Endeavor

Many here do have, or started off with a reasonable low dollar kit and if you get your fingers to do what you want them to do, you can get fairly far with them ! Once you get better, you most likely like / want to have some better tools. Whether these watch-tools ever going to be heavy enough to bring your other arm just as long as your tool-kit arm, that needs to be seen Just like Geo; curious what you get up to ......

@cduke; I'm sure somebody would have jump in this thread, given enough time ...... Oh, you see, Nucejoe just did as well To continue the answer given in the introduction section there is another thing you could check. Here the same picture again Some cover plates do have a kind of spring, holding down the clutch lever. If the clutch lever is not hold down enough, it is more prone to jump out of the clutch groove.

Can't you close it or prevent new entries?

@Nucejoe: You are absolutely right in saying that there are different techniques of how to do things. You are also right in saying that it is sometimes not so easy to navigate through the site to find the answers; even though it took me no more then 15 seconds to find the ST96 walkthrough. The problem is however that the other questions are hidden in a thread called "Remove watch dial". If a new thread were to be opened for each questions, chances are higher that the answers given to that question may pop up in the search function faster. This also may prevent that answers to that specific question (and therefor the knowledge spectrum) get lost, or do hide in a thread which deals with another problem. If we all do an effort in shoring up the question & answers, the search function may actually start to yield better results; and that will hopefully help (new) members to find answers to their questions. I find it hard to imagine that on this forum most basic questions are not already answered / explained in several different ways. However, for specific questions / problems, a new thread should indeed be opened so we can all learn from the given answers. @Leelemon; If you can't find the answer to your question in the search function, feel free to open another thread with your next question. Many members will gladly help you, be it by answering or by pointing you in the right direction

Oh well, if that's the case, I have a whole host of other questions ........... no, just kidding Thanks a lot !

@Leelemon: A very interesting thread so far. It started with removing the dial and that problem was nicely solved. Then another question came, then another ...... You may be interested and glad to find out that there is a search function on this forum and more than likely most of your questions have already been answered. There is even already a complete walkthough of the ST96, waiting for you to be visited: All you have to do is a little search ....... and you may find even more information than you ever wished for .... Hope this helps you for in the future ........

Of course if one has studied history, one knows better, but I can only guesstimated in my fantasy how Ben Shuckforth would have ordered those pillars, spandrels and hands. No telephone, no DHL, no PayPal. For me it's even hard to remember how life was in the 60's-'70's-'80's and a part of the nineties before the computer appeared in mass. All I can remember is that the system worked and life was just fine, so I do assume that Ben was happy too with the way things were. I once heard a South African, who lived rural, saying: "we have the time, you guys have watches". Even though it was off topic, I appreciate the time you took to explain and educate us. Thank you !

Sorry if I drift away from your initial intention, but i like to grab this learning opportunity if you don't mind .......? In the mid nineties I bought my Dial-clock in Melbourne, Australia. To learn more about these clocks, I also bought a book about Dial Clocks. The above mentioned bracket-clock is estimated from around 1770. Consulting my Dial Clock book, comparing the pillars it comes up with a pillar design of the 1770 or the pillar from the period 1780-1840. The hands puts the clock around 1780....... according to my Dial-clock book. But this seems then also to be thru for bracket-clocks ........ !? Which make me wonder about how come ... ? I know that London was the most advanced in clock making and I guess they did set the design trend. Which hands or pillars to use. Some designs slowly spread to the countryside and therefor they were in longer use than they were in London, hence the dating is often given in a period of years; from then to then. So my question is; were there, for example with the pillars and hands specialized companies who "mass" produced these and a clock-maker could order these parts from those respective specialized companies? Or, in order to make the pillars & hands identical according to the latest fashion of that specific period, were there reference (latest design / fashion) books floating around which could be consulted by a clock-maker? Same counts for the chains ...... I do assume that they were ordered from a specific specialized company or did each clock-maker made the chains themselves? Clear to see on the Ben Shuckforth (Diss, Norfolk) clock I did begin this year, that nearly all part were hand-made, but for example the dial ornaments in the corners seemed to be "mass" produced? (perhaps Ben made the hands himself or ordered them ??) Any idea how that went in those days .......? Did they have a kind of "assembly-lines" for certain clock-parts ....? (was a kind of CousinsUK already around )

@Jim61; I can't see (unless I overlooked something) that anybody replied to your introduction Have you fallen through the cracks of this forum ?? Are you still there? I'm sure the forum would love to have you, as an experienced engineer, onboard !! Please use in the "Introduce yourself here" section the green "Start new Topic" button (top right) to create a new introduction thread for yourself If I'm wrong and you are already happily cruising along on this forum ...... then welcome from me

@measuretwice & @oldhippy; Thanks both for the info. I's nice to see both the old-way and the more modern-way of making these chains. It's is very nice from Peter Mower to describe in detail how it's done and how to make the tools for it; a labor of love I like to add. I also like the little YouTube video about the pin-making "Petermann" machine. For some reason I always liked "simple-complexity", solid and last "forever", never mind the exciting smell of oil around them I used to have a fusee Balloon clock (8 days with strike) and it had, next to a more square groove in the fusee, indeed faint chain markings on the barrel, but it ran on catgut cord ..... All I knew at that time was that 2nd hand chains were expensive and of unknown quality, so I was happy to leave it to run on catgut cord. I would assume that in those days catgut driven clocks were cheaper and of "lower" quality than the chain driven clocks (?)

That's indeed a very nice clean movement. Not that I have the cash for it, but it's always nice to learn if the opportunity arises. Has this clock always had a catgut cord, or was it originally chain driven? Can you see? I've a 1870's dial-clock and the fusee has a rounded "spiral" in it, so I do assume it was meant for catgut, which it currently has. Is the fusee the only tell-tail with regards to whether it was originally chain driven or catgut cord? And if it was a chain-driven, can one still buy these chains or do you need to source an old one? I guess how these chains were made in the old days is a story on it's own, wasn't it a children's job? If you feel like to tell about it, I'm all ears ....... !

@yankeedog; thank you for your suggestion I know this thread has become very, very long, but we've invented a name for this check after Rodabod's idea: "The paper tissue trick". If you go back to page one, you'll see it being born So far it's not clear to me whether the draw and lock is as it supposed to be. That, and more, I have to cover in my upcoming investigation.

Thank you for the additional information I now also understand again how the coil / capacitor circuitry works. Where I was initially a bit puzzled about was what kind of capacitor was used and therefor whether the AC was first converted to DC. Now knowing the L/C principle again, it may be wise to put up a schematic of your system with the details of the components. We don't want somebody to grab an electrolytic capacitor and "blows the place" or seriously harm himself....... The modern electrolytic capacitors do rupture, or have a relief-valve, but the old ones don't, and they take off like a rocket when connected to AC or hooked up wrongly to DC. (don't ask me how I know ) So if you have a simple schematic of your system with the components details, then at least that part is covered Thanks again!

@NucejoeThank you for your suggestions If and when I make progress and find any clues as to what may cause the current problems, I'll open a new thread in the "help & repair" section. Currently there is in the "Help & Repair" section already the very long novel about these movements (see link above), which can be extended but that one has become already so long and therefore hardly readable. Best is to wait for the new thread. I think we should let this thread be the walkthrough and leave futher "help&repair"-suggestion for the next thread. I'm working hard towards it ! Thanks to everybody for your help and suggestions so far

@Nucejoe; thank you Do you have a link to the source of your info?