John Trodd, who led the team that restored the historic CP Rail clock to functionality in the early 2000s, told MooseJawToday.com that he will not allow the mechanism to stall for long.
The problem, he said, is a bushing on the north face of the clock where the hour hand rotates around the minute hand. The bushing is allowing dirt in, and the accumulation first slowed, then seized the hands on the north face.
“It took us a few months,” Trodd said of the first restoration nearly 20 years ago. “We had to actually take the whole entire clock right out, and we brought it to a farm and rebuilt it there.”
The work required a crane for the removal and the replacement. At that time, they also took down all the faces. “We looked at them at the time and thought, ‘These should last another 100 years,’” Trodd laughed. “Well, they didn’t.”
But the team is still together and is not giving up. Once someone noticed the north face had stopped, Trodd disconnected it, and already has a plan for bringing it back to life.
The team, consisting of Trodd, Murray Rimmer, and Brandon Cochrane, have also worked on other clocks around the city, such as the one at city hall. They work with city councillor Crystal Froese, who sits on the city’s heritage advisory committee, to make sure each project respects and preserves its individual heritage and history.
Trodd said they never want to just throw things back together however they can. “Whatever we do, it’s got to be done right.”
For that reason, replacing the faulty bushing on the north face is not an option. The operation will need a crane to take the clock face down. Once it’s down, it will be brought to Western Machine and Welding. Their goal will be to re-manufacture the face so that it is more sealed against future dirt.
An intermediate problem, however, is that the face has been glued on — firmly. “I glued the clock face on when I took them down, because I thought ‘I don’t ever want to have to deal with this for the rest of my life,’ right?” Trodd said. Chuckling, he continued, “So now I’ve got to figure out how to bust that glue.”
The plan is to collaborate on that front with Cruisers Auto Body. The problem is not dissimilar to removing a windshield and gluing the replacement in place. This time, Cruisers will supply the glue, and the solvent that removes that glue will be ready – just in case.
In 2018, Trodd, Rimmer, and Cochrane were recognized at the city’s Heritage Awards for their work on the city’s clock towers. With their determination and expertise, the CPR clock tower’s north face will be up and running again in no time at all.
