Cuckoo 3 train chime hammers

[POWERSTROKE]

Has anyone worked on on of these clocks before? It’s like a cuckoo/quail but with Westminster chimes instead of the quail. Difficulty? Clock needs some rod overall.

 

[Robert Horneman]

Wow that IS different! A cuckoo/quail would have two birds. It looks like a quail movement. Also a quail movement would have three whistles. Where do all those hammers hit? Good luck with that. I don't know where you would begin.

 

[Mike Phelan]

Aviary clock!

 

[POWERSTROKE]

There are 4-5 chime rods on the back board. Clock was in disrepair. Droppings inside, torn bellows, rust all over, needs a rebuild, hammers and rods were rusty, case is spreading. I turned the job down. Never worked on one and I wasn’t going to experiment on this guys clock with no spare parts etc. can someone pm what they would charge to totally overhaul a clock like this? The case itself was about 2.5 feet in height

 

[J. A. Olson]

These cuckoo clocks with quarter striking on rods pop up once in a while. It is a Waterfall strike on quarters with cuckoo functioning as it normally does. Basically the same getup as a cuckoo-quail but with Waterfall rods strike replacing the quail call.
The 1904 patent gives some insight towards the design, courtesy of the late Douglas Stevenson:



If you've done a cuckoo-quail before it shouldn't be much different with the basics of a three train cuckoo-quail movement.

 

[shutterbug]

I'm not sure what happened here, but the thread has no discernible starting point. What kind of clock are we even talking about?

 

[J. A. Olson]

Shutt - there was a nice cuckoo clock in the original post with an unusual quarter strike on 4 rods as my post describes. Strikes quarters on four rods, cuckoos on hours. For whatever reason the post has been gutted and all photos removed.

The late Richard T. owned a very similar clock which can be seen in photos here:

https://mb.nawcc.org/threads/large-1-4-strike-cuckoo-drp-219355.66941/?highlight=quarter+striking+cuckoo

 

[POWERSTROKE]

It looks as if I was in the middle of an edit and something happened.
I reposted the photo etc. not sure how I did that.

 

[J. A. Olson]

Looks like it's all back up. These rod strike cuckoos are unusual. They're the only traditional cuckoo clocks to incorporate gong rods in any form and they always came with very large ornate cases.

 

[POWERSTROKE]

It’s huge too. Like two feet top to bottom.

 

[Willie X]

Well, it's worth about nothing as is ...

So, I would look it over good and quote the customer a fat repair estimate. If s/he OKs the job and it takes a whole lot of extra time, your covered. If it turns out 'not so bad' you can trim the estimate and all will be happy. If they turn the fat estimate down, that's OK too. The clock probably came from a yard sale ...

I do this all the time, just make sure there are no missing (or badly damaged) parts that will have to be made. And also, make sure it is actually going to be a big time consuming overhaul. If they 'get it running' somewhere else for 85 bucks, and you quoted $375, that's not something you want to happen!

And also (again) always ask for 50% payment up front on this kind of job, for many very good reasons

Good luck,, Willie X

 

[Dave T]

I wouldn't begin to underestimate what is required to restore this clock.
But how much more difficult could it be, except to get the timing correct on the extra hammers?

 

[Willie X]

To someone starting out, everything that comes through the door is different. And, it will continue that way for a long time.

Willie X