To Oil A Clock

    It is always best to remove the clock movement from the case (or remove the dial of a grandfather clock). The front plate of the movement is behind the dial and cannot be properly oiled without removal.

    Apply oil to each intersection of gear and plate. There is a small recess (called an oil sink) on the outside of the plate to hold the oil in place by capillary action. Carefully fill the oil sink with oil. Do not over oil or it might drip away.

    I usually start at the bottom .  Look at the largest gear and see where it runs in the plate. Oil that intersection on the outside of the plate. Figure out which gear is turned by that first gear and oil it. Do the next, and like-wise for all the gears. There are five or six gears in each "train" of gears; two ends to each gear; or about ten places to oil it if your clock only tells time. If it also counts the hours you have about twenty places. If your clock tells the quarter hour as well (a chiming clock- you've got a nice one!) it wants oil in thirty or more places.

    Put a small amount of oil on the escape wheel teeth. The escape wheel is the last gear in the time train. It is the only gear with pointed teeth, and is the source of your friendly "tick-tock". Oil no other gear teeth!

     I can send you 20CC of clock oil in a syringe (that's enough for 20-30 clocks) for $10.