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Showing content with the highest reputation on 10/23/22 in Posts

  1. you would have been disappointed with the lecture I attended yesterday. The lecture was understanding what goes into servicing a Rolex in a modern Rolex service agent shop. so what the purpose this lecture is is to explain to people why it costs so much to get a Rolex serviced everything that goes into it parts that are changed etc. Then for timekeeping they don't actually follow Rolex specifications. Rolex will accept usually negative number like -1 and of course except zero seconds but this place will not it has to be plus something. In a previous version of this lecture several years ago the watch they showed timing specifications for was keeping zero seconds per day and he said that would fail quality control and have to go back and be redone for timekeeping. then amplitude 310 maximum fully wound up and half wind which is 24 hours ground down minimum of 200°. so typically when you see the spec sheets that list timing specifications they are not obsessed with a specific amplitude other than the minimum maximum and of course they are more obsessed with timekeeping. technically that isn't quite correct. Everything for timekeeping is depended upon the first sound which is the roller jewel hitting the fork. Unfortunately that's also the most quiet sounds. then the sounds are more complicated with the typically show although they do have a breakdown of the sounds that I've snipped out images for you. So you can see there's five sounds two of them are supposed to overlap. But what if they don't overlap like what if locking occurs and is a time delay before it crashes into the banking pins. Or what if something else is going on or any other external noises or noises in the watch what is that due to your signal. This is where it be nice if the Chinese machines had audio where you could listen and see if the signal sounds nice and clean. It's amazing how noisy the hairspring can be if it bumps into a rubs on something. then the problem with the example of how they measure amplitude of beats said right is officially an absolute perfect idealized waveform. What if the waveform isn't perfect then what happens. As you mentioned if your gain is not high enough and you don't pick up the first signal that everything's going to be really screwed up. Or if you're amplitude is superlow the waveform get stretched out the timing machine will look for locking at the wrong place pick it up in the middle which is quite common on the Chinese machines and their very expensive witschi at work with bikes to do that quite often and then you end up with an amplitude that's much higher than what it should be. Witschi Training Course.pdf
    2 points
  2. Eyup matey. A press is a press, I would say the dies are what makes the difference in application.
    2 points
  3. I have several vintage watches with twisted, bent or warped end links. I also have some nice vintage bracelets that are missing the end links completely. Some of them are rare enough that finding replacements is out of the question. Case in point: my gorgeous ‘73 Pencron. Both end links were damaged, but one was terrible. I made a new end link for it tonight using 0.3mm SS and mandrels I made from 3mm, 6mm and 8mm square stock. I’ll replace the other eventually, but it’s not bad. The mandrels that I made will allow me to make a wide variety of end links and eventually, my own SS bracelets. Pictured is the old beat up link and the new one, installed.
    1 point
  4. Hi All, Newbie watch person. I recently became interested in this fascinating hobby. So much to learn and so many watches to play with. I am in awe of the miniature engineering that goes into them. Am doing Mark's online course and have nearly finished, can't wait to get stuck into working on one. Cheers, Davo.
    1 point
  5. From training and experience, the best security is misdirection. There is no reasonable way to properly protect a home environment. When I was in the military I was taught how to pick locks and how to get into a building quickly. The “ruffians “ are no less stupid. You can only do your best, that starts with not letting anyone know what you might have. Tom
    1 point
  6. Hello and welcome to the forum, a little introduction would be nice. we like to know who we are talking to and their skill levels. If you look under the balance wheel there should be a logo and a number, this is the makers mark and the caliber number. If you post a close up of them we most likley be able to find out for you. So you closed the canon pinion, did you use a mandrel in side the pinion or just squeeze it up. If its now too small you can always broach it out a little and still get a good fit. This will require a set of broaches (reamers)
    1 point
  7. Today I've ben working on a 21 Jewel Peseux 320 based Accurist, probably from the early 1950s, with a number of issues including a broken stem. It rocked in at just under half of the 404 club entry requirements. Its now all back together and keeping reasonably good time, all be it a little fast. I'll regulate it more exactly if it makes it through the next 24 hours without any issues. The dial has a little bit of cosmetic damage (not my doing), and there was plenty of evidence of earlier attempts to work on it in the past, including that rather obvious skid mark on the top of the balance cock. I managed to slightly improve the dial, however it will never be perfect, but since it is a Peseux 320 for one pound ninety nine pence, can live with that. The band claims to be "Burberry" and "Genuine leather", but I have my doubts about both claims, however it was the only 17mm strap I had left in my stash. I may change it later, but for now, it stays.
    1 point
  8. Thank you both for the replies. I remembered that I had one of the hole-closing attachments for my Seitz tool. So this gave me an excuse to finally restore my Seitz press. I pressed down on the hole with the correct attachment and in a few minutes the hole was closed up a little further than needed, do I broached it open a tad and we're all set!
    1 point
  9. The larger the diameter of your punch the higher the force needed to perform noticable work. Not knowing what the base material is it's hard to say how much force will be required to displace it. If things on your bench are jumping up and down, your bench may not be ridgid enough for this type of work. If your bench is solid enough nothing else should move. Try putting the staking set directly over the bench leg (it should have better support there) and you may have better results (just don't hit it as hard as you have been until you know that you still need to). Best of luck. Shane
    1 point
  10. Wise words @VWatchie And, don't get too concerned with beat error, especially without an adjustable stud holder. I'm intrigued by @Kalanag's problem with gain. According to Witschi to first beat is used for rate AND beat error, so it's hard to see how one can vary and not the other. Maybe with low gain, it's missing the first beat and sometimes detecting the second or third (which is used for calculating amplitude). But then you would expect variation in rate AND beat error
    1 point
  11. Oh yes, I would definitely agree with that. I really should have mentioned that I was thinking about typical Swiss movements such as ETA, Sellita, Unitas, AS, etc. Good and true input! IMO we should be concerned about the amplitude but not too concerned.
    1 point
  12. Good luck with Seiko's ! With some of mine, I consider 230° as 'good'. For (my) older watches with some wear, I consider 240° acceptable DD/DU and 220° vertical. Then again, you get an old watch, which looks to have had a good working life, and it fires up with a steady 270-300°.
    1 point
  13. Hi Joe. Not really to do with keeping your treasured watches safe as we can all find places that no one would discover to hide things in our homes. And home Internet cameras are so cheap these days. I cant remember who it was a week or so ago that was shy about showing off any of his collection, sounded as though he'd been through a bad experience. A violation of your home is not nice even with minium losses but some things can never be replaced. ive been there a couple of times. My ideas are more about what you actually put on display in your home when your security is bypassed and what you actually make accessible. A thief generally wants to be in and out with his swag with the minium of fuss, If you get my meaning. The average 2 brain celled Burglar unlikely would not have a clue what a particular handful of watches are worth.
    1 point
  14. I‘d like to share the behavior of my Weishi 1000 when altering the gain. When testing my JLC in vertical position with max. and min. gain I saw the following displays: As you can see the amplitude is not affected but the beat error is calculated wrong with the low gain!
    1 point
  15. I keep my collection in a bank safe deposit box, never thought of tricks for safe keeping at home, love to learn from your ideas. Rgds Joe
    1 point
  16. Yes, e.g. me … before I used that box. Frank
    1 point
  17. I'm just building my beginner set of tools, trying to get a good balance between "cheap" and "good". This is an initial review of a Budget Screwdriver set of 9 with Rotating Stand purchased from Labanda in Australia for $26 AUD. The kit comes with the 9 aforementioned screwdrivers, a small bag of replacement tips, and a well weighted swiveling base. For reference, they sell an economy screwdriver set for $75, three times the price, so the budget set seems like a no brainer. Initial thoughts are "I should have paid for the more expensive set". The free spinning end caps on these tools are fairly loose, with one being broken straight out of the box. The tips are very, very badly dressed and are going to need some work to reshape and polish. I don't see myself using the phillips tips, but if I do they will need to be properly dressed to prevent accidental marring of any work surfaces. Tips are either slightly bent, or the grub screws holding them in cause issues resulting in the tools not being straight enough to confidently use. I've had to epoxy the broken screwdriver back together, I have a feeling it's probably going to stay together longer now than the other screwdrivers combined. I'm not planning to return or replace these tools, because they're real cheap so no surprises, plus I have the ability to repair and dress them. It will also be good practise for me to get these into better condition in regards to tool maintenance. I'm also waiting on a few other tools/consumables to turn up before I can really make a start, so I'm not in a hurry. But if you're looking to build a budget/beginner kit and don't want to have any issues I would avoid buying these and either get a more expensive set, or get a smaller amount of better made screwdrivers for the same price. No issues with the rotating stand, it works as required and has a nice weight to it. I would considering buying a stand like this separately for use with a better set of screwdrivers.
    1 point
  18. Thanks watchweasol! I'm gonna take a look through those documents now. When I started getting tools etc together to start this hobby, I set myself a budget and tried to stick to it. My goal was to get as many of the tools and consumables as I thought I needed to get started from a "more than a complete beginner" level. These screwdrivers were actually more expensive than what I had first planned for. The only tools I feel I've really "skimped" on are these screwdrivers and some knock-off presto style hand removers. Otherwise, for 1K AUD I've tried to get a couple of practise movements, a timegrapher, oils/grease (9010, D5, 9415, molykote dx, 8200, 8217), oilers and pots, a work mat, movement and dial holder, loupes, rodico, antimagnetic tweezers, storage, dust blower, finger cots, demagnetiser, screwdrivers, band tools, case back opener, case press, etc... it seems like every time I go online I find another tool I need... I'm eyeing a bergeon 5 spoke wheel remover right now... Unfortunately I did buy the best I could afford! Some things, oils especially, you just can't compromise on. I could have easily spent 3-4 times the amount that I did, but I feel like I've made a decent start and spent/saved where I've needed to. I still need to figure something out for mainspring winding! Still, a cheaper hobby than luthiery. I've just realised I've named pretty much everything in your beginner tools document! I went Stella #2 and #5 antimagnetic for tweezers, but also got some giant weird ones in a cheap eBay "watch repair kit" that I'll probably tidy up and use for general work, movement/dial holding etc. The illustrated glossary of watch parts is fantastic! I'll definitely be refering back to that document in particular.
    1 point
  19. the bit of discomfort for a ahort while i can cope with, but the lack of attention from the missus, thats a big nooooooo.
    1 point
  20. I share your experience, but I've tried all sorts of positions just to see what effect it might have. My rule for acceptable amplitude is at least 250 degrees in all four vertical positions and at least 250 degrees (yes, 250) in both horizontal positions.
    1 point
  21. Lately I’m enjoying the metal work part of watchmaking a bit more than working on movements. Seeing the OP’s results using basic tools is an inspiration! @Neverenoughwatches, growing a beard is like getting a tattoo - only uncomfortable for the first week. After that you’re off to the races. All I’m hearing from you is excuses - and excuses are for quitters. Don’t be a quitter!
    1 point
  22. @VWatchie, when I want to test amplitude on a cased watch, I usually find best results by having the crown of the watch against the metal pick-up of the TG. It doesn’t always work, but most times I get similar amplitude readings as the uncased movement. OT, but I’m researching this exact movement on an upcoming project so thanks for the info provided regarding expected performance.
    1 point
  23. I'm curious as to is this problem occurring on all your watches or just this watch?
    1 point
  24. The pulley can be a little difficult to remove, especially if there's rust and dried up lubricants. I had to spray mine with plenty of WD40, attach a bearing puller to it and leave it under tension overnight. Every few hours I had to check the bearing puller and apply more tension if necessary. Don't be impatient. I think many lathes out there with chipped pulleys were a result of impatience.
    1 point
  25. OK, the headstock and tailstock are pretty clean now. I printed oil caps because the originals were missing. I have the cross slide soaking now. One thing that is a little odd about this setup. The lathe bed is not Levin, which is not so odd, I guess, but it appears that it was not mounted to anything. So with the motor driving the pulley, what kept the tension? My plan is to remove the bell mounts and mount the bed and the motor on the same platform. The lathe bed, BTW, is very very heavy, so that may be why it worked for the former owner. I am loving this thing more and more every day.
    1 point
  26. Recording a slo-mo video is the only way to determine the amplitude for sure. Looking at your videos I'd say you have something like 190 degrees. So, very much in line with what you stated previously.
    1 point
  27. Hi. I suppose the obvious first question is are you using the correct or most appropriate punches, You are using domed punches ?
    1 point
  28. The balance does not have to toc on that ruby plate. Its slight movement up and down influences a high frequency oscillator via a metal plate that is one side of a capacitor. The varying frequency is base of the evaluation. Maybe because it turns an unpleasant task into pure joy? And is doable by unexperienced persons with limited time. Frank
    1 point
  29. @ossing In the scope view you cannot see the "length" of the pallets, but - somehow related - you can see if the "lock" is ok or too deep. If shallow, ok or deep, it will occur on both pallet views! The middle one of those three main pulses of the tic noise indicates the start of the impulse that drives the balance. The later it comes (more right), the deeper was the lock. @Neverenoughwatches As you expected, a balance w/ hairspring alone will not produce a detectable noise for timing. You may hold them hovering, just the lower pivot touching the mic once every swing, as John said. But I have no idea, how exact and repeatable this method is. There is an electronic counting box available, but not for pennies, and you will need a Luthy, not cheap, too. I know the Swatch school Pforzheim/Germany uses this setup. For display they use the Witschi WE in BPH mode. At least the 18000 balances you can simply test with a stopwatch, timing e.g. 50 full swings. Frank
    1 point
  30. I may be wrong but are the green dial feet retainers are part of the green plastic circuit board? I would use some G-S hypo cement glue in the damaged area to attach the dial. The glue is easy to remove when servicing.
    1 point
  31. At this point, you would trim the bracelet side, but I didn’t need to with this one. Clean up flashing, file edges lightly, round corners and finish by removing blemishes from the face with 600-1000 grit in even, parallel strokes for a brushed finish. Follow up with metal polish, only if you want a mirror/chrome-like finish. For two tone, mask your brushed areas and polish the rest. Slide your 45 degree flap trough the bracelet slot and carefully bend the flap shut so that you don’t warp the face (if you want a curved face, gently squeeze the ends of the link with pliers to bow the face out...this is tricky at first). You only get one shot at it. If you try to open it back up, you will warp it. Do it right the first time. Sanded piece is pictured on the left, unfinished on the right.
    1 point
  32. Certainly, certainly I will post pictures with some walkthroughs of the methods I used. Nothing too difficult or fancy, but the result is nearly perfect. A daytime shot:
    1 point
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