These are vintage mechanical movements, completely restored, mounted on a heavy cast iron base and enclosed in a glass dome.

Restored English Mantel Clocks

Mantel clocks

The movements were used in mantel clocks and date from the 1920s to 1940s. They were manufactured in England by Enfield Clock Company Ltd - later to become Smiths Enfield - and The Perivale Clock Manufacturing Company Ltd. They were later marketed under the Bentima name. They represented the final evolution of domestic mechanical clocks before being gradually superceded in the 1950s and 60s by mains powered electric clocks. Designed to be robust and dependable, they did indeed provide reliable service year in and year out. They have witnessed the impact of massive change in people lives, often valued items handed down through generations, ticking reliably through small family troubles and triumphs.

Description of the restored movement

Known as 8-Day Striking. It was designed to be wound every week, but will easily run for a further day or two if necessary. It strikes on the hour with the number of the hour and a single strike on the half hour. The striking is very quiet, somewhat remenicent of a distant church bell.

The movement is totally original but completely restored to as-new condition. As the movement is now mounted on a base, rather than hidden away in a case, the necessary new parts are made by me in my workshop. These include the base itself, the pillars, the chapter ring and all the associated parts - some 50 in all. As the original pendulum was made from lead, this is replaced with a brass one made in my workshop.

The original clocks were made with either arabic or roman numeral dials, so the restored movement is available with either. As the new chapter ring is slightly smaller than the original dial, new hands are made and heat blued in the traditional way.

The glass dome is 180mm in diameter (7 inches) and 220mm (8 1/2 inches) high. It has three discreet clear silicone non-slip feet. The weight of the complete clock is about 4.5kg (10lb), so it does need a sturdy shelf.

Curiosities

The number of ticks per hour (beats in horological terms) is 10472. This is also the number of times the pendulum swings past centre. That is over 1/4 million per day. If the clock has been in pretty much continuous use for 80 – 90 years, that’s 7 trillion swings. The strike would have sounded 5.5 milion separate strikes. The escape wheel would have rotated nearly a billion times. Each click (the aptly named part that clicks when you wind the clock and provides torque reaction for the mainspring) would have operated a quarter of a million times.

Remarkably, most components show very little wear, and some none at all. And the little wear that is evident is easily corrected - the very antithesis of the throw-away culture. Things were built to last in those days and there is no reason to think the clock will not last another hundred years.

Timekeeping

These mechanical clocks are self contained and as such will do their own thing - i.e. not synchronised to GPS or radio time transmitters (obviously). So it's only fair to expect that the timekeeping will not be perfect. Having said that, they do an amazing job. You can expect the clock to keep time to within about 20 seconds per week. That is about 1/3000 of a per cent. The nature of the clock and the fact that it is powered by a spring does mean that it will typically gain during the first part of the week and lose during the second part. It will also be subject to temparature and barometric pressure changes. You may find it runs a little faster in the winter and slower in the summer (very slightly).

The concluding part of the restoration is "bringing the clock to time". Over a period of weeks, the rate is iterated by small amounts so that over the period of a week there is minimal gain or loss. A graph of timekeeping is made after each iteration.

Availability and price

The clocks are available to buy from me directly and the price is £250. Although mainly completed to order, it is sometimes the case that there may be a completed restoration ready immediately. Please contact me and I will provide details. A record of the individual clock's timekeeping is available on request. Included are very detailed notes on setting up and use. A winding key and bubble level are also supplied.