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Why is it when that little voice says, "This is a bad idea," we always want to talk ourselves out of it? I had the low blood sugar jitters earlier, but insisted to myself that I'd be able to oil an especially tiny cap jewel on my friend's Omega 1001. With lots of concentration, I nailed it. But when I put the hole jewel on top, it was too much oil and it squoze out everywhere. It didn't spread on the cap jewel much thanks to the epliame I'd applied, so it was more than it looked like from the top. Back in the cleaner, dried, re-epilamed, dried. Time for a second try, but now I was more shaky even than the first time. "This is a bad idea," my brain told me. "Take a hike, brain," I said as I watched the oiler jiggle into my microscope's frame. And just like that, the jewel was a tiddlywink and flew out of sight in the blink of an eye. With a strong UV flashlight and the waste of a lot of time I did find it on my desk, but that's some stress I didn't need in my day. So friends, listen to your body, and listen to your brain when it tells you now's not the time for precision work.

I've never touched my life without alcohol . I'm your complete opposite Ross

Never touched alcohol in my life. I don't need alcohol to be stupid. Just comes naturally.

Totally agree Mike, I'm having fermented plant extract right now.

I propose something that all right minded people can agree on Rich: that barley, hops and yeast, are natural, safe, and indeed essential to life and well being. Cheers mate

Thinking of natural substance isn't anthrax natural? Okay true it's been enhanced by people for chemical warfare but at its base is a natural product? One of the problems with natural is that perception is it's harmless. In other words if it wasn't harmless you have to go to a doctor get a prescription it come with cautions warnings and typically natural does not. So the perception would be natural can be harmless where unfortunately that is wishful thinking. Often times dosage strength of natural can vary. We really should break this discussion up in the three categories? Categories like stuff from pharmaceutical companies. Natural products that people take as a substitute or replacement for a pharmaceutical product. Then the natural feel-good products that are probably for the most part harmless.

My 2p worth. Thyme tea may be wonderful stuff. I'm a scientist at heart. I believe in the "Scientific method". I worry that people fall for the "Naturalistic fallacy" - just because something is "natural" they think it is better than something "processed". Nature is not cuddly and friendly. It is out to kill and consume you. I don't understand people who prefer a "raw" product, just because it is "natural". It may contain any amount of active/dangerous chemicals, possible poisons, carcinogens (as seen is some Chinese medicines) etc. I prefer 'real' medicine, where the active ingredients are identified and synthesized. It is rigorously tested to prove that it works (not just a placebo as a lot of 'alternative' medicine is), and is shown to be safe. I'll stick to the processed drugs thanks.

Maybe the movement was already replaced and it’s not the original. This could be very likely if it was originally a stop-2-go movement as mondaine stopped using them and they became obsolete as mondaine has the rights over that technology. Tom

When we're younger its the voice of reason, when we're older and it tells us to do unreasonable things then it's the voice of insanity. Not to worry you wont be alone we're all heading in that direction sooner or later When we're drunk we think it's a perfect state for doing lots of things . Sooooo glad i dont drink anymore, can you imagine?

When I hear that voice in my head and I start talking back. I'll know it's off to the funny farm for me.

Never heard of it. I don't intend to try it. The best thing I have used and my late mother used it on me when I was a child was vicks vapor put some in a bowl with hot water put a towel over you head and bowl and breath in the vapor.

If I mess up oiling a cap jewel. I wipe it with Rodico, dunk it in some IPA and rub gently on some tissue paper. I usually don't need to reapply epilame.

There is a chance, but I wouldn't count on it. If I remember correctly, you can request parts not listed on the Cousins site. They may already have the part in stock but did not list it for some reason. EDIT: Found it! It's £2.15 and in stock!

A picture of the balance spring of the new movement. Easy to see the difference with the damaged one

I wish to share my experience with thyme tea with everyone. Six months ago when I had my second bout of Covid, my chest was so congested that breathing deeply hurt. Coughing was pure agony. And with a 40°C fever that comes back every 6 hours when the level of paracetamol in the blood falls, I was willing to try anything. Then I saw this video on YouTube and I decided to give it try. I drank a cup of the stuff and went back to bed. When I woke up about an hour later, I coughed up a golf ball sized lump of greenish-yellow phlegm. And almost immediately, all symptoms suddenly abated. 24hrs later, I was feeling perfectly fine. I repeated an ART test and it was negative. I started recommending it to some of my friends and many of them found it useful, although some claimed it had no effect. I had another round of Covid last week. I tested positive on Thursday and although the symptoms were very mild, I drank a cup of thyme tea just to play safe. And by Friday evening all symptoms were gone. I repeated an ART test and it was negative. If any of you read this, try it out the next time you get Covid or the flu. Let me know your experience with thyme tea. @watchweasol, you might like to take note of this.

Hobgoblin beer 5.0%. For me it's Heineken lager 5.0%

I agree entirely Richard. Most drugs are initially extracted from plants. An infusion made from brewed malted barley and hops makes me feel great. And a brewed barley distillate even better

This thread is going to split options, I'm on the pharmaceutical side. Some drugs are artificial, some are extracted from nature and improved and/ or refined. I can't see any issue with the thyme tea if it makes you feel better.

One of the most toxic nerve agents developed is VX. The median lethal dose for an adult is 6-10 milligrams. That's milligrams!! But good old mother nature, where everything is wonderful and safe, can top that by some margin. Botulinum toxin has a median lethal dose of 1-2 nanograms. That's about 5000x more toxic than VX. You mean the "money making pharmaceutical industry" who save millions of lives every year ? In the 20th Century it is estimated about 300-500 million people died of smallpox. Due to scientific research, a vaccine was found, which led to the total eradication in 1977. If we 'trusted nature', millions would still be dying every year.

If it actually is the stem itself bent you could replace the stem keep the crown and change the gasket. But a lot of times it's the crown that gets bent. Then the other problem is gaskets just have a way of going out with time and require replacement. Here is a typical image of a crown that citizen and Seiko typically have. With crowns like this the gasket is replaceable.

Scientists are actually studying the use of modified ricin as a cancer drug.

O rings are available.

I've rechecked and it appears John is right! The seal is on the crown. I didn't realise the crown had a shaft that screwed onto the stem with a seal in the middle which goes inside the case. I assumed the crown was flat and the threads of the stem screwed into it. Can you tell I've never removed a crown before thanks for the help guys!

Now that I have a need for it again, I think I'm going to give this a try. I don't have a lathe, but I just tested a broken K&D stake in a drill chuck. With 220/400/800/1000 grit sandpaper I was able to reduce it from 4.70mm to 4.65mm in about 5 minutes. Getting a consistent diameter all the way down the spindle will be challenge without a lathe but if I keep testing it in the C&E Marshall frame until it just slides through, that should be good enough for my needs. I bet I can get it to around +/-0.02mm

Well said Ross,i get along just fine without it.

I take it the gasket on the stem is sealing inside the case tube as opposed to a crown gasket that seals on the outside of the case tube. If i can suggest posting a picture of both the case design and the stem that you have. Pictures pictures Pictures, always pictures. A picture paints a thousand words

No. I used the dried thyme I had in my cupboard. I think it was Masterfoods.

I restore torsion clocks and quite a few of the early ones there is nothing in the book so I lower the fork until it flutters ( drops more than one tooth at a time ) then raise the fork by 1mm, the book is only a starting position sometimes it’s ok other times not , every clock seems to be different. everything is important with regards to torsion clocks . Dell

The problem is where the arrow shows.

There is a double kink or Z bend around here:

The hairspring is overlapping at the spot where the arrow is pointing. As @LittleWatchShop said, put this away until you have gained more practice. Fixing this involves removing the balance from the cock and then removing the hairspring from the balance. Then you'll need to reshape the coils until you have a smooth spiral, refix the hairspring to the cock and reform the terminal curve and centre the collet. All that is advanced work but doable when you have more practice and improved your dexterity. And you'll need a microscope for that kind of work. In the meantime, bag it up and put a note in the bag stating the fault, in case you forget in a few months time. (Don't ask me how I know.) And stick the bag to somewhere prominent, to remind you to work towards being able to fix that. You'll ruin a few more watches in the near future. Trust me, we have all done that. When I broke my first watch, my mentor told me, "Learn from your mistakes and move on." Good luck and don't give up. Practice practice practice.

Thanks people for your kindness and for the fast resources! I really appreciate it.

Would it be an option to 3D print one?

The dial spacer is part 145. If you get in touch with CousinsUK I think they can get it for you (if it's not already on their site): https://www.cousinsuk.com/pdf/categories/8189_selliat sw330_1_smaller.pdf

You might be looking for something like that (ebay)?

Dial washers are pretty generic. You can get an assorted pack from Cousins. https://www.cousinsuk.com/product/dial-washers-foils

Excellent post and advice @Mercurial I agree with everything you say. Yes, this is important to understand. The good thing is that you can start pretty slowly and then if your interest grows, increase the number of tools. I wouldn't be surprised if I've spent the equivalent of one or two good Rolex Submariner watches since I started eight years ago. The nice thing is that I appreciate my tools at least as much as my watches. There is something truly magical about using a well-used patinated Swiss quality tool that a skilled watchmaker used for decades. Again, excellent advice, and when you want to go wristwatch size but still not take any financial risks I'd recommend Vostok 24xx movements such as Vostok 2409. Most modern watches, less than 60/70 years or so, seem to secure the impulse jewel with friction only so that should be safe to rinse in IPA (isopropanol, not Indian Pale Ale). I've never handled Radium but Kalle Slaap made an interesting video about it some time ago. As I understand it, it's the dust that can "kill" you. https://youtu.be/Z-A-e8zSoOM

No not the impulse jewel, Tom was right with setting up the pallet jewels but in a way i haven't seen before. Here is the advert for it from 120 years ago.

I need to quote one of my watchmakers I go to when needing information: "very good" is the enemy of "good"

It's amazing what I can find on my computer accumulated over time. So I've attached a PDF for servicing the 3135 and a separate parts list. For adjusting the beat look at section 4.1. The comment about loosening the screw before rotating the stud holder. 3135tech rolex.pdf Rolex 3135 parts.pdf