Before Restoration

The bells were hung from timber headstocks, strapped to them with metal bars and bolts. Some still had canons (metal loops on the top of the bell) but the canons had been (crudely) broken off the older bells. The timber moved and twisted with the weather, and there were a lot of bolts to keep tighten (typically 13 per bell). Some of the headstocks had cracks. The bearing seals had burst (because of the greasers that weren't needed) and grease was leaking from them onto the other fittings. The clappers had worn pits in the bells, and these were approaching the depth where they could increase the risk of cracking. The ropes did not run true, and had worn grooves in the wood at various places where they passed through.