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Cheers! It's a while since I have been here, but now I'm back. Currently working on a Certina 25-652, that have not power enough to drag the day and date wheel. The amplitude is 220, and it's keeps time pretty good, I have also adjusted the Canon pinion, so it is firmly hard to wind. Pls help to point out the direction to an solution. Thanks Armand

Working on a nice little Certina with square shape, and wounder where to get a new glass?? Somebody that have some leads??

Its been tough finding good watches at the right prices on ebay the last few years with even crap watches asking silly money. The shipping costs have also escalated sharply, I particularly dislike the added customs charge fee. I have never been charged anything for used watches I have received thru the post and would definitely prefer paying if and when I am charged. Anyway, if you are careful and know what you're bidding for there are some bargains to be had. I recently bought this Certina Bristol for not much money and I would like to share some hints about what to look for. This is a 25-66 movement and it built inhouse by Certina and while they are not really cheap when fully working, I believe they are undervalued and are really good value for money, This is the sellers picture about the watch, a bit of patina and the seconds hand is missing. While the seconds hand alone is not a problem, you need to ask yourself why was it not replaced as someone obviously had the back off to get the seconds hand out? One possibility is the tip of the seconds hand may have broken off. While parts for Certina are available this will add unnecessary problems. Looking at the photo again I can see the remnants of the centre-pinion (whitish dot in the middle). Another pic from the seller. My guess is that the pinion is good. Moving on to the backside of the watch. Not much to see here except that the previous watch maker was a bit clumsy opening the caseback. It still has its original crown which is always nice to see! The movement looks pretty clean, sometimes the damage patina on the dial can indicate water damage but since the stem is pretty rust free I would say its just the lacquer breaking down. Nice regulator, sign of a quality watch! I bought the watch about a month back, it has arrived at my friends shop .. I need to collect it. Finally the description. The most important is that balance wheel is good. This does not mean there isn't a problem elsewhere.. It could be a broken mainspring or messed up hairspring. Straightforward and to the point. No mention of being rare or collectible , just needs servicing yadda yadda.. Finally check the seller, In this case its YDL Worldstore.. all good! So I made a bid and won it for USD31+USD15 shipping.. Total USD46. What I get will be an interesting watch with a good quality movement that hopefully a COA will bring back to life. I should have a seconds needle in my box of parts but I might need to change the seconds pinion, we'll see about that. Of course there may be other problems like broken train pivots, cracked jewels etc but that's part of the gamble! I will probably get the watch back this weekend and will post further here. Stay tuned. Anilv

Cheers Mates!!! During the weekend I was mounting a Certina DS-2 with cal. 25-651. To fit the hands, I had to refit them 3 times. Because I was satisfied with the level of them. But after the 3 time, I notised that there was something wrong. So I had to take out the hands again. And when I tried to set the hands with crown, it was just like when the canon pinion does not fit properly. So I took of the dial and the calender bridge, and saw that the hour wheel had come up abow the the other wheel that should intervene with the hour wheel. So to my question: How can it be so mutch space between the dial and the chims ontop of the hour wheel that can let the hour wheel to got out of grip? Is there anything I shall do in this matter for the future, ot be be ware of preventing this to happen?

Cheers Mates! Have just put together an Certina DS-2 cal. 25-651 and the second hand work, but the minute and hour hands dont move. I can set the hands with the crown, the movment can be winded. But the hands dont move. I have striped it once again, but I cant see any wrong with the movment. Any suggestions?? Thanks a lot as always...... :-)))))

Can anyone help? I have a NOS Certina C017.407A watch case and I need a 35mm DS Caimano dial but I have had no luck in finding where I can buy one. I have tried Cousins in the UK. Can anyone point me in the right direction? Ideally need a new or NOS dial or good second hand one. Movement wise the case will take Eta 2824 (2824-2/A2 etc.) & Sellita SW200-1 Thanks in advance for any help. Ian.

I've been poking around with a Certina cal. 25-651 for some time now. When putting the last piece together, the date wheel mechanism, I realized the date disc was not moving no matter how many times the hour hand went around. I started looking into the problem and soon realized the date wheel, 2556 had a broken spring. The "hook" on the spring was missing. Googling the problem revealed two things: a.) the spring is fragile and my problem is a common one with this calibre b.) The replacement part is hard to come by and expensive when found. I've been buying scrappers on eBay before to get around this issue but taking the watchmaking craftsmanship to the next step for me would be to start manufacturing my own replacement parts. I like the idea of this since I think it's the only viable way for watchmakers working with vintage watches when more and more replacement parts, no longer in production, are sold out. I've managed to take the wheel apart using the staking set. Next thing would be to create this tiny spring. Where should I start. I have parts of it left (as seen below) and I think I can find pictures of it online, good enough to understand how it should be shaped. I need to measure the dimensions of the material used in the original spring. Not sure it's necessary to get it correct on a micrometer level but it must be pretty much the same to fit in the frame on the wheel. Some questions .. 1. Where can I get hold of material used for the new spring. I'm a regular customer at CousinsUK so i prefer to buy from there if possible. Other sellers with inside of the European union will do :). 2. What tools are preferred when shaping the spring? Tweezers and pliers? Something more delicate? Thanks! /Alex

This morning I could pick my latest goody for my collection. A Certina Club 2000 from around 1968 in absolutely amazing unworn conditions. I don't dare to wear it! I haven't checked yet but it is supposed to have a Certina 25-661 manual winding movement and of course it is a "Pre Hayek" Certina.