Mechanical Clock Chime On Time

Posted on    Posted in  turned_in_not  Repair Help

Mechanical Clock Chime On Time

These are the directions to get a German mechanical clock to chime on time. This means having the clock hands point to the right spot when the clock chimes.

When replacing a clock movement, or getting new clock hands, either one, you will notice it will chime 5 minutes before it should, or 10 min after, something like this. This page explains how to correct this situation. It is unbelievably fast and easy to do.

Working with the minute hand

After the installation of a new mechanical movement , or if you are just installing a new set of hands, you may notice the clock will not chime at the time it should.

To correct this, take the minute hand off of the clock. This is the longer of the two hands.

With this minute hand off of the clock, turn it upside down and look that it has a square hole where it attaches to the clock. This square hole is in a bushing that will rotate WITHIN the minute hand itself.

The correction

So, all to be done is just use needle nose pliers to turn this bushing ever so slightly. Put the hand back on the clock and see if it’s pointing to the correct place where it should chime.

If it is, then it all set and it will point to the exact place it should be pointing to. If it is still not right, take the hand off and try again. Once you get the minute hand to point to the correct chime you then set it to the correct time.

The conclusion

It is really that easy, there is nothing to do with the clock itself, only the minute hand. In other words, to put it in a silly way, take the minute hand off of the clock and walk to the garage with it.

Take it far, far away from the clock. When in your garage take needle nose pliers and turn the bushing within the hand itself. Then walk back to the clock and put it on. See if it's now pointing to the right spot.

The content of this website is copyright by Clockworks and written by James Stoudenmire in year 2022

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David Messplay
David Messplay
1 year ago

During the original installation I was able to set the minute hand satisfactorily and the clock ran and chimed correctly for months. My problem now is that it will only chime for an hour or two. When I am able to get it to chime again it has advanced 15 minutes (meaning it chimes 15 minutes ahead of itself) and will still only chime for an hour. I am sure that I am missing something, I just don’t know where to begin.

Glenn
Glenn
2 years ago

Caution! The bushing may be quite hard to turn because of paint, etc. on the minute hand. Do NOT try to turn the bushing whilst holding the minute hand – it’s fragile and will probably bend or break. Instead, get a good grip (somehow) on the round base of the hand when you try to move the bushing. The base may have an integrated hex nut that may be used to hold it; but you still may need to scrape away the paint that tend to bond the hand and the bushing together.

Good Luck!

Lora
Lora
9 months ago
Reply to  Glenn

This was very helpful for me! Thank you!

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