Setting the timing for a westminster chime clock

[Davel831]

Hi Everyone
I hope you are all safe and well, i have acquired a Granddaughter westminster chiming clock. I have cleaned it up serviced it and now just waiting for new chime rods as the old ones were rather out of tune!

I have the movement on my test stand currently and i am just wondering is there a set sequence to ensure that the timing is correct ? Please excuse my question as this is my first three train chiming clock i have serviced , so to ensure correct strikes and the snail and chiming wheel are all correct?

I have included a picture to help

Many thanks beforehand for all your input and help.

God Bless Dave

 

[tracerjack]

Can you state in more detail what you did to service it? Did you completely disassemble it for cleaning?

 

[Davel831]

Hi yes i did complete disassembly and noticed now when it comes to the strike hour this happens as in pics below

 

[tracerjack]

Since you did a complete disassembly, yes there are steps you must go through to get the chime, chime correction and strike to function properly. This thread might help https://mb.nawcc.org/threads/perivale-bag-of-bits.173449/. It appears to be the same movement. If it isn’t, then we’ll need to identify how your movement works to set it up correctly.

 

[Davel831]

Hi yes it is the same movement, i did have this in the case but took it out as i needed to adjust it as it keep stopping after several hours , i found what it was! So i thought put it on a test stand to check then discovered this lol. When it was in the case it was chiming fine?

 

[tracerjack]

Yes, that happens. If everything else is working properly, chime correction, warning runs, etc. then if these hammers are left lifted after a chime, it is simply a matter of disengaging the drive wheel with the set screws, letting the hammers fall and re-engaging the wheel. It is sometimes not as easy as it sounds, because you must disengage it without turning the arbor it is on. Usually takes me a couple of tries.

 

[Davel831]

Hi thank you gore the reply the hammers lift up before the final chimes then strike ?

 

[tracerjack]

All hammers should be down after a chime sequence and also at the end of a strike sequence. They should not lift during the warning run or the the chimes/strike might stall. The chime or strike train usually needs to get going up to speed before it can successfully lift hammers.

 

[shutterbug]

If you're talking about the strike sequence, you can adjust that with the gathering pallet. When the last strike occurs, the train should lock. Just move the GP so it does.

 

[Davel831]

Hi sorry perhaps I am not describing this well, but just before the last chime the two hammers in the pic lift up then the chime is played but only two of them as two have been lifted then the hour is sounded as normal? I hope that makes some sense

 

[JimmyOz]

As Shtterbig said, you just need to rotate the gathering pallet, rotate it to the right by holding the wheel with your index finger and rotating the pallet with plyers to the right. What is happening is the set/warning for the strike is lifting those two hammers before the chime ends.