The case will make or break your clock as to the value of it. It might have a perfect movement but if the case is worn the value will be next to nothing. There are still a lot of good old movements out there to be found making it easy to repair the movement. My dad has over 500 old movements in every state of disarray to use as parts or as whole movements. Most every case that has all the wood but a dull finish on it can be brought back to life. As a rule of thumb you want to CLEAN TO THE FINISH, NOT THRU IT. I have come up with a number of ways to clean most all types of clock cases. I don't want to generalize in the care of cases but can offer help on a case by case bases. If a case can be salvaged by a thorough cleaning that is the best thing to do. From what I have heard and learned over the years any product with silicon in it should be avoided. Woodworm are another big problem to clocks. When I lived in the south a lot of old cases had woodworm holes in them. If there is always wood dust in the bottom of the clock or on the shelve its on and you notice small pin holes in it you got a problem. It's easy to solve. Put the case in a plastic bag and spray a good bug spray in the bag, seal it and leave it alone for a few days. It will leave a residue on the case that a good oil rub down will help. Stripping and refinishing a clock case should only be done as a last resort. It will have a great impact on the value of a clock. If you have no intentions of selling the clock and just want to do it so it will look better in your home by all means do it. It's your clock and you should do what ever makes you happy with it. I have seen a lot of them done that look very good and it's hard to tell the difference. And a lot that look like they have come from a high school wood shop. Missing wood or finials are a another big problem with old clocks. There are places that you can get a large selection of finials. But finding the right one will be next to impossible. You can change them in sets and make a big difference in the appearance. You will have to stain them to match the case. Missing corners and trim are another problem. If you are good with a pocketknife you can make a replacement piece. With a little patience you can achieve good results that will be hard to distinguish from the original. So with out getting on your "case" I hope this helps you out. Any questions drop me a line and I'll see what I can do for you. I hate to put this in here but I'm not to be held responsible for any damage to your case that might come from any of the techniques that I have talked about. So always start with an area that can't be seen.