horological fun and games

As I went into this clock again tonight, I took some images
for your pleasure.



I work hard to take the time I
need in order that I am able to avoid rushing into some of the mistakes others have obviously
found while working on this type of delicate and finely made machinery.





You can see that the case, dial and case back are pretty much
impervious to casual care for the most part.  The mechanical parts
show some interesting stories from days past.  The fourth in the
series, named "pinion_750.jpg"
is an example of how hard the material that the pinions are made of
is.  In a standard quality clock, these pinion leaves would not
have broken, but instead would have just bent to accommodate the
abusive treatment.  The "pinion.jpg" file is a little larger file that shows some better detail of the break.





The pinion leaves are hardened to this high degree to ensure as long a life
of wear as possible.  The down side is that the unsuspecting repairman, may
run into trouble if more accustomed to working on less
sophisticated and thus more forgiving mechanisms.  Unfortunately I come across this type
of damage often.  I've documented much of it and am working
toward building a web site that includes some of the less attractive
treatment of clocks and watches at the hands of repairmen.





The "wheel" series is also an example of an attempt to cover up what
must have been a mistake or a drastically sudden let down of the
power.  The teeth have been ripped clean away from this wheel in
two places.  The repairman had the good fortune to have owned a
wheel that was a close match to this one.  He's filed thin, two
pieces of the wheel and soft soldered them to the side of the wheel to
take the place of the missing teeth. 






Both these potentially disastrous bits of damage have been salvaged to
such a degree that the operation of the works are not greatly affected.




As is the case here, I'm in conservation mode with this piece and won't
change this elder statesman to ensure that it's colourful history be
clear for the next generation to follow and respect.  If the
damage had interfered with the operation, I'd be forced to reverse that
situation.  It is
shameful to have such harsh treatment in evidence, but it is not
shameful to have a clock that remains a solid contributor, irrespective
of such damage.  I think it speaks volumes to the good will of the
original makers, that the only significant wear after all these years
of service, has been from service men and not it's day to day load of
running to keep the time.