Antique and old wooden clock cases are not usually protected by a modern surface finish which one treats with a commercial furniture polish.
For old clock casings you could use a high-quality teak oil or other penetrating furniture oils which bring life back to neglected wood.
I came across an old recipe as a reviver of wood finishes and have used if for years. Clocks accumulate often a lot of dirt especially as it settles on the top surfaces and corners. To many people associate antique furniture with dirt and grime and think it is an integral part of the finish. Some advocate vinegar and warm water for cleaning, or worse, caustic soda, but water should not be used on any furniture. It is rare that a clock case is in such a bad condition that it would have to be stripped to the bare wood.
Here the recipe:
Take 50 parts of raw linseed oil, 48 parts of vinegar and 2 parts methylated spirits.
Put the linseed oil into a small bottle, filling only a quarter of it. Add the methylated spirit and shake well. Add the vinegar a little at a time and shake well before adding more. This should form an emulsion with the consistency of cream and the colour of mayonnaise - so label the bottle clearly.
This makes an excellent polish restorer, which will clean off old wax and surface dirt, leaving a bit of a shine. After that, the above-mentioned oils can be applied.
Brass fittings and ornamentations, if not lacquer protected, could be cleaned carefully with a metal polishing paste. Use it very sparingly so that no deposits collect between brass and wood. The cleaning also should not be overdone, so as to keep the original looks. If I restore a case thoroughly, I will remove the brass fittings – often fixed with pins, sometimes with screws. This lets me work on the whole wooden surface and I can clean the brass parts properly as well, leaving no residues and ‘dirty’ corners.
In the course of my work, I usually clean the empty casing, the movement is still awaiting repairs or is on test. If you clean a mantel clock case, make certain that the pendulum is removed or blocked from moving, unless the clock has a balance escapement. A wall clocks you can clean in it’s position, but do stop the pendulum and make sure you mark the position on the wall with a vertical pencil line somewhere next to the case. You will then have no problem with re-aligning and the beat (an even tick-tock is very important to all pendulum clocks). The same goes for a Long Case Clock, so-called Grandfather clock.
I have started this monthly ‘help-clinic’ in order to foster some understanding amongst owners of clocks and to help with the preservation of valuable time pieces. Any advice or queries from clock owners is welcome, I will deal with this in general, slanting my next article towards the questions I receive.
