Louise Biggs fixes and restores a wall clock case.
I was originally called in to assess and repair a broken door from a clock case. Upon seeing the clock I found that several other repairs were needed to the case, with the clients requesting a solution to the wobbly pediment. From a distance it looked to be a resplendent little clock just the right size for their hall, and having carefully transported it to my workshop I took a closer look.
Not quite what it seemed
Alarm bells started to ring initially with the fixing of the pediment, which had a narrow peg and a rather large slot. The other major concern was the mix of timbers on show with pine (Pinus sylvestris), beech (Fagus sylvatica) and mahogany (Khaya ivorensis) forming the case. Although beech and pine are used within furniture, etc. it is not typical for them to be polished and visible alongside mahogany. Nothing seemed to quite add up and on closer inspection I found that all the black applied decoration on the pediment and the finials on the bottom were fitted with car body filler. Many of the joints were loose, and with splits due to shrinkage the construction was not as I would have expected. My conclusion was that the clients valued clock case was a made up piece.
At a further meeting I explained what I had found and my concerns about the clock case. My clients were very upset as they explained that while on holiday in Yorkshire some 25 years ago, they came across an antiques fair in the grounds of a large house and had been looking for a clock. They brought it from a ‘reputable’ dealer and paid a large sum of money (for the time). They had trusted what they saw and heard. With no way of finding the dealer and with its reputation a little tarnished, they agreed to the plan of restoration. As they said ‘they had enjoyed their clock for all those years and despite it not being all what it seemed, they would continue to enjoy it’. Having asked their permission to photograph the restoration as a possible article, they agreed in the hope that other people would learn from their mistake.
Tool list
- Chisels – various sizes
- Mallet
- Block and smoothing planes
- Spokeshave
- Screwdriver
- Mortise gauge
- Drill and drill bits
- Tablesaw
- Planer/thicknesser
- ‘Gents’ saw
- Tenon saw
- Sash and ‘G’ cramps
- Animal/hide glue and glue pot