The characteristic tick-tock sound of a clock comes from a part called the pallet, which rocks back and forth interrupting the movement of the wheels in the clock. If it’s removed, the clock runs as fast as the weights or springs can go, but the help of the pallet, the pendulum keeps it in check and runs your clock at a specific speed, notching away the seconds as it swings first left, then right.
When a clock runs, you should hear an evenly spaced sequence of ticks and tocks coming from the pallet.
TICK………..TOCK………..TICK………..TOCK………..TICK………..TOCK
The gap between each tick and tock should be identical all the time. When this is the case, the clock is “in beat”.
Commonly, clocks might sound instead like this:
TICK……………………………TOCK………..TICK……………………………TOCK………..TICK………………….
The rhythm is ‘cantering’, and the clock is out of beat. This can cause the clock to stop, and it also sounds distracting even if the clock is still working.
Adjusting the beat by levelling
To put this right, the clock needs to be level. This is generally all it takes.
Try putting a coin under the feet on one side of your mantel clock, and see if this sorts it out. Usually, it will. However, there are cases where levelling the clock does not work (or the only position where it works is obviously not level and looks wrong). In those cases, there are other adjustments that can be made to the movement to help, but they do need a little more care as they can involve moving a friction fitting near the pallet, or even bending the crutch.
On older longcase clocks, the beat is adjusted by manipulating the crutch (which connects to the pendulum near the top). This is not normally an adjustment you should attempt unless you are sure you know what you’re doing as these old parts may break in the wrong hands.
Safety warning
On a longcase clock, levelling can be risky! You should remove the weights and pendulum from the clock and get some help first, as a grandfather clock is very top heavy. The movement can be damaged if the pendulum bangs around, or the clock may cause you (and the clock) an injury if it falls over. You’ll need to be patient and try to avoid big movements.