Expert: Michael Radi - 11/24/2010

Question
I found your answer for someone else's clock much like my own so I'm hoping you may be able to offer some advice on mine. As I said it's a Waltham, 31 day regulator, the problem is with the winding post on the left side facing the clock. I can turn it and sometimes it catches but most of the time it just slips and unwinds. After looking at the gears nothing looks out of place, it's just the pin itself that will not hold the coil tight. Can this be fixed or it is just a very nice looking, wall hanging paper weight now? Please bare in mind that I live 50 miles from NOTHING so web sites would be better for me. Thank you

Answer
Does the key spin backwards or is it just that the spring becomes unhooked? If the key does not spin the mainspring is not catching on the winding arbor. There is a hole on the inside of the spring coil. Sometimes that hole becomes damaged and the mainspring must be replaced. If you are lucky the inside coil can be squeezed so that it is tighter around the arbor and you can get it to catch well enough to wind the clock up.
If the key spins, this is not the kind of repair that should be done by anyone other than a qualified clock repair person. That catch is called a click. If the click fails when the clock has just a few winds on it the key will spring very quickly and with a lot of power. This is a dangerous situation and I know clock repair person who have hand their fingers torn up and ended up in the emergency ward.
The repair involves riveting the click to the plate. Usually the movement has to be taken apart so that the job can be done right.