Expert: Martin Meyer - 6/8/2007

Question
My grand father clock had stopped chiming all together. I bought some clock oil.  Oiled according to instructions.  It started chiming again!  Then I think I bumped something and now it will not stop chiming.  I see a message that says remove the face plate/dial to check the rack and snail governing the chime mechanism.  I do not know how to get the dial off?

Is there anything else to do to stop the continual chiming?

Answer
Hi Bet,
You may be referring to either the quarter-hour musical CHIME, or the hourly STRIKE. These are two separate mechanisms and have different repair problems. The dial can indeed be difficult to remove on some clocks. Both the chime and the strike parts are mounted on the front of the movement behind the dial. In any case, the problem could be either an adjustment or a broken part. No matter what the problem is, I suspect you will need to have a clock repairer come to your home and repair the problem. Diagnosing the problem can sometimes be quite difficult, and if you adjust or bend the wrong part you just make things worse. The rack and snail is only one of numerous assemblies which could be the source of your problem. To describe dial removal as well as chime and strike diagnosis and repair would take much more space than available here. If you want to tackle it, write back to me and I'll recommend repair books which will help.
    As far as simply stopping the chiming or striking:  many clocks have a "silent" lever on the dial, usually at the 3:00 position on the dial, but sometimes at the 9:00 or 12:00 points.  A few clocks have a brass rod or wire extending down from behind the dial, which you can move up or down to silence the chime and strike. Occasionally, you will find strings with brass rings on the ends hanging down on the left, right, or both sides behind the dial. They can be pulled down and hooked onto a nail or hook on the sides of the clock. If you don't have any of these, you can remove the appropriate weight. The chime weight is the one on the right as you look at the clock, the strike weight is on the  left. Do not remove the center weight, or the clock will stop altogether. Also, note that if you remove the right-hand weight, the clock will not chime OR strike. If you remove the left-hand weight, the clock will chime but will not strike.
    All this information is assuming that you do not have an antique or semi-antique clock (75 years old or more). These are a whole different thing, so write me back if that's the case. I hope this information is useful to you. Thanks for your question.  Martin