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...A Hamilton 940 just finished for a friend. He was a helicopter pilot in Vietnam and closing in on 80 years old. This was his father's watch in Kentucky USA. No charge for military but I may try and weasel some KY bourbon out of him... Flabby before it was missing the hour hand and the story is the brother opened it up and broke it- I'm certain his brother tells the EXACT same story if you know what I mean. Hands for these are around so hour hand no problem but it also had a broken spring what holds the setting lever open. Most of them broke long ago and spares are nowhere available- keep 'em if you have them! Otherwise the movement was in good condition, just dirty and a few service marks. Lots of watchmaker runes carved into the backs on this one. It has the unusual 'motor barrel' so a little more fiddly to deal with the spring but it didn't take me too long to wind it back in...

Hi Murks, I talk about normal copper wire from electric cable. Cable with many thin wires inside. You need wire thin as 0.2mm or similar. Just unscrew a little the screw, enough to wind one coil of the wire under the screw's head, then tighten the screw and cut the excess wire with sharp office knife, that's all. It acts same as washer. You can use thinner and thicker wires, as needed.

I didn't even know this was an option! I'm always trying find specific stakes or stumps at auction and considering buying junk sets if they have what I need. It never occurred to me to see if they're just for sale new. My centering punch has a smashed tip and is no good for the smallest holes. Any time I find one at auction it's >$40 and here Cousins sells it new £10.15.

That's an important point. I also have a Boley inverto-style set. It has a good selection of punches and anvils and I'm happy with it. Even so, there's always that punch or punches missing so I've ordered a few from Cousins as needed. For a professional, it would likely be necessary to be able to make punches on demand (like @nickelsilver) but for an enthusiast like myself, buying them as I go has been a viable option.

Well, this is watchmaking, good fine motor skills is something one can't do without.

For me if they aren't legit then they'll be stripped and the dials chopped and binned.

Right, eventually found something on this website https://af0210strap.com/blogs/news/w-w-w-watches-on-a-f-0210-straps

Just won a job lot of watch stuff and only after the auction ended did I spot these!!! Be interesting see what movements they've got.

Thanks! And yes, I'm rather obsessive. Which sometimes turns a hobby I love into and pain (if things aren't quite as I want them). Certainly rare, but not really particularly expensive (within the range of triple calendar + moonphase watches). I bought it for myself and have no plans to sell it. And once you service a baby like this, you grow a connection..

BFG 866 is bog-standard found in many vintage brands. Shouldn't be concerned that you might break something or ruin a cheap watch, trust me you have many to break to join the club here, how else can one gain dexterity? to handle such tiny parts. Rgds

Yes I see now and comparing it to this one for sale it looks like someone has also swapped the date dial

If I'd spent £1200 on a Bergeon one, I'd be very disappointed if there was so much play. Looking at the pics, it's obviously better quality - see the much finer thread. I'm happy that mine does a reasonable job, for £57. BTW I've just managed to remove almost all the play in the shaft. I used some .002" brass sheet to wrap around the shaft

I agree. Staking sets are, unfortunately, one of those tools where you need ALL the sizes. I also strongly recommend staking tools that can be "inverted", i.e. you can use the punches/stakes as stumps/anvils. That increases you options significantly. The K&D "Inverto" seems popular among forum members (especially in the US). I have a Boley set from Germany that also works like that. You'll see that is has an "additional" base (that can be added/removed as needed). That allows the punches to be inserted into the bottom and serve as anvils. I'd suggest to wait until you can get a full set (with "inverting" function). Sometimes they come up at really good prices. Are there any Australia-based private-to-private second hand sites? I usually scan the Swiss (anibis.ch), German (kleinanzeigen.de), Austrian (willhaben.at) and French (leboncoin.fr) sites and I got most my tools for half the eBay market price.

1966 Timex field watch 1158 2466, 30.5mm just got cased with a new crystal today. This m24 movement had all sorts of problems revealing themselves each time I solved one. Bent wheels, bent fork slot, bent pallet pins, somehow the lower balance v-conic pivot getting pushed out of its friction fit hole (I never gave these any thought before as to their installation on the plate). Luckily I have a sackful of Timex spares and all the parts are interchangeable. I was glad to get this around $20 since they're not all that common.

My first search came up with this. https://www.spareparts-watches.com/product/8143421/seiko-6r35-seiko-6r35a-201-283-barrel-including-mainspring

Oh wow, interesting. Well, I only treated the stones. I'm sure it'll be fine.

I swoon over fine old Hamiltons. Well done! I am in the last stages of a 992 restoration as a gift, about to start polishing and rebluing the hands. I will probably start immediately again on one for myself.

I had been meaning to add this. I picked up this hand hole size gauge which I presume to be a Chinese copy of the Bergeon tool. I bought it from Esslinger for about $35 and have never seen it sold anywhere else. Though I have seen the "Swiss Quality" marking on some other alix tools. Is it good enough? Probably yes. I measured a couple of pocket watch hands and they measured about 0.02mm smaller on the mandrel than I would have expected them to actually be (based on the diameters of the cannon pinions) but I think that's probably fine for almost all friction fit hands. It did come highly magnetized out of the box. I don't think that was intentional. The hand pictured below fits a 115 cannon pinion, but ignoring the photo parallax showed about 112-113 on the gauge. I suppose I could probably put a micrometer against the graduations and see how good they are.

Just edited my post (while you were probably writing). See the screenshot from my manual above.

I thought the same! But fact-checking revealed the opposite! Where did you see that? I noted rather the opposite. No epilame on balance jewels. My service doc does only mention the "pallet jewels" :

You post has me giddy in hopeful anticipation of the delivery this Friday Hopefully, I won't be disappointed. Well, otherwise, I'll take from @mikepilk 's wisdom.

I would have put money on you having the Bergeon one @VWatchie I guess it's just luck on what turns up. It's hard to tell from the pics. Mine has taken some tweaking, but is now working very well. I'm just waiting on a nice challenging watch to try it on. Even with the Bergeon one, the case is not held absolutely securely, so there is always a bit of wriggle room/play.

Ok here goes... The sequence of the hour chime is as follows...noting the first rod is next to the movement and the strike rods are 7,8,9. 3 6 2 7 4 5 8 5 7 6 2 3 8 2 3 7 6 4 5 8 4 7 6 2 3 5 8 Then it strikes. Just for clarity the St Michael's chime works ok so I'm confident the above chime is not out of sequence (I think ) Btw....the rods are not in size order either IE shortest to longest or vice versa.

https://ranfft.org/caliber/7177-Landeron-59

I wasn't aware of this company. They are about a mile up the road from me.

check with the seller to make sure the photo is of the item for sale…

There is this gilt one at a reasonable price. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/255882045524?_ul=GB Edit Just checked my stock and it appears the only 6106 I've got has a destroyed date dial.

…to me the font is similar but the printing looks thicker and fuzzy…smaller gaps between letters . As was mentioned upthread something’s ‘off’… …and just speculating about a Grana replacement dial: can anyone produce evidence of another? (Edit: Sorry, I just noticed the photo above is not OPs, so this is something out there…but what is the question… ) With the IWC DD it is common to see replacement dials. On the first run they used some kind of lacquer that dries and cracks, taking the rest of the dial with it. You don’t see too many of those in good shape- the replacements are more common… …finding a genuine Grana DD in an off lot would make a wonderful story if true. OPs bank account would be happy…I’m sending off the photo off to a few places for a look, so let’s see…

I would just like to add you can never have enough. I had two full sets plus wooden boxes of more punches and stumps. I even had a set of punches that were just for cylinder work. Keep looking on ebay for odd punches. You have to start somewhere I think you should go for it. Just make sure if you do buy it when adding make sure the odds fit as they come in different sizes. I just don't understand getting anything outside of Australia costs an arm and a leg.

Wow, I missed all of these last posts! Great progress, @VWatchie ! Yes, I agree that this is an interesting observation. Likewise, using HP-1000 on almost the whole train (except where jewels are capped at the balance and escape wheel). All sounds very "safe" to me. Like they really want to avoid oil spreading and make lubrication last the longest time possible (I always assume that heavier oils will last longer than thinner oils). This matches Rolex's reputation of making workhorse movements / daily beater watches. I respect that about them. I agree 100%. You have to be set up. What I found very interesting is that the Rolex 2135, i.e. a calibre from the same generation of movements, implements the same date mechanism in a more watchmaker-friendly way: As you can see, yoke and spring are secured by a screw each. So you can just take care of that first, then add the jewel and snail cam (then the wheel, not pictured). I think it reduces the stress of multi-tasking. That looks absolutely perfect. Congrats! To me, it looks like you hit it just right.

I have owned full K&D sets and have used the full Star set for years, and still find sometimes I need punches and stumps that aren't in it (in which case I make them). In a reduced set like that I think you would frequently be frustrated at the lack of choice.

Yes, timing washers aren't particularly widely available. I usually manage to get everything I need from within Europe, but my set of timing washers had to come from Canada. I had a saved search on ebay. @nevenbekriev solution sounds pragmatic. But you'll need some good fine motor skills.

Google search.

Or EB 8800

Does it have a quick date set to jump over to the 1st?

So the 6105A is a modified 6106A and the part fitted isn't correct. Edit Should have added. What 6105 is it that has a Date @ 4?

Thanks guys, Guba it is then. Hopefully shouldn't need any parts as it's NOS and just appears to be a bit gummed up. Going to clean and relume the hands. Should be a nice watch when finished. It's a 33mm case so not too small I think.

A Baum Gartner or Ronda cased with rather eliquent looking gilt numerals.

Identical as far as I know. I had one of the blue ones as part of a "package deal" but I sold it. I'm still using my vintage white one. I have made an enclosure with a fan because of the ammonia-smell.

This ships from the U.S. but you would have timing washers to give your grandkids. 5 sets of timing washers

Todays watch, My Breitling Aviator 8 a very sentimental watch for me as it was a gift from my Father, and one I wish I could wear more often!

Are you looking for pocket watch sized timing washers or wrist watch? Wrist watch washers are usually easy to find on the Auction Site, but pocket watch sizes are less abundant. You may need to set a saved search with notifications and wait a couple weeks. They do appear though and will cost considerably more than the wrist watch ("bracelet") washer assortments.

Here are some. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/176427418219

I primarily use Badalassi Carlo Pueblo, Badalassi Carlo Wax, and Walpier Buttero (standard or museum). I usually buy these in A4 sheets of 1.2 - 1.4mm thickness. I buy mine from Artisanleather or Leatherforcraft. make sure you use the correct needles and thread. Not many people talk about this but it is crucial. I use Amy rose polyester thread in 0.45mm with an either a 3mm or 3.5mm stitch gap. I also use John James small saddles needles (size 4 if I recall correctly). I will post some photos of the sort of results I'm getting.

I have to make a couple of replacement pendulum regulation rods ( see first picture ), approximately 86mm long with 33mm of 6BA thread right hand thread one end and left hand thread other end , the problem was although I had a fixed steady that I made a few weeks ago I needed a travelling steady but I have never seen one all I had was a picture but although it is not exactly the same as the original I think is will do the job. Dell

1966 Timex Marlin. Same one as shown in the 404 club yesterday, but with a new acrylic installed. 34.2mm and lug to lug of 41mm.

Just picked this up from antique store for £40. Pretty sure it is a Revue watch. Possibly WW2.

Yes the circuit board does look like something ancient but supposedly it's leadfree it's not super old. Then the actual purchase date of this September 2006. So basically it was the cheapest timing machine they had at the time. My suspicion of why the circuit board is old is that it probably is. Why Update or change what you have if you don't have to? So the hardware is old but the internal programs been updated. Then when you go to the third generation they change the screen and add in some additional functions I have no idea if the hardware is changed at all. Then I heard an interesting story have no idea where I heard this. The printer for these is hard to find because the control codes to send the graphics are based on a printer that doesn't exist and hasn't existed for a very long time. So whoever wrote the original printer software is still used several generations later. Probably because it worked and they probably didn't figure anyone would be cheap And went to buy the printer somewhere else. Fortunately there is at least one company that has a printer that emulates and will do the graphics cheaply. So there modern timing machines are becoming less hardware-based more computer programs. So here's their fourth-generation machine looks quite interesting. Looks like it has the same price as the third generation machine which was just slightly more expensive than the second generation machine. Although it's still really really expensive compared to the Chinese machine. http://www.witschi.com/assets/files/Watch_Expert-Leaflet.pdf

Thanks for reminding me I totally forgot about the horrible beeping sound that you always turn off because can't stand to listen to it. Having actual audio of the watch ticking is really nice when you're looking at garbage on the display. Often times you can hear if the hairspring for instances bumping into things that makes a interesting ringing sound. What would be really nice is to find out who actually makes the 1000/1900 timing machine and have a talk with them. A lot of the additional things we want is basically software. Then for display even the Swiss machine I would really like to have twice the number of pixels and the screen is too shiny. It's very very hard to get a picture without getting lights reflecting on the screen a reflection of me the camera something it's really hard to get a picture of.

There are differences beyond the display size of why someone would pay roughly $3000 versus 225 for a 1900. But for most hobbyists you're never going to notice the difference. I have actually done side-by-side comparison with a Witschi Watch Expert II and the 1000 1900 Chinese machines. Overall for the money the Chinese machines are outstanding but if you're really going to nitpicky about it the Swiss machines have some differences. So let's look at one of the most interesting features I find with the Chinese machines which is who actually makes them? For instance Swiss Timing machine company witschi You can look them up them website they physically exist they have distributors if you had a problem somebody could help you with it. The Chinese machines it's almost impossible to track down where they actually come from. Not that that's a problem because at the price who cares. Then the internal software to run the machines seems to come in two separate types. To explain that I have a image below. So some of the Chinese machines have limited ranges versus the 1900 or 1000. Then if you look at all the different physical sizes their actual characteristics don't really change is not really much advantage of buying a bigger machine. Although as pointed out above if you get the right machine you can use a printer with it. But if you are planning a getting a machine with a printer get it at the time don't plan on adding it later as I've seen the machines without printers don't have the right software to run the printer it's a separate chip. So one of the features missing from the Chinese machine found on the Swiss is frequency mode. Suppose you're doing American pocket watch someplace swap the hairspring or it's missing a timing screw it's running hopelessly fast slow or something not even close to 18,000 beats per hour and frequency mode It will tell you exactly what frequency it's running at.. Other things External audio noise such as an electric shaver in my case. The Chinese machine was showing absolute garbage on the screen the Swiss was working fine. But if the noise is large enough the right frequencies all the timing machines while problems. At work we had problems with one of the cleaning machines so is banished to another room. Then this one I've seen before if the amplitude is too low sometimes the Chinese machine will pick up the wrong part of the waveform giving the impression of a much higher amplitude. So I'm attaching some images. For those of you who like naked electronics like I do the inside of the 1000, 1900 and watch expert II. Then two examples of what the timing machine shows timing of the same watch. Yes if you're clever you can clip both microphones on the same watch at the same time. You don't always get the exact same results because both machines are averaging at slightly different places in the waveform. So you can see the Chinese machine in this case the 1000 is doing very well on a watch that's magnetized. The peculiar sine wave is an indication of a watch that's magnetized. Then we see another example of the extremely low amplitude the Chinese machine is confused.