Clock mantel

[Gay Laster]

Have What I Believe to be an old Hermle works with an antique style floating balance. Unlike the newer style there no place to remove or install weights to slow or speed up movement. Can someone out there tell me how to slow down this movement. I already Moved the lever on the balance wheel to its slowest position. Note: works has Garant stamped on the back plate but I don"t believe that that is maker of the works.

 

[roughbarked]

It is definitely a Hettich balance. Did you try oiling the pallet pins?
Looking at the pivots, they are full of pivotpoop and as is usual for these clocks, the escape wheel and other wheels are usually in need of bushing.

 

[new2clocks]

Have What I Believe to be an old Hermle works

According to H-H Schmid, the author of the Lexikon (the gold standard publication regarding the German clock industry):

The inventor of the floating balance was Hugo Hettich, first co-owner of the clock factory "Garant", later the own factory "Hettich" in Ludwigshafen (Lake of Constance).

Hettich was Black Forest, he had done his training at the HAC in Alpirsbach. Before the war, he moved to Berlin and designed for Bössenroth his first movements. Because of the war he came to Lake Constance, where he founded the company Blesch & Hettich ("Garant") with a partner. There he constructed the movements with floating balance. After separating from his partner, he opened the company Hettich.

So, it appears that your movement was made by the inventor of the floating balance, as opposed to a company who licensed the technology from Hettich.

Regards.

 

[wow]

How to slow it down? Usually a worn time train is the cause of that. The rotation of the balance wheel gets less and less as the train binds and causes the ticks to occur more often…thus…faster. A rebuild of the movement, bushing the worn holes, will usually solve your problem. The balance unit should be cleaned with naptha or alcohol so it will rotate a minute or so on its own when rotated by hand. No oil on it.

 

[Willie X]

All these work about the same and need about 360° rotation to operate properly.

To check the rotation: at the (at rest) position, mark the rim of the balance wheel at the back of the movement, in line with the roller pins, using a Sharpie marker. When set running the mark should travel 180° around to the front of the movement, then back past the (at rest) starting point and go 180° further to the front of the movement.

Just watch closely and the mark will appear when the motion stops at the front. A good movement will rotate to (or a little past) the previous stopping point. Again, 360° minimum rotation for a good movement.

Willie X

 

[gvasale]

Don't those floating balances have Jewels? Then alcohol is out of the question. Most Jewels, I seem to recall, are set with shellac, excepting watch plate jewels. In plane language, pallet jewels and roller jewels are set with shellac.

I wouldn't mind being wrong, but I think I am correct.

 

[Willie X]

Two jewels, they are pressed in and never gonna come out, even if you would like to take them out. Willie X

 

[wow]

Don't those floating balances have Jewels? Then alcohol is out of the question. Most Jewels, I seem to recall, are set with shellac, excepting watch plate jewels. In plane language, pallet jewels and roller jewels are set with shellac.

I wouldn't mind being wrong, but I think I am correct.

You are right about jewels being set with shellac but, as Willie said, these are not. I use naptha on a lot if they are pretty dirty followed by denatured alcohol. In my opinion they are better than the newer coil balance spring units.