Case Study – St Thomas’ Church, Heighington, Lincolnshire

19/11/2015

The clock mechanism at St Thomas’ Church, Heighington, is a flatbed hour strike with a pinwheel escapement. It was manufactured in 1924 by J Smith & Sons. The movement drives one, approximately 3ft diameter raised figure cast iron dial. The clock mechanism, like many others across the country, is classified as a war memorial and is looked after by Heighington Parish Council.

When we originally inspected the clock the escapement was slightly out of beat and in need of a clean. The dial was also a little worse for wear. At this stage the clock mechanism was hand wound. We were then tasked with thoroughly cleaning and lubricating the mechanism, installing electric automatic winding, automatic regulation and restoring the dial.

Clock Cleaning

After Cleaning

Before Cleaning

Dial Restoration

Dial restoration before (left and after (right)

Automatic Winding & Automatic Regulation

St Thomas’ Church need no longer worry about winding or regulating the clock. Automatic Winding keeps the clock constantly working and automatic regulation makes sure the clock is on time and also adjusts for the GMT & BST changes in March and October. For further peace of mind, the equipment comes with a Ten Year Manufacturer’s Guarantee.

Automatic Regulation adjusts the pendulum to make sure the clock keeps good time.