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Thanks. Was able to service including new mainspring. Nicely finished Certina 414 movement in a front loading case (solid case back) using a split stem—similar to several Bulovas I’ve serviced.

With my staking set came 3 stumps. Can't find any more on ebay. Therefore I shall make my own. Already made no. 11, but height too short. Ordered some 6mm and 10mm mild steel rods. As with the staking set I will make most of the 'Watch Craft' type myself. No lathe, just diligent filing. I have a friend who has a drill, so hopefully I can make the relevant holes myself. I reckon, 1 a week. 1, 8, 9, and 10, from the 10mm bar. The rest from the 6mm bar. Cost £6.39p. No charge to myself for the time.

WRT does not support FreeCAD file types. PM me and I will attach to my reponse (if it lets me), or we will go offline via email. My design was a simple hack more or less. All measurements except for the width of the movement were SWAGs. You will see in the FC file, I created a spreadsheet to parameterize the elements. The extra piece on the bottom to fit the movement holder was also an "addon" hack using the Part workbench. It too is a hack...lol. When exporting to stl, you have to select two sets of elements. If I were to do it over again, I would assemble the whole thing using Part Design workbench.

Hi Ithink Bergeron do very well with their emasculation devices. The price alone is enough to make your b**ls squeak.

It doubles as a castration device. You can get them for much cheaper, 2 bricks can work just as well

Hi. 7 weeks in hospital kicked the crap out of me, and at nearly 80. Was a bit severe bur I survived although not able to get back to the watches, hands a little unsteady I shall in time. I have a cylinder in the workshop ready tp go. But I remain on here to help where I can. After 60 years doing watches and clocks I can’t let go yet. Cheers to all

This any help? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaLGF9hTySE

Surprisingly, I got another 404 club entry on the way. This one I paid $3.75 for, plus a minor shipping charge. No info on the movement yet. Seems that I find the obscure brands.

This is the room I’ll be setting up in. That’s a 5 person spa to try and give you a size reference. To the right of the photo is a glass sliding door. Hope you get better soon @watchweasol

Come on - have a guess! Someone must have a clue?!

Interesting idea to make your own stumps. Are you going to heat treat them? I was finally able to use my staking set. I am servicing a pocket watch and the hole in the barrel bridge for the barrel arbor had too much side shake as well as the hole for the 2nd wheel pivot.

I have a similar watch. Carefully remove the 4 screws on the back and the caseback will detach. Inside should be a movement ring and standard setting level screw to loosen 1 and a half turns or so to pull the stem out.

But anyways, that was kinda obvious That tool looks like an instrument of torture from the time of the Spanish Inquisition. I'll google about this tool, thanks !

Runs faster.

If they are anything like the chinese clone horias then the steel is definitely softer compared to the same tool in vintage. Not so much of a problem with a jewel pusher, a different story with a stake.

I haven’t bought one myself but have heard that the punches are pretty soft and deform. there is a good chance someone here has bought one of these Chinese sets and can make a better informed comment. Tom

That‘s it, Ross! You are thr greatest! Many thanks to you and the other helpful contributers ! Karl

After more research I'm reasonably sure that it does unscrew.

Best of luck! The couple of times I've had to get into a watch through the front, I felt like I won the lottery each time the puzzle was solved. Hopefully a solution comes soon!

Nah, the bridge for the automatic works holds the hack in place and as soon as you remove it, it's free to jump into your shag carpeting. You have to be very careful not to jostle it out of position when the bridge is replaced or you'll be tearing it down again, or worse, looking for a replacement part.

Sorry to hear that @watchweasol. Praying for your speedy and complete recovery.

Sorry for being OT. “I said ‘What I’m hearing from Wuhan is that they made a big mistake in putting people on intubated ventilators for an extended period’. This is actually what is damaging the lungs, not Covid. It’s the treatment, the cure is worse than the disease. And people yelled at me and said I'm not a doctor, yeah but I do make spaceships with life support systems. What do you do?” ~ Elon Musk I take it you're not on an intubated ventilator, but I thought it was an interesting quote. Get well!

WW so sorry to hear of your predicament, I wish you a speedy recovery to full health.

Hi use your thumb nails. They break before the teeth and are easier to repair.

I'd vote for option 2 but let's see what the experts say.

Hello Justin, welcome to the forum.

Hello and welcome from Leeds, England. Most newbies are surprised how small the parts are, you'll be amazed how big they are. Hehe.

I usually use a butane microtorch for heating seized screws. Depending on the type of threadlocker used, sometimes the parts need to be heated to 150°C before the bond is weakened. Before applying heat, make sure that any heat sensitive parts are removed, like orings, gaskets, etc. Although it might have a right hand thread, it usually helps to turn the part in both directions to break the adhesive bonds.

With no power on the mainspring, give the balance a good blast with a puffer and see how long it oscillates - should be over 30s

https://www.watchrepairtalk.com/applications/core/interface/file/attachment.php?id=36277 Should work.

Here is an update on the movement holder. When I store an unfinished movement in the popular domed parts carrier, it tends to flop around if I try to place it in the center. The solution was to put a base on the holder that sits nicely in the center partition.

Long time no see everyone! Nothing serious happened, but now I have a question about balance frequency. Is it all about balance ? For example, if I have a watch with 21.600 and than I replace the balance from watch with 28.800, will it affect on the amplitude, b.e. and accuracy? I'm asking because I did it ... Also this balance is wobbling while running, do you have any advice to fix it? Thanks everyone!