Flat Tone to Chimes

Hi, and thanks in advance for your assistance. I have an Enfield striking mantel clock. The clock chimes half and on the hour. The tone however is very flat/off key. Does this mean that the coiled wire which is struck to make the tone/chime needs replacing?

Regards
Corinne

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Flat chimes
by: Anonymous

Problem solved.Many thanks

Flat sounding chimes
by: Bill

If there is a crack in the wire gong, it will need to be replaced. However, this is rarely the case. Most times it is caused by one of the following things:

The hammer is adjusted too close to the gong. Just bend the hammer up slightly so that it does not actually rest on the gong when it is not chiming. If you bend it up too high, it will not reach the gong when the clock chimes so you have to find a happy medium. You will be able to tell the difference as you bend it.

Also, if the nut holding the gong (on the bottom of the case) is loose the chime will sound bad. Just make sure the nut is very tight.

Sometimes, the nut may be tight, but the entire bottom of the case is loose. Especially on old american clocks where the bottoms are just nailed to the rest of the case. This bottom has to be tight to the rest of the case for the gong to resonate properly.

Try these common fixes first before resorting to a new gong.

Thanks for your question, Bill

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