I recieved this antique slate clock in pieces and decided to have a go at restoring it

I bought this old clock from ebay. All it needed was a service but during transit it got knocked about and ended up in pieces. I decided to have a go at rebuilding it purely to see how well I could do it. The end result was very better than my expectations

[@carquendo61]

great job again Johnny!

[@treetopspider]

Thanks Danny

[@TheSparkyRose]

It turned out beautiful!

[@treetopspider]

Thank you. Its still running perfectly in my man cave

[@jd1442003]

Superb. Working on one myself at the moment that has been in a fire! Thank you for all the tips.

[@treetopspider]

A fire salvaged clock!! that would make a great video. You should film it and post it up

[@TheKnacklersWorkshop]

Hi Johnny, An entertaining video... You did a good job getting the clock back together and I hope you enjoyed the fish fingers... Take care Paul,,

[@treetopspider]

Hahaha. Fishfingers is not a delicacy I particularly enjoy

[@neillconnor]

Excellent job. Wouldn’t believe it was the same clock that arrived in bits

[@treetopspider]

Thanks Neill. If I was restoring clocks to make money I'd be skint by now. French clocks are not very sought after. But the thrill of bringing something back to life is all the payback I need. I genuinely love the idea that this clock will go on for another 150 years instead of ending up as parts for other clocks.

[@neillconnor]

I know my wife hates the one I bought from the charity shop. It weighs 48lb and I had to reinforce the mantle piece it sits on to hold its weight. Also due to the clocks depth it stuck out about 6 mm over the mantle so I removed the beading where the clock was positioned from the mantle piece which my wife later discovered !!

[@treetopspider]

@@neillconnor Hahahah thats such a typical bloke thing to do

[@kevinfield3891]

great stuff im not surprised to hear it was from ebay they are famous for it

[@treetopspider]

It happens a lot and me like a fool keep going back for more

[@kevinfield3891]

im the same but courier firms should take more care of parcels insurance or no insurance

[@s.spencertenagodus8051]

"Didn't he do well" - absolutely marvelously and gives me confidence to start working on one too. i don't know if you have a website - if so could you perhaps put the address on the KZbin videos. i understand why you cut out bits but would really have liked to have seen the procedure in full. yes it would have been a longer video but learning is a course of repetition for the pupil and i am learning. one long video may be simpler to follow than searching out then darting from one to another. I am very much a learner but i am very interested in all your procedures and innovative ideas. I am glad the Marblack is a good lead to follow. I will adopt it together with clear silica gel - amongst so many other tips. thank you - great job. P.S. would you mind advising me of the video camera/kit you use? one day i may have to get round to taking some of my own (but of simple wooden clocks.)

[@treetopspider]

Hi Simon, Thank you for your comment. I always worry about boring people with my videos so I edit quite heavily where I image people may want to move on but I will bear your thoughts in mind for the next one. Unfortunately I do not have a website although have been thinking about it. Perhaps this is something I can put into action in the near future. I have this week taken up a clockmaking course which I attend on monday mornings so I am excited to show what I am learning. Up until now, all my knowledge has been self taught.

[@s.spencertenagodus8051]

@@treetopspider great to hear from you. Clock course? On line, correspondence or at a school/venue? I am self taught - so I value your experiences on KZbin. Don't worry about boring people, with the millions of followers you have you can afford to drop a few. I assure you that your videos are not boring especially for those who are interested and want your experienced advice. I look forward to seeing your next video.

[@s.spencertenagodus8051]

P. S. Sorry I didn't read properly. You are going to school. Good for you.

[@treetopspider]

@@s.spencertenagodus8051 its called the Epping Forest collage of Horology. on a farm out in Epping. they are a charity based institution dedicated to keeping the art of watch and clockmaking alive. The funny thing is, at 58 yrs old, I am the youngest there hahahah

[@treetopspider]

@@s.spencertenagodus8051 I forgot to metion, all im using for my videos is my samsung phone and a bit of free software called Openshot. Seems to do the trick ok

[@grottonisred6541]

I'm convinced people have stopped thinking during the lockdown....how on earth was the clock going to survive being thrown around a warehouse/back of a van in a cardboard box like that....it beggars belief...

[@patrickmorrissey205]

Hi Johnny. Hope alls well. Can I have some advice. I married a French clock movement with a case. The rack striking was fine, then it started striking non stop. Then finished and went back to normal. Now it wont strike at all. Overall the movement is very clean state. Any ideas ?

[@treetopspider]

Hi Patrick. Its hard for me to say especially as I dont class myself as an expert but it sounds to me like the rack is sticking. somehwere beneath the dial. Could anything have gotten compressed when it went into the new case? Have you taken the dial off to inspect whats going on beneath?

[@s.spencertenagodus8051]

As you know I have followed most of your work with great interest and I am in awe at your progress with your videos. could you give me a few tips please such as camera, stand, editing etc Do you edit on your phone or PC maybe one of your brilliant short video on what you do. I am thinking of doing a video but don't want to buy kit or programs which are overkill. Your suggestion for editing is not suitable for my phone/camera. Any help or advice would be much appreciate.

[@treetopspider]

Hi Simon, My phone which is a samsung S10 is used for all the videos. Recently I purchased a microphone (Yeti Nano) so that I could narrate when I felt it better to do so rather than talking as I work. Although most of my editing has been done with Open Shot, while I was at PC World the other day picking up my microphone, I also picked up Nero Standard editing software which was on offer for £7. this is far better than Openshot as it has more capabilities but on the downside takes more learning. I do all my editing on my laptop, it would be too tedious to do it on the phone, you really need a decent size screen to get your cuts perfect. I use a standard camera tripod with the phone holder attachment and a recently bought a Boom Arm/ swivel arm for my overhead shots from ebay. I sometimes use additional lighting in the form of an LED floorlamp which is mulitdirectional. I think that pretty much sums it up. I am still learning and one of the things I have learnt is that there is far more to editing than I ever imagined. Hope this helps Simon and I look forward to becoming your first subscriber

[@s.spencertenagodus8051]

@@treetopspider thanks a million. I will do some research and use your reply as guidance. There is a lot to think about. I thought that I had a glimpse in one of your shots of a Joby Gorilla stand but I was mistaken. I thought I would go for PowerDirector but it seems no pc compatibility. Lots to do to get started. I will keep you posted and thanks again.

[@s.spencertenagodus8051]

One thing more please indulge me! Do you shoot the video on your phone as taken unedited then transfer it to your computer for editing with Nero Standard editing? So all the work is done on the computer and the phone used only to take the video?

[@treetopspider]

@@s.spencertenagodus8051 Yes everything is shot on the phone. sometimes I leave it running for ages knowing that later on I can take out the bits I dont like. Although, just lately I have taken to respositioning the camera to take a shot from a different angle to make it more interesting. By stopping and starting the video you get mulitple clips which can be labeled individually once on the PC rather than a long video which can only have one label but may cover several processes, if that makes sense. As I say, I am learning more with each video. It then gets to the point of how much do you want to refine your films. I think often that less messing about is adequate

[@s.spencertenagodus8051]

Thanks John. I tried to reply on computer but bogged it as it didn't work as my phone does. I will ditch PowerDirector and try Nero with all the editing on my computer. Great advice thanks so much. I will keep you posted.

[@QueenCityHistory]

With antique items to me it goes beyond value. That’s 100+ years of history that can never be replaced

[@patrickmorrissey205]

What sort of Milliput are you using for this, there are different versions

[@treetopspider]

Hi Patrick. I used black Milliput which I bought from Cousins Uk. Heres the web link to give you a description. www.cousinsuk.com/search?searchTerm=C52891 Johnny

[@patrickmorrissey205]

@@treetopspider Thats great, thanks for that tip. Really have enjoyed watching you bring these old clocks back to life. I'm hooked !

[@treetopspider]

@@patrickmorrissey205 Thanks Patrick. its comments like that which give me enthusiasm to carry of uploading. Johnny

[@patrickmorrissey205]

@@treetopspider I find the video's fascinating Johnny. I had no idea these clocks were so fragile too ! Great to hear that you are doing a clock course in Epping, the more people that do the better as these clocks are irreplaceable and deserve looking after. Best of luck with the course. Btw, Marblack is no longer being sold to new customers (covid related) but I was lucky to get a bottle from an Ebay person. Very kind of them.

[@treetopspider]

@@patrickmorrissey205 Hi Patrick. I have also experimented with black boot polish which I uploaded in one of my videos. That worked pretty good but Marblack is somewhat easier to use. I love restoring, I'd like to have a go at a grandfather clock but my wife wold never have it in the house :-)