How to Restore Cuckoo Clocks

Clock Runs Fast or Slow

• 1

  Locate the pendulum that hangs beneath the clock and the movable weight that is located on the pendulum.

• 2

  Slide the weight up slightly to make the clock run faster.

• 3

  Move the weight down slightly to make the clock run slower.

Cuckoo Calls Wrong Time

• 4

  Loosen the nut that secures the minute and hour hands.

• 5

  Move the hour and minute hands clockwise to the point where the cuckoo calls.

• 6

  Tighten the nut and then move the hands clockwise to the correct time.

Clock Is Not Running

• 7

  Check to see that the weights are up.

• 8

  Listen for an even tick-tock sound. If the sound is uneven, the clock's balance needs to be adjusted.

• 9

  Adjust the balance of the clock by moving it slightly to the left, as you would straighten a picture on the wall.

• 10

  Move the clock to the right if moving to the left did not help.

• 11

  Check to see if the pendulum is catching on anything; if so, adjust as needed.

Replace Bellows to Restore Cuckoo Sound

• 12

  Open the back of the clock and find the two bellows, one on either side of the cuckoo clock.

• 13

  Remove the lifting wires that connect to the bellows by loosening the pins that are holding them. Use a small screwdriver to do this.

• 14

  Place the lifting wires carefully on a work surface and arrange them as they were situated in the clock. You want to put them back in that same order.

• 15

  Remove the bellows from the clock. Snap the top of the bellows off and remove any bits of glue.

• 16

  Take the pins from the old bellows tops and put them in the same position on the new bellows tops; then use glue to attach the new bellows tops to the bellows bottoms.

• 17

  Put the wires from the used bellows tops on the new bellows tops, and put the bellows back in the clock the same way you removed them.