How to Move a Grandfather Clock

Here you will find instructions on how to prepare for moving and move a grandfather clock from one home to another.

Find a full selection of Grandfather Clocks here.

 

How to Prepare a Cable-Driven Grandfather Clock for Moving

1. Stop the pendulum from swinging.
2. Secure the cables. If you have saved Styrofoam blocks from the original packaging, you need to insert them between the cables above the pulley. If you did not save Styrofoam material, you can take an old newspaper, roll it up and insert that above the pulley between the cable. This procedure prevents the cable from tangling when the weights are removed. You need to keep tension on the cables.
3. Raise the weights all the way up. While the weights are still on, crank up them all the way to the top. 
4. Remove the weights. Once you have all three weights secured into position, go ahead and remove those weights. Use soft cloth to remove the weights, make sure the weights are securely fastened on the top. Also check the bottom of the weights, it should be marked with its location where it is found on the grandfather clock. If it is not marked, make a little label and attach with a piece of tape. Once all three weights are removed and marked, put them aside in a safe location. This step is important because each weight should be later reinstalled in the correct position.
5. Remove the left side access panel. From the left side of the clock, you need to remove the side access panel to gain access to the pendulum and the pendulum guide. Place a side access panel to a secure location. 
6. Remove the pendulum. Reach inside of the side access and grasp the pendulum guide. Once you have a hand on the pendulum guide, you need to reach through the front inside of the grandfather clock, grasp the pendulum and raise it slightly to unhook it from the pendulum guide, place the pendulum off into a secure location. 
7. Secure the pendulum guide. The pendulum guide needs to be so that it may not move around while moving and it should never be under a lot of tension in any direction. You may take one or two full width pages of newspaper and gather the loose paper around the pendulum guide. Use just enough so it remains loose, but unable to freely move around.
8. Secure the pendulum leader.  Place loose newspaper around the back of the movement where you took off the pendulum. You want the pendulum leader where you hang your pendulum unable to move around freely.
9. Secure the chime rods. Depending on the type of grandfather clock you have, there can be four chime rods on one side and four or eight on the other side. What you need to do is to take a piece of cardboard that is approximately 1 inch by 3 inch and make 4 holes in a straight line 0.25 inch apart. Once you have done that, push the rods through those holes that you have just made into the cardboard and move the cardboard all the way up behind the movement. The reason why it is important is because the chime rods will be moving around if you do not secure them and while shipping your grandfather clock the chime rods can break off.
10. Remove the right side access panel. Place it off into a safe location with the other side access panel that you removed earlier. 
11. Lock the grandfather clock. Put the key and the crane also in a safe location so they do not get lost. 
12. Protect the exterior. You need to wrap the clock in order to protect the furniture. A queen size comforter should completely surround the clock. If you do not have a comforter, try to wrap the grandfather clock in any large blanket. Put the blanket around the clock and tape the blanket closed. Use the tape twice near the top of the clock all the way around, once near the middle and one near the base.

Read more about Cable-Driven Grandfather Clocks here.

 

How to Prepare a Chain-Driven Grandfather Clock for Moving

1. Stop the pendulum from swinging.
2. Raise the weights to half way.For a chain-driven grandfather clock, you need to make sure that the weights are about half way up (they should not be all the way up).
3. Remove the weights. Following the similar procedure to the cable-driven grandfather clock, take a soft cloth, remove the weight, make sure it is securely fastened and check the bottom of weights if it is marked with its position. If it is not marked, make a little label and attach with a piece of tape. Remove all the three weights and place them in a secure and safe location. 
4. Secure the chains. Without pulling the chain down any further, take a twist tie and put it through the links on both sides of the chain just where the chains protrude below the movement and tie it together. You need to do one chain at a time. The reason for doing this is to make sure that the chains stay secure to the sprocket while you are shipping the grandfather clock from one home to the next one. Bunch the chains from bottom to top and wrap them in newspaper and place a rubber band around the package so that they do not move around and possibly damage the finish. Package up the weights carefully as not to dent the brass casings.
5. Remove the left side access panel. From the left side of the clock, you need to remove the side access panel to gain access to the pendulum and the pendulum guide. Place a side access panel to a secure location. 
6. Remove the pendulum. Reach inside of the side access and grasp the pendulum guide. Once you have a hand on the pendulum guide, you need to reach through the front inside of the grandfather clock, grasp the pendulum and raise it slightly to unhook it from the pendulum guide, place the pendulum off into a secure location. 
7. Secure the pendulum guide. The pendulum guide needs to be so that it may not move around while moving and it should never be under a lot of tension in any direction. You may take one or two full width pages of newspaper and gather the loose paper around the pendulum guide. Use just enough so it remains loose, but unable to freely move around.
8. Secure the pendulum leader.  Place loose newspaper around the back of the movement where you took off the pendulum. You want the pendulum leader where you hang your pendulum unable to move around freely.
9. Secure the chime rods. Depending on the type of grandfather clock you have, there can be four chime rods on one side and four or eight on the other side. What you need to do is to take a piece of cardboard that is approximately 1 inch by 3 inch and make 4 holes in a straight line 0.25 inch apart. Once you have done that, push the rods through those holes that you have just made into the cardboard and move the cardboard all the way up behind the movement. The reason why it is important is because the chime rods will be moving around if you do not secure them and while shipping your grandfather clock the chime rods can break off.
10. Remove the right side access panel. Place it off into a safe location with the other side access panel that you removed earlier. 
11. Lock the grandfather clock. Put the key and the crane also in a safe location so they do not get lost. 
12. Protect the exterior. You need to wrap the clock in order to protect the furniture. A queen size comforter should completely surround the clock. If you do not have a comforter, try to wrap the grandfather clock in any large blanket. Put the blanket around the clock and tape the blanket closed. Use the tape twice near the top of the clock all the way around, once near the middle and one near the base.

Read more about Chain-Driven Grandfather Clocks here.

 

How to Move a Grandfather Clock

Now your grandfather clock can be carefully moved to its new home. If thegrandfather clock of a newer model, you should move it on its back but only if you have followed the instructions above precisely.Grandfather clocks of older production should be moved only in an upright position because of the weight of the movement and the way the movement may be fastened to the case.

 

 

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