Best method to remove the glass cover on a vintage ad clock?
September 25, 2008 11:18 AM Subscribe
Help clean my clock! I need suggestions on how to safely remove the convex glass on a vintage ad clock in order to clean the inside and get the bugs and dirt out, then reassemble it.
I'm intrepid about taking things apart and am careful and deliberate, but this one has me completely vexed. The glass is held in place by a unibody housing (closeup photo can be downloaded here) made of metal (aluminum, most likely) and there are no obvious ways (like screws or clips) to take this apart. It's an old advertising clock, so perhaps it wasn't manufactured with taking apart in mind. My thought is that the aluminum housing was simply bent/formed into place around the face and clock motor when it was originally placed inside the housing after the clock mechanism was connected to the face (in fact, the back of the face is connected by metal spring clips that are held in place by small rivets).
Are there tools available to safely bend the lip, allowing me to then freely remove the glass, and then safely bend it back so that it isn't obvious that it was essentially pried up?
I would rather do this myself, as I don't want the expense of taking it to someone only for the purpose of cleaning the glass and cleaning out dead bugs, plus I don't want to risk getting 'the run around' or hassled by a shopowner or clerk about doing this.
I'm intrepid about taking things apart and am careful and deliberate, but this one has me completely vexed. The glass is held in place by a unibody housing (closeup photo can be downloaded here) made of metal (aluminum, most likely) and there are no obvious ways (like screws or clips) to take this apart. It's an old advertising clock, so perhaps it wasn't manufactured with taking apart in mind. My thought is that the aluminum housing was simply bent/formed into place around the face and clock motor when it was originally placed inside the housing after the clock mechanism was connected to the face (in fact, the back of the face is connected by metal spring clips that are held in place by small rivets).
Are there tools available to safely bend the lip, allowing me to then freely remove the glass, and then safely bend it back so that it isn't obvious that it was essentially pried up?
I would rather do this myself, as I don't want the expense of taking it to someone only for the purpose of cleaning the glass and cleaning out dead bugs, plus I don't want to risk getting 'the run around' or hassled by a shopowner or clerk about doing this.
« Older My maid-of-honor invited her parents without my... | Passport needed for travel to Puerto Rico from the... Newer »
This thread is closed to new comments.