Combined stabiliser and beat adjuster for Vienna regulator

**dealbata** · 28th April 2013, 10:49 PM

Upon completing the Vienna regulator shown in the first picture (mouse over pictures to see file name), I found that the case swung to the side when the door was opened, due to the weight of the glass in the door. The solution I arrived at might be of interest to anyone with a similar problem. The second picture shows the lower rear side of the clock case, and the cavity between the base of the case and the base of the decorative lower mouldings. In this space, I fitted a block with a vertical groove (protected against wear by two recessed aluminium plates). The block can slide from side to side on an upper and lower rail. The third picture is a close-up of the block, the fourth picture shows the block pushed over to one side. The groove in the block accepts the head of a screw in the wall, filed to size (fifth picture). This stabilising screw is vertically below the main screw near the top of the clock that supports the weight of the clock. The sliding block can be locked into position with a brass cup head set screw located at the very bottom of the clock case and at the rear of the case.

So the procedure in setting up the clock is to roughly centre the sliding block and lock it in place, hook the case onto the main screw on the wall at the top of the case, and move the case side to side at the bottom until the lower stabilising screw drops into the groove in the sliding block. Put the clock, weights and pendulum into the case, and adjust the beat (get an even tick tock) as well as possible using the slipping clutch mechanism in the pendulum leader and escapement. Then loosen the locking set screw at the base of the clock, and move the bottom of the case very small amounts left or right, to get the clock perfectly in beat. Then lock the set screw again, thus enabling the groove and lower stabilising screw in the wall to prevent the bottom of the clock case moving when the door is opened.

I've had the clock on and off the wall a few times in the last couple of weeks and the system seems to work very well.

Hope the description makes sense.
fifth.jpg first.jpg fourth.jpg second.jpg sixth.jpg third.jpg

**Walesey** · 30th April 2013, 10:47 PM

That is a very ingenious system Ian. Very effective and almost invisible!

The traditional way would have been to use "Stabiliser Brackets" which stick out on each side of the clock and put a "prick" in the wall as you tighten up the thumb screws. They are much uglier than your solution and probably nowhere near as effective, or "Bump Resistant"

I am also impressed with your way of doing the bottom pediment. Simple and effective. Did you use commercially available moulding for the concave edge or did you do it yourself with a "cove" router bit? (I had been toying with the idea of bending thin ply around wooden "formers" to get a classic curved pediment shape. Your way is simpler, and goes well with the Biedemeier style.

Regards
Walesey

**dealbata** · 30th April 2013, 11:14 PM

Thanks, Walesey. Yes, I found some pictures of stabiliser brackets on the web and it seemed to me their main purpose was for when the wall behind the clock was not flat and plumb. I could envisage the sharp ends scribing two nice part circles in the gyprock wall as the case swung to the side when I opened the door.

With regard to the scotia moulding on the bottom pediment, it was made by gluing up two pieces of cedar to give the required outer dimensions. I then measured off the distance to the curve from one face according to the scale drawings on the computer, and made a series of saw cuts to these depths on the table saw. Removed the waste between the saw cuts with a gouge chisel and then sanded it down to the curve with 60 grade sandpaper wrapped around a piece of 50mm PVC waste pipe. In doing the mitred corners, I made sure the two halves of each corner came from points immediately adjacent on the length of moulding, so that any inaccuracies along the length of the moulding due to shaping by hand did not show up on a corner.

Regards
Ian

Originally Posted by Walesey

That is a very ingenious system Ian. Very effective and almost invisible!

The traditional way would have been to use "Stabiliser Brackets" which stick out on each side of the clock and put a "prick" in the wall as you tighten up the thumb screws. They are much uglier than your solution and probably nowhere near as effective, or "Bump Resistant"

I am also impressed with your way of doing the bottom pediment. Simple and effective. Did you use commercially available moulding for the concave edge or did you do it yourself with a "cove" router bit? (I had been toying with the idea of bending thin ply around wooden "formers" to get a classic curved pediment shape. Your way is simpler, and goes well with the Biedemeier style.

Regards
Walesey

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