Author(s)

J.L. Lund, A.R. Selby & J.M. Wilson

Abstract

Full-circle bell ringing in the English system imposes large dynamic forces on to the bell tower, causing it to sway. A major survey of the dynamic behaviour of old masonry bell towers in the Northeast of England has been undertaken, which included two cathedrals and seventeen churches. In each tower, the heaviest bell was tolled, and accelerometers positioned around the tower were used to record both horizontal and vertical motions. Critical analysis of the form of the modes of deformation identified three components of sway: rocking, shearing and bending. Introduction In the English system, bells are rung by swinging them from mouth-up position through some 360<>, from 'up at handstroke' to 'up at backstroke' and back again. The clapper, which rotates faster than the bell, strikes the bell rim as the bell slows towards the end of the rotation, Wilso

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