Anyone into vintage clocks?

When we moved into our current house last year, there was an old Grandfather clock in the dining room. Previous tenant stated "not working, was going to try to fix it". It's a Franz Hermle 3 train Westminster chime movement in what seems to be a cheap kit case & was filthy...

Edited by ekjdm14 - 27 Jan 2025 at 7:48am

I work for a customer who repairs and collects clocks. His house has over 100 grandfather, cuckoo, and anything your imagination can dream up. 1/2 are set to go off at 11:30 in the morning and the other half at 5:00 pm. First time I heard them go off I couldn't believe the commotion. His wife says it takes some getting used to . He is getting old enough he will only work on his own clocks. He claims back in the day most clocks makers had small children assembling the tiny mechanisms. Small hands and fingers . He claims he really struggles with the small stuff.

Ive got two that still run and keep decent time as long as I remember to wind them!  One is a 1910 Sessions that I bought from a friends antique shop 50+ years ago. The other is a family hand me down originally owned by my great uncle who came to Manitoba, Can to homestead in 1912.  He was a tinkerer and  made a solid copper pendulum for this clock that he stamped 1912 into.  It will keep getting passed along in the family as it still runs and has great chimes.

ekjdm14 wrote: When we moved into our current house last year, there was an old Grandfather clock in the dining room. Previous tenant stated "not working, was going to try to fix it". It's a Franz Hermle 3 train Westminster chime movement in what seems to be a cheap kit case & was filthy... I've finally got around to looking into the thing & after identifying it, reassembling some of the movement (an idler wheel had dropped out into the base of the clock & weights/chains were all out and dismantled, one weight is missing) then giving the whole movement a good clean of cobwebs & some light oil I've got it running again. Currently running a 2 litre bottle of water with a drill battery taped to it as the chime weight (because you all know I'm hella redneck that way  ) but seems to keep decent time once I trimmed the pendulum up a little and doesn't sound horrible. Anyway just thought I'd share in case any of you guys here have experience messing with things like this. Bit of finer more delicate work than old tractors but it was a fun way to waste an evening and it's always quite rewarding to see something destined for the trash come back to life again!

I have the New Haven Clock co mantle clock that belonged to my great grandparents, so early 1900's I guess. I don't run it any more, it kept good time but one of the springs broke. I might have it fixed, old clocks aren't the sort of thing I care to tinker with.

Edited by jvin248 - 27 Jan 2025 at 9:50pm

It looks intimidating in there but, stop and think about it and things don't get much simpler than a gravity fed century or two old clock. It didn't take brain surgeons to invent and build it, don't take brain surgeons to clean pet hair and dirt out and oil it.