewood or maple or even ewe wood. I suppose the smaller size means you can use veneers of the more slow growing and smaller trees. With early clocks these exotic woods were used as well in small pieces and matched. We have owned a lovely walnut burr oyster veneered grandfather clock.
Below is a selection of woods used for antique clocks and furniture during the 17th and 18th and 19th centuries in England. A brief insight into each wood pictured is given. I hope from this blog you will discover what type of wood your clock or piece of furniture is manufactured from.
Honduras Mahogany
Cuban mahoganyPlum Pudding (spotted) mahogany
Mahogany can be a beautiful wood, it starts in the UK being used around C1750 and continues being used throughout the 18th and 19th centuries. Two most common variants are Honduras (lighter) and Cuban mahogany (darker). It is a close grain hardwood coming commonly from the South America or the West Indies type regions. This tree can be found quite wide and so large sections could be veneered with this wood.
Quarter Cut or star-fleck figured oakSolid English Oak
English Oak
English oak is a slow growing and so very heavy wood. Used in construction and veneered some of the time, but it is a beautiful wood in its own right. Oak being so heavy and close grained it is good at preventing things like wood worm. It is one of the reasons why London used it in the construction of its clock cases ahead of pine. Pine is used in the provinces as a rule for carcases as it is cheaper. You will notice the weight difference between an antique clock veneered on oak and an antique clock veneered on pine. Oak just gets better with age and polishing, we call this the patina. Less close grain oak can come from countries like Japan. This wood although called oak, is a far poorer wood to the slower growing English oak.
The climate effects the grain of the wood
English Burr WalnutMarquetry inlay on English WalnutMarquetry on WalnutContinental walnut
Walnut is a lovely wood and English walnut gets used as veneers in antique furniture and clock manufacture up until C1750. After this date most walnut used is Continental walnut. Continental walnut is a quicker growing tree and so the grain is never as fine as English burr walnut. Again English walnut is a very heavy wood with a close grain. The tighter the burr or knot in the walnut the better. Walnut can range in colour from quite light if the sun has taken it, to quite dark. Walnut is used on all of the German wall regulators or commonly called ‘Vienna style’ wall clocks etc through the 19th century.
Satinwood
Satinwood used as a blank canvass to artists
Satinwood being a very light wood was used towards the end of the 18th centuries and early 19th centuries in the main. Many expensive pieces are manufactured with Satinwood veneers. We have some Pergolesi painted tables with satinwood veneers. I suppose the light colour makes the painting stand out better.
Pine
Pine, many of you will be familiar with this wood. It is rare to see a surviving antique grandfather clock made in this wood like the above. It was prone to woodworm unfortunately. Some were painted and this helped preserve them.Many provincial cabinets were constructed out of pine and then veneered. Pine is also used alot today as it is a relatively cheap wood, unlike oak. Clearly as you can see from the grain and if you lifted it from the weight , it is a fairly quick growing tree.
Lacquer or Chinoiserie
Oak can be veneered or painted
Oak was only used on internal construction of cabinets of English London clocks. When this wood was used and if it is not veneered in London you will find it sometimes decorated with lacquer work or Chinoiserie. This is gold leaf and gesso. The best types of these works are seen when they were sent out to China in the early/mid 18th century and decorated their.
I think I have covered the majority of main woods used in English cabinet making. There are others like ewe wood, maple , elm, fruitwood and rosewood. These are not covered as they are used alot less. I hope this blog has been of help to you. If you are still struggling with finding out what wood your clock or piece of furniture is made from, please send me a picture to PendulumClocks@aol.com
It is this time of year when many students start thinking about careers. Working in the field of antique clocks as a horologist can be very rewarding.
The horologist was a top profession in the 18th century
In the 17th and 18th centuries it was one of the top professions. Now I suppose the doctors and dentists or bankers and accountants are today. It is a shame that many colleges do not offer courses in horology but some still do. West Dean College still provides excellent courses in horology. There is an excellent article in the Independant newspaper on these horology courses and ‘breathing life into old treasures’. It is possible to do home study courses in horology with the British Horological Intstitute. It is also possible to do a BA Hons course at Birmingham City University in horology.
Excellent Career Path
I believe it is an excellent career path for young students. What I have found in the last 20 years or so is many people retiring into studying horology. This is fine but if young people knew how rewarding learning and working with antique clocks was, they would gain a head start in the field. Many people retire to work in horology as it has many benefits. It brings enjoyment in bringing something special back to life. Many workshops can be setup at home and so it is a great way to work for yourself and be your own boss.
It is also a great career path to other forms of engineering or maybe working as a specialist auctioneer of clocks and watches. Working and repairing antique clocks brings you lots of knowledge along the way about the way things were made. Knowing how to date antique clocks for auctioneering. This is all valuable information and a great basis from which you can carve out a valuable and rewarding career in what ever you then may choose to do.
Specialize in clocks
There are fewer specialists in this field today and so a bigger chance to make a name for yourself. In the 17th and 18th century every little village had its own clockmaker and London was the centre of clockmaking with the Clockmaker’s Company. Today there are few world recognized horologists. George Daniels was a watchmaker who was regarded as a special talent, he died recently. He gave alot to his field and certainly made a difference. It is certainly possible with the right enthusiasm and drive for students who enter this field today. Make the same difference and to enjoy what they do. I suppose this is a rare in many jobs today. Most people go to work to earn a living, but to actually enjoy your job, this is what makes your job special.
The term ‘Vienna Regulator’ wall clock is commonly used to describe a narrow weight driven wall clock. All these clocks seem bundled together in one big group. This is wrong in my opinion. There should be a clear differentiation between a true ‘Vienna Regulator’ clock and the later ‘Vienna Style Regulator’ wall clock or properly described as a ‘German Regulator’ wall clock.
Austrian or German Wall Regulator Clocks
Vienna regulator wall clocks are very special and an original example can be very expensive. These clocks were manufactured throughout the 19th century, but most were made from about C1800 to C1850. These clocks were hand made and of very fine quality. These clocks are also very simple and very elegant. As the value of clocks like this are high many of these type of clocks coming onto the market in recent years are copies. Only buy an early Vienna wall clock from a specialist antique clock dealer. They should give you a money back guarantee that it is genuine and fully restored.
Quality decreases as clocks get more modern
German wall regulators can still be nice clocks. I particularly like the first 10 or 20 years they were made from about C 1860. After C 1880 these clocks become very ornate and the quality tends to decrease. These clocks were made in factories specifically set up to produce them. With the typical German efficiency, lots of these clocks were produced. The value is alot lower than the earlier Austrian handmade examples.
How to tell the difference?
I often get asked how do you tell if I have got a German wall regulator or an earlier Austrian example. The easiest way you can tell the difference is that German weight driven wall clocks often have an imitation second hand to the dial. Austrian wall clocks did not normally use this feature, unless the clock could actually beat seconds. A seconds pendulum means the pendulum will need to be about 1 meter long.
Is it a true seconds indicator?
If you timed the period of 1 rotation on a German wall clock of the so called seconds hand, it will take about 40 seconds. It was in effect just a gimmick, put on the dial just for looks. The Austrians were purists and did not do this. An example of a true Austrian Vienna wall clock will a proper seconds hand is pictured above. You will notice the clock is very long. You will also see two examples below.A German wall regulator and an Austrian vienna regulator. See if you can see which one is which from my reasoning above.
Time is at the heart of life itself. From the moment we are born, to the moment we die, man has always been intrigued by time. From the earliest days on earth, even pre-historic man lived by a form of time. Life for them revolved around light and dark: sleep, wake, hunt, eat,sleep again. Life and time are cycles that we cannot stop, we cannot slow. What the early mathematicians and astronomers tried to do was make time more exacting.
‘Water clocks’, ‘candle clocks’, and early ‘sundial clocks’ were developed, many of these in countries like China. It is amazing the evolution of countries over time, China played a huge part in the introduction of many new ideas and inventions, in the early world. It was in the UK that developed the measurement of time and put it in a more practical way. All these early antique clocks show the passing of time and try and measure it. Sundial clocks like Cleopatra’s Needle dating from about 1500 BC, was brought to England in 1877 and now stands on the Thames Embankment in London. Forms like Cleopatra’s needle and later sundials all use the elevation of the sun in the sky to tell the time.
Equation of Time
As society developed a more accurate way of measuring time was needed. Sundials, all well and good, are a pretty useless way of telling the time on a cloudy day. Also sundials are not accurate, because of the eliptical rotation of the earth. This inaccuracy is up to 15 minutes per day, sometimes slower, sometimes faster than sundial time. Mathematicians developed a yearly equation of time sheet for these inaccuracies. From this, is was possible to set your clock from these sheets.
Some amazing clockmakers produced this equation of time feature, on a year calendar, on their actual clocks. Setting you clock in the 17th century was not easy though and many were still not accurate. It was not until the introduction of the long pendulum, invented by Christian Huygens in 1657 did both clocks accuracy increase and more widespread sale of clocks happened. Towards the end of the 17th and early 18th centuries clocks became more affordable.
As many will know as a result of the great book by Dava Sobel – ‘Longitude’, the problem of inaccuracy of clocks, was even more important at sea.
King Charles II founded the Royal Observatory in 1675 to solve the problems of Longitude of sea. The produced a Lunar method of telling time at sea. This could be inaccurate though and had many problems.
John Harrison
As a result in 1714, the British Government by Act of Parliament, gave a reward of £20,000 (a huge prize at the time) to solve the Longitude problem. John Harrison devoted his life’s work to solving this issue, and he produced various chromometers on display in Greenwich, London, these were called H1, H2, H3 and H4 dating from 1730 to 1760.
Longitude
These clocks were fantastic and clearly solved the problem. Harrison though was not part of the establishment at the time, he was a simple carpenter from Lincolnshire. It took him over 10 years to win his prize, and even then, only by the intervention of the King. Harrisons inventions led to the modern day ships chronometer, these were still widely used until the middle of the 20th century. His inventions led the UK to become an important sea power, and saved countless sailors lives.
Antique clocks were crucial in the 17/18th centuries both on sea and land. During the 18th century accuracy came to within a few minutes a week. It was not until temperature compensated pendulums and other regulator features on the movements, that happened in the latter part of the 18th century, that accuracy came to within a few seconds a week for these precision clocks.
The quest for the measurement of time was in effect solved. Time is central to everyones life, like it was with these great ancestors of ours. Many sayings are taken from these antique clocks, time flies , time shows the path of mans decay, all very morbid, but it is fact. We might have learnt how to measure time, but we can not slow it.
Nothing is so important as time, it is fundamental to life itself. We at Pendulum of Mayfair care for all aspects of antique clocks, please contact me at https://www.pendulumofmayfair.co.uk.
