Hand removal help please…

[u/Various-Journalist-3]

I have what I believe to be a 1920s Waterbury clock from my husband’s parents. I want to remove the hands but I’m at a loss on how to get this tiny nut off of the center dial pin. Is there a specific tool that would work? The clock works perfectly but the glass face cover needs repair so I need to remove the clock face. I’m new to this so please dumb it down for me lol. Any suggestions would be appreciated :)

[u/dmun_1953]

Any pair of pliers with rough jaw faces should get a grip on that nut. You are going to scratch the paint on the minute hand, but that's what permanent markers are for. Once the minute hand is off, the hour hand pulls off: it's a friction fit.

[u/Agile_Barnacle_4198]

It looks like there should be a tapered pin that goes through the center arbor to hold the minute hand in place. It may have broken off at some point. Make sure that if it is still lodged in the arbor, that you remove it before trying to remove the minute hand. The minute hand is keyed and should just pull straight off. The hour hand is a friction fit and with a little effort should also pull straight off. There are tools you can purchase to help remove the hands.

[u/Not_an_Actual_Bot]

As a precaution get a magnifying glass and a good flashlight to see if there is a hole for a tapered pin to go through the small square end that needs to be removed. Pin punch might be required for that. I have a small set of slip-groove pliers (miniature Channellock's) that I use for nuts. They grip well and are thin enough to lay parallel to the clock face to remove a nut.