M. Todd Converse's Blog

Hello all!

This is the first in what I hope will be a long series of blogs. I hope to give you all an idea of what happens behind the scenes of the antique business. There are many different things that go on in our store so that we can bring you high quality antiques and art, most of which can be viewed on our website: www.converseclocks.com.

I spend most of my time restoring antique clocks, either for customers or for our store's own inventory. A few weeks ago I was very excited when my father purchased a very fine French Empire mantle clock with figural castings. The clock's surface has a gold/mercury fire gilt finish, which over the past 200 years had accumulated quite a bit of dirt and grime, hiding the clock's beauty. The mechanism had been neglected and had a thick layer of dust on it
(I wish I had taken a picture of it!), forcing me to wonder how long it had been since the clock had run. The minute hand had been broken off and the hour hand had been broken.

I have worked on several clocks like this in the past but have not had the foresight to take before and after pictures.

Anyways, pictures speak louder than words so here is what it looked like:

I cleaned and overhauled the mechanism of the the clock, which included
replacing the hands, and I cleaned the clock's case so that it would look as the
clock's creator had intended. The work involved in that is very substantial.

First off I had to disassemble the clock, case and all, in order to clean it.
These clock's mechanisms are very intricate and contains over 45 small parts,
not including screws and the pins that hold it together. Each part had to be
hand cleaned. I had to do the same to the case. I remind you all that I am a
trained professional and that you ought not attempt this with the fine antiques
you have at home. Next I had to replace the clock's hands. Finally, I put it all
together, oiled and test ran it.

This is what it finally looked like: