Joiner's Musings

Bottom part of Seth Thomas 89AL movement As I was oiling my newly acquired Seth Thomas Beehive mantle clock last night I discovered this little curiosity. What you see is a close-up of the back of the clock movement. The rod in the foreground is the pendulum rod to which the bob is attached. The elongated reverse "c" that you see in the photo is actually a pendulum rod retaining clip used to transport the clock. The bob would be taken off and the rod, clipped into place thereby stopping the clock mechanism and avoiding any potential damage. Pretty ingenious for the time! I suppose that in those days (circa 1928) people took their clocks with them (summer in the country and such) when they traveled assuming that they were portable enough. I know that windup alarm clocks have been around forever but folks then probably felt that they had to be reminded of the time and a strike clock sounding through the summer house would have fit the bill. It is only 10 inches high and 8...

Seth Thomas Mantle clock After three days the clock is running fine. I adjusted the chime by disconnecting the minute hand and rotating it 180 degrees, a very simple fix, in order to chime properly on the hour. Why it was chiming on the half hour is beyond me. So often folks don't wind the chime side because the chimes are disturbing (too loud). I think that is what happened. It probably came back from the shop adjusted incorrectly and the owner simply ignored it and stopped winding the chime side. The gong on the hour and half hour is unremarkable but loud considering the size of the clock. Does it keep good time? So far it is accurate but I don't really expect it to be in the long term, but that is the nature of windup clocks. Want a mechanical clock you can depend on, get a weight driven regulator. Otherwise I cleaned the clock using Murphy's Oil and applied a little walnut stain using a toothpick to fix a couple of nicks and scratches which are now invisible.I w...