" BELL FRAMES: Church bells are often not seen by their listeners, but at least they are heard. Bell frames are very much ‘out of sight, out of mind’ and belfries are visited by very few, often not even by the incumbents and churchwardens who have the primary responsibility for their care. Nevertheless, they often reveal the craft, ingenuity and sheer determination of their makers and lead us to marvel at the achievements of our forebears, given the crude tools (by today’s standards) available to them. "

" Old timber frames can create difficulties for change-ringers and, in severe cases, cause damage to tower masonry. If the joints between sections have loosened, then the frame will distort during full-circle ringing. This acts to dissipate some of the energy expended by the ringers, who must work harder as a consequence. It is not unknown for the heavier bells in a ring to cause sudden ‘shifting’ of elements of the frame. Such movement is, typically, measured in only small fractions of an inch but may be sufficient to disturb the swinging of the lighter bells. Ringers strive to exert precise control in order to produce regular striking, but a ‘mobile’ frame can make this very difficult to achieve. In the most severe cases, and where the perimeter of a frame lies close to the tower walls, movement of a frame can effectively turn it into a ‘battering ram’ with consequent damage to masonry. "

" Bell installations often illustrate the ‘cutting edge’ technology of their day and very old bell frames, together with those having interesting or unique features, are well-deserving of conservation. This is sometimes seen as ‘inconvenient’ by enthusiastic ringers who lament their structural under-performance by comparison with modern frames. Nevertheless, where it is judged that timber frames of historic interest are no longer ‘fit for purpose’ and cannot be adequately strengthened by the addition of steelwork, they may have to be retained in the tower and space found for the insertion of a new steel frame. "

" An Ellacombe chime system operates with bells hung stationary and with a hammer beneath each bell that rises and strikes on tugging a rope ([originally]Fig. 6). Unlike full-circle ringing, where the diameter of the bell wheel produces a large excursion of the rope, the movement here is minimal. Ellacombe ropes can be routed to descend to a compact rack where they are within easy reach of one individual. It is not unusual to find Ellacombe racks in towers with bells hung for full-circle ringing, thus offering the option of either technique. It is this author’s experience that these are very little used. "