Unique Grandfather Clock with Urgos Triple Chime movement

In for repair is a German grandfather clock with an Urgos triple chime movement.

The picture is rather dark but you can get an idea what the clock looks like.  As mentioned, it is a unique handmade case with a German Urgos movement.  The movement model number is UW03012B.  It is a chain driven triple chime movement.  This is one of those older modern clocks with a deep rich beautiful chime.

The arrow above brings your attention to the front glass.  The glass has been broken.  The frame was removed and taken to my glass guy who custom cut a new piece of glass.  A little tricky because of the curved shape of the glass.

The image below shows the door before repair.  The tape and cardboard kept the glass secure so it would not fracture.

These two images show the replaced glass and the cord used to secure the glass within the frame. Large staples were used to secure the cord to the frame which in turn, secured the glass.

and a closer look at the cord

Floor clocks cannot be easily moved.  Service on these clocks are done at the customer's home.  There are only a few adjustments that can be done there.  If major work needs to be done in this case, the movement is pulled along with the pendulum and weights.  Sometimes the face is also taken.  In this case the door panel was taken to replace the broken glass.

At the shop, a further inspection was done.  It was obvious that the movement was very dirty and some wheels pivot holes were worn.  After removing the movement from the case and testing all pivot holes, I counted 11 holes worn and needed a rebuild.  

The picture below shows the back side plate with the holes needing rebuilding circled.

This picture shows the front of the movement with all the levers and cams still in place.  

The next images display all the pieces and parts that a chime clock has.  These images are separated by front, back, and insides.  There are many pieces to this clock.  Utmost care is used to organize all these pieces so that they do not get misplaced and in time go back to their rightful location.

This picture shows all the levers on the front of the movement.  These levers and wheels control the chime and strike sequence of the movement.

Next 3 wheel trains.  The chime, strike, and time are laid out.  The glob at the top of the image are the winding chains.  There are 3 of them in this clock.

The back side of the movement contain the hammers that strike the chime rods.  There are two sets.  One set has 8 hammers, they each work independently and play the tunes every 15 minutes.  The 4 hammers set work as a set and announce the hour.  This clock can play three different melodies.  Westminster, Whittingham, and St. Michaels.

The cylinder drum you see above has 3 sets of pins that lift the hammers in a particular sequence.  Similar to a player piano.  To adjust the different chimes the cylinder is slid to a different position to engage in a different set of pins which will play a different toon.

Below is a abbreviated list of items either checked or repaired in a general overhaul

1.  All wheel pivots are checked for roughness.  There were not pivots that needed polishing.

2.  Inspect all clicks for wear.  All three chain wheels  had good clicks and springs.

3.  Inspect all pivot holes for wear.  Found 11 pivot holes that needed rebuilding.  The original hole was cut out and a new piece of brass was installed.  This new piece of brass was then reamed out to the exact size of the pivot.  Then the hole was polished and hardened for a longer lasting repair.  The outside of the hole both inside and out was beveled for a smooth fit.  After the pivot hole was rebuilt, the wheel was placed between the plates and spun.   The wheel must spin smoothly or else the clock will not operate correctly.  Every wheel hole tested  great.

4.  The escapement wheel was inspected for wear.  In better clocks there is not usually a problem here.  This is what was found with this clock.

5.  Pallets were inspected.  This too was found to be in great condition.

6.  Strike and chime wheel pins were inspected for bentness (if that is a word).  All were in great shape.

7.  Wheel teeth were inspected.  They all looked great. 

8.  Fans on both the  chime and strike trains were inspected.  These fans act as a throttle to regulate the speed of the chime and strike.  If the fan is too loose, the sound plays much too fast.

9.  Complete disassembly and cleaning in an ultrasonic cleaner.

Here is a short video of the movement being tested after the rebuild.  The video shows the movement ticking and a demonstration of the movement chiming.  The hammer heads have not been re-installed as on this video.  They will be added very soon.  

Once the movement is placed on the test stand final adjustments are made.  Here is a short list of the adjustments made on the clock:

1.  Chime cam is adjusted so that the chime plays and stops at the proper time.

2.  Strike cam is adjusted so that when the strike lever falls off the rack, the strike hammers are not in a lifting position.

3.  The chime drum is adjusted so that the melody starts and ends at the proper sequence.   

When all the adjustments are completed.  The movement is oiled with hi-grade clock oil and the hands are attached.  When the hands are attached, it is possible to check the speed of the clock.  If the clock runs too fast, the pendulum is lengthened and if the clock runs too slow, the pendulum is adjusted shorted.  There is a regulation nut at the bottom of the pendulum ball that is used to accomplish this.

The image below is how the pendulum's position when it was picked up.  The customer stated that the clock kept running faster and faster.  He had to adjust the pendulum down to slow it down.  This is consistent with the movement showing some wear and dirty.  A power loss developed and the pendulum swing amplitude got smaller and smaller, hence the time between ticks and tocks got shorter and shorter causing the movement to run faster and faster.  The customer lowered the pendulum ball to lengthen and slow the clock down. 

After the repair and cleaning the clock was setup on the test stand.  It ran slow.  The pendulum was too long.  The amplitude of the pendulum swing was much greater, hence the clock ran slow.  The pendulum had to be shortened to speed up the movement.  This condition was expected.  The picture below shows the pendulum adjusted to the height of the line of the pendulum (see above).  At this point, the clock is keeping good time.

The face is rather unique.  It is brushed mettle that matches the weights.  

Interesting though is the two angles with snake, roster, & staff.  A white paper from the Acta Theologica Supplementum discusses the meaning of these items.  A snake has been  defined over the years as a creature with supernatural powers. Also when a snake and staff symbol appear together it is associated with the healing arts.  A staff or rod was probably in common use in olden times as an aid in walking and as a weapon.  Back then the staff was used and a symbol of absolute power. Today it might have a similar meaning with a 20th century twist.

The repair is complete.  

The next step is to install the movement into the case, adjust the hammers so that the chime sounds great, install the repaired door, and finally answer any questions the customer might have on his newly repaired clock.

The Finished Product