Leaderboard

First I would like to thank everyone who chipped in with information regarding the lubrication of the 561 movement. Without it I wouldn't have used synthetic lube for the auto winding mechanism. The watch is a very well used and abused 18kt gold Omega Pie Pan Constellation from 1966. It is one of the nicest movements I have worked on, the engineering and finish of the movement is truly excellent for a mass produced piece. I would just like to share a few photos that give some insight to the workings of the 561 calibre. A rather sad dial, bearing in mind the dial is "solid 18kt gold". Timegrapher reading before servicing. My first sight of the movement. I needed the L.E.M. Case opener to get into it. Following are a series of photos during disassembly. And finally cleaned, lubed and reassembled. Looking a bit healthier now. I couldn't set the beat lower because the micro adjuster for rate was making contact with the hairspring stud. All back together. When I had it de-cased I weighed the gold and found it was worth £1550 as scrap!!! It's certainly the most expensive watch that I have worked on, it was such a shame about the dial.

If you haven't already seen this video it's worth a watch, astronauts repairing an Omega X33 onboard the space station, looks great fun!

This was a fun project. Couldn't find a suitable pusher for a vintage Breitling and so I decided to make a new one. The old pushers were made of brass and then chrome plated, but as I cannot chrome plate on brass I decided to use some stainless steel instead. Full story, more pics and video clip on my blog.

While re-assembling the Omega 561 I discovered a small screw when I stretched out a piece of Rodico. It was nothing to do with the 561, I lost it months ago when working on a Smiths. So the moral of the story is check your Rodico when you loses things! :-)

Hi Fj, It kind of depends on how the rogue mainspring differs from the correct spec. Too thick a mainspring can result in the balance amplitude being so great that the impulse jewel actually bounces off the outside of the pallet fork before the balance reverses its direction of rotation, I believe this is called over-banking. This bounce can impart extra speed to the balance which would speed up the rate and make the watch run fast. This is an easy condition to identify as all you have to do is listen to the watch. In normal operation the tick is nice and even, but if over-banking is happening then it sounds somewhat like a galloping horse. This is not good for the impulse jewel or the pallet fork horns. Too thin a main spring can cause the balance amplitude to be too low. Surprisingly enough, a very low balance amplitude can also result in an increase in rate, as can often be observed in a watch where the mainspring is almost fully unwound. That being said, the first place I look if a watch is gaining unacceptably is the hairspring. Check that no coils are stuck together and that there is nothing fouling the coils in any positions.

You couldn't do that Dan, the barrel diameter would have to be larger to accommodate it.

I would say so Dan. You must have been expecting a looooooooooong meeting! :-)

Welcome Vincent. You only need a caseback wrench & some half decent screwdrivers to get you going on you a new obsessive form of lunacy err.. hobby. Plenty of people here to help you out.

While ultrasonic cleaners are good, you need to be able to clean jewels manually as well as some stubborn dirt just cannot be removed with ultrasonic cleaners. Here's how I do it on the cheap using naptha (zippo fluid) and a small dish. I spend a lot of time away from my home but usually travel with basic watch repair tools. For cleaning I get by with a white porcelain cup (used for chinese tea), lighter fluid, pegwood and a cheap stiff art paint brush (cut down to about 3 inches). Fill the porcelain cup so that it covers your part. Use the paint brush to clean all the parts. Use the pegwood and ream out the jewel holes and the jewel surfaces. You then need to rinse it and use a puffer on it. The only problem I've encountered is that with the balance jewels, sometimes the cap jewel gets stuck fast to the hole jewel. No problem with an ultrasonic but without one you need to get creative.. how I solved it was boil the jewel in water, unortodox but worked! caution... Iighter fluids come with hazards.. fire and health. Use in well ventilated area preferably with the fumes blowing away from you and be mindful of fire hazard. Anil

Hi Paul, A great way to start is with an ultrasonic machine. The one I still use is a $32! If you search the forum for cleaning machines or supplies you may find a wealth of information on this topic! Cheers, Bob