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Question
John, I have a 10+ year old Howard Miller wall clock with the usual three slots for winding. I have read about overwinding and am worried that the bottom-most (6 0'clock) wind may be the culprit as the other have a little play and this one has none. The clock seems to be at correct beat with respect to the pendulum, but stops after about 1-1/2 minutes. Manually moving the hands allows the chimes the sound normally too. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Edward, I don't know what you have read about "overwinding", but the general rule is to wind until you feel a sudden increased resistance. That is fine. If you force it further than that you can bend or break something. I'm not sure what you mean by no play in it. Do you mean that you have wound it all the way and it has not play in trying to wind it a little further? Let me know. When you say it has the correct beat do you mean an even tick tock? If it goes tick......tock..tick.......tock, it is out of beat and will stop. Has the clock been serviced since you purchased it? I recommend that it should be serviced every 7 to 10 years, as the components should be checked and it should be cleaned and lubricated at this time. If you will, to free up the Allexperts question queue, email me at my shop email address below.
John Newman
THE VILLAGE CLOCKSMITH
Old Prattvillage
Prattville, Alabama
klokdok@juno.com
(Due to the number of Allexperts questions and
the workload I have at my clock shop, I regret
that I cannot answer personal email questions on a timely basis
other than Allexperts follow ups.)
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Answers by Expert:
John Newman
Expertise
As much as I would like to offer values of clocks, I am not a certified appraiser and will not venture into giving an unresearched guess. There is very little published information on what I consider to be the value of "modern production clocks". Considerations are what the clock originally sold for, the condition of the case and movement, and particularly the area in which you live, the demand and the economy. ALSO, WATCHES ARE NOT MY FIELD. However, I can advise the clock owner on proper maintenance of a clock to keep it running, small corrections and adjustments and how to move a clock without damaging it. I can also advise on obtaining parts for clocks. It helps if you can send any information on the clock movement which is usually found on the back plate of the movement. I have been a clockmaker for about 35 years and was plant engineer in the mid 90's and later operations and engineering consultant at Emperor Clock Company in Fairhope, Alabama. I now have my own clock shop.
Experience
One of my greatest accomplishments was traveling to China to assist a clock factory in building clocks to the standards which we required. With the proper specifications and quality control, some beautiful clock cases were built. The factory people from the wood carvers to the plant manager were very congenial, friendly and I left a lot of wonderful friends when I returned from my trips.
Organizations
Chamber of Commerce
Small Business Committee
Publications
Horological Times, a publication of the American Watch and Clockmakers Instute. Collaberated column author, with Photos and ideas for clock movement conversion article.
Education/Credentials
Associate of Science Mechanical Engineering Technology
Emperor Introductory Clock Repair (Eventually taught a portion of the class after becoming employee)
Awards and Honors
Small Business of the Quarter (Prattville, Alabama)
Leadership Class of 2009 (Autauga County, Alabama)
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