Expert: Michael Radi - 8/15/2010

Question
our clock is the 8 day weight driven movement clock from the 1970's....it has two weights on it....after winding it one day it didn't want to keep the pendulum going...it seems that the right weight is stuck...we placed extra weight on it and that worked for a time but now that does not seem to be helping either....any ideas?

Answer
The first thing to check is to see if it is in beat. Listen to the ticking, the ticks should be evenly spaced in time. Like a metronome or a person walking. If the ticks are uneven the clock is out of beat. It is very common for this to happen when a clock runs down or if you wind it while the pendulum is swinging.
Putting it in beat is not difficult but sort of hard to explain, especially not knowing the clock. If it's on the wall you can tilt the case a little to one side.
Let me know what you find out.
Michael