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I currently have 2 x 400 day anniversary (torsion) clocks, 2 x pre 1900 pendulum alarm clocks, about 6 Smiths/Enfield striking mantle pendulum clocks, a Smiths chiming, floating balance mantle clock, a platform escapement carriage clock movement that looks (very competently) home made from the early 1900's which just needs a case, and a couple of other assorted mantle and alarm clocks from the early part of the last century, all waiting their turn on the bench. Oh and 3 cuckoo clocks as well, so although watches are my primary focus I do have to declare an interest in the larger scale horological world too.

Hi Paul I started off with manual cleaning with Lighter Fluid (containing Naptha) and progressed on to the following which is still quite obtainable I used Elma 1:9 to clean all my parts in a jar within a simple ultrasonics unit and then let the parts air dry, that worked every time. If the watch is really grimey you will have to get some pegwood and sharpen it to sharp point in which you could "clean" out the jewels - I started with toothpicks.. Sometimes i revert back to manual cleaning before is goes in the cleaner any way as nothing beats a old toothbrush! A lot of people worried that they couldn't do a good job unless they had all the tools - tools just aid the repairer, a while back they didn't have clever machines and made do with what they had. Not very factual i know, however there are many ways, just play around and see what results you get and keep your parts covered once clean, its the most annoying thing ever to see dust, debris when putting it all back together! Marks got a link here of his machine (which is what i have also)

Have you tried Meadows & Passmores if my memory serves me right there is a calculator on their site on how to purchase the correct spring size. In my opinion their springs are superior to those supplied by Cousins as the mainsprings from Cousins seem too stiff. Providing the new spring is not to wide and rubbing on the barrel wall the slightly weaker spring will be fine. You could actually repair the broken spring if stuck. I have never done this but I have read that you can re-drill the retaining hole with a diamond drill. I made my mainspring winder and there are vids on you-tube showing many mine is a copy of the wooden construction one shown. Not the best but it works. Fitting a new spring without a spring winder is going to be troublesome as the new springs come pre-wound and held together by wire. I presume you do not own one so you will have to do what I used to do. Put the new spring in a vice (length way) then unwind the retaining wire to release and then gradually unwind the vice very,very gradually to release the spring. WEAR SAFTEY GLASSES AND THICK GLOVES IF IT SLIPS IT **BLEEP** HURTS. To re-fit he spring or fit the new spring I found this on the M&P site. If you removed the mainspring from a barrel, it must now be re-fitted. If you do not have access to a mainspring winder, you will need the strong leather gloves you should have used to remove it. Having thoroughly cleaned the spring of old lubricant, wipe the surface with a rag coated in mainspring grease. It is not critical to cover the whole surface, because as the spring winds and releases during use, lubrican will spread naturally. Insert the outer end of the spring onto the hook inside the barrel. When sure that it has engaged, start to turn the spring into the barrel and after each half turn, rotate it. If, after a turn or two you don't think your wrists are strong enough to finish the job, go back now. Once you are half way, you cannot let go and will need to finish the job somehow. Wind in the spring by hand until the centre coils pop in. Take great care with mainsprings as they contain a lot of energy when coiled. Hope this helps

Sometimes having the crown touch the pickup (the outer sticky uppy part) on the microphone will get you a result.

I found this wonderful site whilst preparing for my "7750 Service Walkthrough", and I wanted to share it with everyone: The Alliance Horlogère Project. In particular the information on lubricants: there names, and functions, in real layman's terms ... I like that! Here's the link to Modern Watchmaking Lubricants I hope you find it as informative as I did :)

Look no further Bob old chum, your old mate Lawson has discovered the solution :) Attack Solvent Now it looks like nasty stuff, and is probably banned in all 50 States :P But theirs a chap on the fleabay selling this toxic brew. Fleabay Item Number (as of today): 111410259732 Fleabay Store: wmclockmaker I'd suggest a level 4 biohazard suit while applying it :huh: