Exit Pallett contact with Escapement teeth

[bltofan1]

Relatively new to Horology with a couple clocks under my belt. Recent challenge is the Exit Pallett is periodically hitting on the Escapement wheel teeth stopping the clock. I haven’t torn it apart yet as I am trying to assess the problem. If I move the pendulum back and forth manually this happens and/or the escapement wheel stays in the same spot. If I take the pendulum off and let it run for a couple seconds, the escapement and exit pallet seem to work fine. I’m perplexed.

Thanks.

[stevefitzwater]

well first is it always catching the teeth on the same side? as in the clock is out of beat, thus not clearing the teeth?

Also you could have some damaged teeth, with a majority of them rounded over, but the one that is not is catching, because the clock is out of beat… so many variables.. I would manually move the pendulum through it’s normal arc and watch to see if the pallets are clearing close to the same point, or if one is clearing earlier, and then adjust the crutch to re-center the pendulums arc (getting it back into beat).

I am just guessing based on your description, with no pictures and not being able to see the movement, it is a shot in the dark.

[bernie weishapl]

First thing I do is to check the clock for possible problems then I dismantle the clock, check pivots, and the teeth on each wheel especially the escape wheel. You did say the clock had not been cleaned. A dirty clock can cause that problem because of lack of power getting to the EW. It can cause the wheel to turn slow or even stop at different points. Once I have the clock totally disassembled, pivots polished, cleaned, pivot holes pegged out, and mainsprings cleaned/oiled I assemble just the time side but do not oil pivots yet and check to see if bushing are needed and see how the escapement works. It could be that the verge depth is to shallow and needs some adjustment, a escape wheel tooth bent, a bushing needed on the escape wheel, etc but all that is speculation until the clock has been properly cleaned. If it is a time and strike I then assemble the strike side, check if bushings are needed and see how it preforms. If it is a 3 train I will assemble the chime side and check. One thing I have found after over 30 yrs of doing clocks is you can see what the clock is doing then after cleaning you can see if the problem persists. Like Steve said without pictures it is hard to see and is just a guess. A couple of weeks ago I had a problem of one side of the verge would hit the top of a tooth or two on the escape wheel. I had to install bushings on the front and back side of the escape wheel because of wear. Once that was done it worked properly and has been running ever since.

[bltofan1]

Steve/Bernie-
Thanks for your insights and suggestions. Given the clock needs to be cleaned and potentially more (inherited from family member), that seems like the logical next step. Once back together, trouble shooting should be clearer.

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