Rack hook doesn’t lift enough: only one hour chime

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  • May 5, 2026 at 3:39 pm #73666
    Geneviève
    Participant

      Hello! I have a grandfather clock which is working well, except that the hour chime only ever chimes *once* (rather than the number that corresponds to the current hour). I can trigger the correct chime function manually, but need help to get it to work automatically please.

      I’ve taken the front off the clock and had a look (following many, many videos), and it appears that the rack hook isn’t lifting up high enough to clear any teeth on the rake (see 1st photo). That’s when & why it only chimes once.

      See 2nd photo: If I gently tap the upper right end of the rack (ie. to lift the rack hook manually), then the hook lifts sufficiently to allow the rake to drop. The rake drops to the correct point (ie. the stem of the rake is correctly positioned on the snail), the rack hook drops into the correct tooth on the rake, and the clock strikes the correct number of chimes.

      In case it’s relevant, I noticed that the pin on the warning wheel (situated behind the rack) sits at 3 o’clock (if viewed from the front) when the rake & rack are at rest. Is it supposed to be at 12 o’clock at rest? The pin on the winding “kidney bean” (sorry for my improvised terminology! I mean the small part which rotates and advances the rake) is in the 12 o’clock position when it’s at rest.

      Is anyone able to help me please, to know what I should do to get the rack hook to lift up high & long enough for the rake to drop? I checked the star wheel in behind too – the post controlling the chime hammer appears to be positioned correctly in between two points of the star. Any advice please? Thank you!

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      May 6, 2026 at 5:42 am #73667
      MikeJohannesen
      Participant

        Hi Genevieve

        Sounds like something is worn in the lifting assembly. You have already proven that the strike gears work ( clock goes into warn when triggered, and the hammers cycle properly) so that is downstream from the problem. Something is wrong in the lifting portion of this assembly. Could be a bent lever? Not likely. The levers on a Kieninger are pretty thick and are probably fine. The most likely area would be something that wears or rubs during normal operation. The only part I can think of would be the point on the hour shaft that causes the lifting lever ( T shaped thick lever) to push up on the longer lifting lever, or the T shaped lever itself is worn. This is what I would do to further diagnose what’s going on.

        Remove the weights (if the movement is still in the clock)

        Remove the e-rings from the rack and the minute gear. Be careful don’t lose them! And remove the rack and the snail gear assy from the clock. This will expose the points and the lifting (T shaped) lever.

        Put the minute hand on the hour shaft and manually move it so it triggers the high point (hour point) on the lifting lever. See if it is binding anywhere during the lifting process or if it is just not lifting high enough to have the lock release the rack. Look closely at the long point and the lifting lever for wear.  If I remember right, the lifting lever lifts two times higher (give or take) on the hour point then on the quarter points. You should see a definite difference in the lifting height.

        If this part of the assembly is lifting pretty high, look at where the long lifting lever pushes up on the rack lock lever. It could also be worn or bent.

        The problem lies between the rack lock lever and the hour shaft trigger points. Keep cycling it over and over until you figure it out.  Once you find the defect, post it and let me know what you found.

        Good luck and happy hunting

        Mike

         

        May 15, 2026 at 4:37 pm #73717
        Geneviève
        Participant

          Hello! Thank you for your suggestions.

          I removed the snail gear to reveal the star-shaped gear in behind, which rotates the T to lift the lifting lever. I cannot see any wear or bent/damaged elements.

          I think I’ve isolated the problem, but don’t know how to fix it.

          My observations/understanding of the mechanism is as follows: When the T is rotated by the hour gear, its right side raises a lower lifting lever, which in turn pushes up on the upper lifting lever. That upper lifting lever must go high enough to trip the rack, by pushing up against a notch on the rack.

          Currently, if I lift the *lower* lifting lever manually, as far as it will go, it does not raise the *upper* lifting lever high enough to come in contact with (& trip) the rack. I can, however, trip the rack by manually lifting the *upper* lifting lever.

          It appears that the upper lifting lever has enough range of motion, but the lower one does not. The lower lever cannot go any higher because it bumps up against a pin.

          Note that if I position the rack so that its hook is ON the rake’s teeth (instead of being off the extreme left end of it), then the T rotation lifts the levers high enough to trip the rack correctly and it chimes as expected.

          Does any of this make sense to you, and do you know what I should try next? I did take a short video of this to demonstrate, and can send a link to it if that’s helpful. Thank you!!

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          May 16, 2026 at 5:32 am #73719
          MikeJohannesen
          Participant

            Hi Genevieve,

            OK so if the assembly works correctly when the rack stop lever is on the teeth instead of its lock position, then the levers are working properly. It sounds like the stop lever is encountering too much friction when trying to move off of its lock position. Check the lock (left) side of the rack and also the part of the lever that contacts it for wear. Could be that the lock lever has a groove worn in it that is creating too much friction to allow the levers to lift it past the first tooth. If everything looks good maybe the video would help me see exactly where it is binding. Check this first and we’ll go from there.

            Thanks Mike

             

            May 16, 2026 at 6:40 am #73720
            MikeJohannesen
            Participant

              When I troubleshoot something, it is easy for me to determine what is NOT causing the defect. Therefore, what ever is left, must be causing the defect.

              You have determined that the T lever and points on the hour shaft are lifting and are NOT the problem. Also when the lock lever is off of the lock position, the lower levers lift is high enough to correctly operate the rack and strike. So the lower levers are also NOT part of the problem. This leaves the actual rack and stop lever left in the train. There is too much friction in this part of the train to operate correctly.

              Try using like a toothpick or small screwdriver to gently lift the stop lever. There should be very little resistance to your lift. You could also check to see if the spring that holds down the lock lever is possibly binding. Try unlatching one side of the spring and try lifting the lock again with a toothpick. How does that work? Could also be the shaft the lock lever is on, needs a little lubrication creating too much friction. The lock lever also rides on the gathering pallet cog (kidney shaped ). Is there a burr on the wheel?

              The defect is right in that area. If you can determine what is NOT causing the problem, you will find what IS.

              Good luck

              Mike

               

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