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Showing content with the highest reputation on 09/11/24 in all areas
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Now this is 1970's worthy of a night at the disco
4 points -
Here's a pic of the movement. It had significant rust and corrosion on the winding and ratchet wheels and balance cock and screws. I used a buff with green compound on a dremel to remove the corrosion (i can see in the picture i missed at least one screw). It's not perfect but still looks vintage and a lot better than it did. I told my son today that unless he makes me really mad, it'll be his in the future. My sons have made me lots of accessories for my fountain pen collection out of legos. I've repurposed some for watches and for holders for my iphone. They work great. I'm going to check out the resource listed by @VWatchie listed above so I can get better at crystal replacement. Thanks to everyone for their encouragement. You need that sometimes in this hobby, because at times it can be very humbling.
3 points -
If you live in Europe for example the UK, Monaco, Moldova, or Norway, I'd suggest CousinsUK.com. That's where I go whenever I buy new stuff. Good prices. As you are new to this I suggest you go slowly before making a substantial investment. Start with a decent... work mat, case holder, case opener, movement holder, screwdriver set, tweezers, hand levers, hand-fitting tool, cannon pinion remover tool (perhaps not necessary) Now you can take apart and reassemble a watch to get a good feel for it. I don't think I missed anything essential but if so others will fill in.3 points
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Just wires Murks,fine speaker cable will do just fine,or any single insulated cable striped from a dc charger or power supply. If you want to be particular then identify the polarity with a coloured sleever or tape.3 points
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It's like buying a Rolex from the guy in the back alley.3 points
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Hello all! This will be a walk-through of my service of my Valjoux 90 triple calendar and moonphase watch by the largely unknown brand "Nivia" (if you happen to know more about then brand than on this website http://www.nivia.com.hk/, please do let me know. I'm curious). I bought it from a private seller who had bought it a year earlier from a professional dealer. It had been serviced by that dealer (so a year ago). I had noticed that it was running with significant differences in amplitude between dial up and dial down positions, so I had previously opened it and discovered some metal shavings, mostly at the pivot of the central seconds pinion. After removing that debris (and re-oiling the escapement)... wait for it... it was overbanking!! Oh boy. Well, spoiler, the mainspring turned out to be too thick (0.15mm instead of 0.14mm; and power reserve was rather low-ish). So now, I'm giving it a full service and a thinner mainspring. As with my service of a Jaeger LeCoultre Memovox cal 916 (see here: https://www.watchrepairtalk.com/topic/29824-jaeger-lecoultre-calibre-916-memovox/), I'll post the walkthrough several stages, as I progress. Today: disassembly. Just a few pictures of the whole thing: I start by taking the bezel and crystal off. And taking some more pictures. hands off Snap-on caseback removed. Some marks of previous watchmakers. very pretty movement, I think. movement holding screws a screw to release the stem, removing the central seconds bridge and pinion Note: the pinion goes on top of the spring. I'll leave the spring in place for cleaning. , I don't have a special tool for this, so I carefully remove the friction-fit seconds driving wheel with my hands levers. Worked fine. I struggled to find the screws to release the dial. After a while I found the eccentric screws that are accessed from the train side of the movement. gorgeous triple date and moonphase mechanism shouldered screws everywhere. the following pictures of disassembling the calendar works is without additional comments. Mostly to record good pictures of the scews and correct positions of levers etc. Some of the pins on the day/month/moonphase driving wheels are a bit bent and one of them even a bit loose. I'll fix that later with the staking set. these shouldered screws are a bit longer than the others. train side (will do the keyless works after) back to dial side and keyless works the lower balance jewels are hidden under this big plate straight foward keyless works Using a rounded stake that just fits around the pins to straighten them and to tighten them in their holes in the wheel. Worked well. the results look fine back to the case. disassembling also the correctors. Lots of very old grease. giving the hands a little buffing with leather. WELL, that's it for today. After cleaning, I'll post pictures of epilame treatments and then assembly.
2 points -
Hi Guys, Today I have a huge sense of accomplishment and relief after finally finishing restoration of this Ball 999B 16s 21 j railroad grade pocket watch. I started it in April, so it only took me five months to complete; as life got in the way. It also had a lot wrong with it. Broken jewels, broken staff, bent wheel, broken hands, well, you get the picture. It's running great in my estimation. The fact that it's running at all is proof, not of my workmanship because heaven knows it's lacking, but of the high quality of workmanship that went into the watch's manufacture. I feel very lucky to have gotten it back into shape. My only regret is that you can see some of the glue used to adhere the crystal. I thought it was supposed to dry clear. I might retry with some UV glue to see if that's better. Thanks to all the people who gave me input along the way. I couldn't have finished without all their help. Arron.
2 points -
Seiko 9983-8039 Twin Quartz Finally got it running to spec across all temperatures+-5 Seconds per Year. Treated it to a new dial and crystal that I had been searching for for over 8 months. A single dial finally turned up on Cousins and I pounced on it along with the sapphire crystal. The equivalent JDM 'Superior Quartz' model apparently cost as much as a Toyota Corolla back in 1979. Cost my uncle £500 back then and that was a lot, more than a Rolex back then. Also did a bit of work on the case and bezel to bring it back a bit as it had had a really rough life.
2 points -
Honestly, you're well on your way to being a great watchmaker if you undertook this type of repair. This is something I see even seasoned watchmakers don't want to mess with. If you' re interested more in escapement theory, which I think everyone should be, have a look at this book. Anyone can clean and lube a watch. It takes real skill to start messing with the geometry of the escapement. escapement book.pdf2 points
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Your 1st photo already reveals what it is: a ’Borduhr’ Junghans J30BZ (with chronograph).2 points
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It's a German Aircraft clock. https://vintagewatchspecialist.com/products/junghans-30-bz-ww2-luftwaffe-military-aircraft-clock-c-1940s2 points
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I was wondering the same. I did spot a "Lord Wellington" on ebay, but for some reason, I decided to give it a miss. Not quite as "highbred" as your Sir William, I would suggest.
2 points -
Also worth looking at this page put together by our host @Mark who runs the watchfix.com online courses. https://www.watchfix.com/2019/09/30/essential-day-1-tools/ Tom2 points
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I rarely buy new tools now , mostly vintage secondhand tools bought from carboot sales , ebay or auction houses. The older stuff is so much better quality than anything bought new.and often cheaper. For example i have just bought 5 pair of Dumont tweezer ( ok not vintage but i did say mostly ) 3 of these are duostar and dumoxel , a really unusual ruby jaws poising tool, brass pocketwatch movement holder, and handful of lathe accessories and a rack of 12 arbor vices for 150 quid inc delivery. It takes time to build your workshop in this manner and some restoration can be needed but thats part and parcel of this game, the upside is the cost and excellent traditional quality tools that were designed with the user in mind and they work as they are supposed to instead of a modern chinese manufacturer guessing what they are supposed to do. Other than that making what you need, bench mats, cushions, probes , tool holders, hand tools, parts washers, have a look at our tips and tricks, diy and homemade threads. A little inspired ingenuity can go a long way to saving you a lot of dosh plus you get to make something custom that is suited to you and how you work. This hobby doesn't have to be super expensive, only if you let it2 points
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Fellow, the day and the date have separate driving wheels. You must put (mesh) them correctly when assembling the calendar. The difference of 7 hours is random number and the next time You assemble the calendar without taking in count how You put the wheels, it can be 3 or 16 or any other number from 0 to 24.2 points
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Free oscillations test – remove the pallet fork and with the balance in place, turn the balance to 180 degr. and release it, then count the number of free oscillations to the full stop. Here one oscillation is swing to the left +swing to the right, so You must count only swinging to one direction, or just the expandings of the hairspring. The good result will be about 150 (in both horizontal positions) for this movement – then we will know the balance, bearings/pivots, hairspring – all OK.2 points
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Today's choice:
2 points -
Aside from AS, I only really recall seeing left hand threads on ratchet wheels on 8 day movements. The reason being the ratchet winds in reverse. There is a rather special form to ratchet wheel screws aside from the thread; they (the good ones) are reinforced where the thread meets the head with a fillet.
2 points -
time for the next step after managing to make several working movements out of a bunch of 2603 movements i would like to have a watch that i can wear that i fully servised. non of the bunch of movements i bought to learn on had any case so i got a 3 watches with case but non of them is for the ones i worked on. the nicest case of the tree i got was with the 2614 ha movement in it with a date function but that movement has a lot of problems one wheel has half its teeth missing and the paletfork has one of its rubys misalined. i have found in that pile of watches tree movements that are somwhat similar. and i mean somwhat similar, even though that all are 2614 ha movements with just a date function there are diferences. like full or spoked wheels, spacers for the balance wheel asembly or even beveld edges on the plates. it wil be a chalenge to make something good out of it all but it should be posible for the level of skill that i am now. that is past amateur at the lower levels of novice, but i'm getting there, steady progres is made. and loads of fun and satisfaction. if anybody else has experience with 2614 ha movements and know a few tips feel free to respond. A is the one that came in the case and i want to keep those plate and bridges all the rest should be replacable, i'll test as i clean and reasemble it.
1 point -
Just to close this out - I ended up going with a clasp extension from Cousins. I bought the link extension that is supposed to fit under the clasp as well but that wouldn't work with my bracelet without lots of modification. As it is, the clasp extension needed a bit of fettling to make it work. The holes didn't quite align on one side (it's not that well made) so I aligned it with the existing clasp and drilled out the hole with a 0.8mm drill where they overlapped so that I could install a springbar between them. I also brushed the existing clasp and extension with some small Scotchbrite type buffs on my Dremel to get them both matching a bit better. I think it's turned out OK, considering.
1 point -
Common mistake buddy, what you are seeing is re-banking, the impulse pin banging on the forkhorn's back door. Ohhhh that came out soooo wrong1 point
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What you've circled is the Day Wheel while the centre is the Date Wheel and as @nevenbekriev said they need to be set correctly as detailed in the guide. Edit I presume you've got the guide for all the other setting up procedures?
1 point -
Even the professionals on here are humbled at times. Very few never require help.1 point
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Do the free oscillation test, replacing the mainspring depends on the condition of the existing spring. If it's set, then yes replace it.1 point
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Yes, it is WWII Messerschmitt control desk clock.1 point
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I didn't know it was German but I would of guessed at an aircraft clock.1 point
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I was on a holiday and missed something... Now I am back, a question from me: This is on my table, does anybody know what it is?
1 point -
Found out that it’s a 1560 missing the automatic function, that’s why I got confused. Thanks for the help.1 point
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I was wondering the same. Other than the case and the name, nothing but 362 on the dial side. The balance cock looks a little like a south bend...
1 point -
Well it is difficult to see from the picture. Maybe by the nine? I see lots of glue exposed put there by professionals so consider yourself advanced1 point
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Is this something you've just serviced yourself or did you but it like this? If you haven't fitted the hands then how do you know it's 7 hours?1 point
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The Chinese are masters at counterfeiting. Stick with someone stateside so if you have any questions, you can call and talk to someone. Esslinger.com is another decent place to buy tools. Pretty good prices and their service is great.1 point
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So at what time do the day and date change?1 point
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Welcome to the forum. First thing is if you're just starting out with watch repairs then I wouldn't start off with expensive tools like Bergeon. Personally I wouldn't trust anything that's branded from AliExpress when there are genuine suppliers where prices don't appear much different. https://www.julesborel.com/products/tools-tweezers-bergeon-tweezers/bergeon-7422-pm-b5-tweezer-brass-non-magnetic-alloy https://www.julesborel.com/products/tools-movement-tools-movement-holders/bergeon-4039-movement-holder-3-3-4-11-ligne https://www.julesborel.com/products/tools-movement-tools-movement-holders?search=2611-tn-2.5 https://www.julesborel.com/products/tools-bench-accessories-bench-mats/BG6808-GREEN1 point
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I couldn't help myself. I had to wear the 1972 Timex today. The 1970s style Police approve of the red band, but I doubt if anybody else does. Now where did I put my bell bottoms and platform soles?
1 point -
Well done indeed, more photos.1 point
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This will be my final diy cleaner project that incorporates something along the lines of swiss2k's above. The motor programmer arrived today , just time delay switching for forward and reverse rotations. It can be programmed for stop , start acceleration and deceleration, pause events, motor speed selection from 1-100 % and total run times. A very cheap gadget for only £15, the supply is just a 12 volt switching adapter from a boot sale.Just looking for a suitable 12volt 500rpm motor, pictured is a minicraft drill but this runs at 20,000 rpm, the slowest i can get it down to is around 1000 rpm which too fast really. Almost done..... mk.v will be the last one for me.............probably .
1 point -
I think that hook is for putting the wheels into there pivot holes between the clock plates.1 point
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Timex 6517 7266** - a 1966 21 jewel model I got for around $14, hoping the dial was in good condition underneath a crystal too scuffed up to see through. It isn't mint, does have a couple of tiny hairline scratches. But the original crystal polished up so nicely that the whole thing shines now. The Timex M72 was their "Look we have jewels too!" movement. The pin pallets are little upright rubies, most of the train has cap jewels except I think the escape wheel. And the strangest part is the balance, which is a conventional Timex v-conic bearing without ANY jewels. They run maybe a little better than the non-jeweled movements, probably not much. But they do probably last longer. ** (I think... That's what my eyes make out without magnification)
1 point -
The as new Casio MQ-24 went for a wee trip up Kinnoull Hill this afternoon. Don't ask me where Kinnoull Hill is, there are enough clues is in the pictures. If you are ever in Perth, and fancy a walk, Kinnoull Hill is well worth the effort. Admittedly the view to the north was misted up, but the view to the south and east, past the tower made up for that. The plaque by the trig point tells you what you can't see when the mist is in, and we mustn't forget to thank our feudal overlords for their "munificence" ( I think it means bear faced cheek, but I haven't googled it yet ), in "gifting" this piece of Scotland to the Scots.
1 point
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