Turret-Clock-handbook

Setting to British Summer Time and Greenwich Mean Time
To set the clock to British Summer Time advance the hands by one hour letting the clock
strike at the hour and quarters.
To set the clock to Greenwich Mean Time it is best to stop the clock for one hour by stopping
the pendulum. Alternatively you can advance the clock by 11 hours letting the clock strike at the
hours and quarters.
To Start the Clock Should it Have Stopped
Once the weights have been wound up, give the pendulum a small sideways push and keep
pushing every swing until the clock starts to tick.
Regulation
Do not expect an old turret clock to keep time as accurately as a modern quartz watch.
A well-maintained 18th century clock can still keep time to a minute or so a week, a Victorian
clock with a pendulum compensated for temperature changes may be within 15 seconds a week or
better.
Rating nut, turn to
adjust pendulum
Rating nut, turn to
adjust pendulum
Bottom Pendulum
Adjuster
circa 1700
Top Pendulum Adjuster
circa 1720
To get the clock to keep good time the
pendulum may need to be adjusted. There is usually a large nut underneath the pendulum which
can be screwed up or down to raise or lower the pendulum bob. Some clocks have a wing nut on
top of the pendulum suspension bracket, which enables the suspension spring to be pulled up or
down through a slot thus shortening or lengthening the pendulum.
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