Reply To: Use Of Lead/Tin Solder For Fix

[Bob Tascione]

Hi Marc,
Wow good price on that one!

You wrote

One of the gears in the chime train had some solder used to fix the area where the brass and pivot meet

but i’m assuming you meant where the brass and pinion meet. If not please let me know.

There are differing points of view when it comes to the acceptance of using solder in clock repair. My feeling in many cases is if soldering helps improve strength where needed, it’s use is kept visually discrete and the solder can be removed if necessary to bring things back to their original state, then go for it. In the case of your wheel and arbor the solder was most likely added for a good reason so completely removing the solder may leave you with the same problem (maybe a loose fit) the smith that did the soldering faced in the first place. If it’s working well and just looks bad then it may be possible to clean the soldering job up enough so that it’s aesthetically acceptable and keep things the way they are. The fit is most likely very solid and strong.

Of course if you would like to keep things as original as possible and can locate a replacement wheel then that would be your best option.

Enjoy!
Bob