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Beautiful watch. I have always enjoyed BULOVA watches, collecting and repairing them. I have probably 50 in my collection and hundreds of parts movements and thousands of individual parts. A BULOVA accutron was the first watch I ever purchased myself at 10 years old, and I also have both my grandfathers watches that are BULOVAs. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

A nice watch with a long name . Automatic , 19 jewels , day / date with the day in Kanji at 6 o'clock , 38mm w/out crown , the standard Orient date change push button , and a scuba dude emblem on the caseback . A friend and acquaintance from the Seiko Citizen Watch Forum and regular seller of hard to get Seikos and Citizens on Ebay , that goes by the username of Seikocitizencollector , emailed me and asked If i could look at his NOS CitizenHi-Sonic for a few repairs . On a normal mechanical watch the repairs are minor , but the Hi-Sonic has the same movement as the Bulova Accutron tuning fork 218 model . The stem would not stay in the watch so he took it to a watchmaker for the repair and when he got it back the stem was still out and now the watch would still hum but not run . He sent the watch to me and I discovered that the setting lever screw was broken . To replace the screw you have to remove the train wheel bridge ,which on a regular mechanical watch isn't a big deal , but on an Accutron you start sweating bullets because you have to deal with the tiny index and pawl jewel fingers , and the VERY delicate 320 tooth index wheel . To make a long story short I asked for a watch in payment . He was awaiting a lot from Japan and he gave me several good choices , and I chose the Orient . When I got it I found the tightest case back in the history of the world . It was tight , had dirt and was rusted to the case . It took me a couple of weeks to finally loosen it . I found a very clean movement inside . It came with an expansion watch band which I changed out with one I had in my stash as well as install a new crystal ........... The Gentleman was also kind enough to include a bonus watch . A Seiko 5 , with a 5126 - 7040 movement and case . The 5126 movement is a little more complicated then the standard Seiko movements in it's autowind mechanism . Gears instead of the normal "Magic Fingers "

+2.5 cheapo eyeglasses from poundshop, and another pair with 20X loupe stuck on with Rodico for setting up pre-position of Accutron fingers. I found using loupe as designed it steamed up all the time causing irritation and annoyance, just when you get the damned things aligned--you couldn't see 'em anymore. All normal dissassembly and reassembly done with just the eyeglasses. Parts examination done at 20x For Indexing I use a £5 cheapo Chinese microscope 100x I modded for the job. Indexing jewels look like two house-bricks on a circular sawblade Works for me!

Ive found a trick that may work with other watches, but works great for Accutron 214,--which is basically most of what Ive been doing lately.... bung all four wheels in, lay bridge carefully in place, lined up with dowels and screw-holes, then gently tap movement holder at 45 deg angle with tweezers they all just fall into place, bung screws in after confirming train free--job done. --It took longer for me to write this, than to refit the four wheels and bridge to the 214, but as I say--it may not work for other movements. poking round inside Accutron with a pin or summit to line wheels up is Not an option due to delicate nature of index-wheel--one touch on the teeth of that, its stuffed.

I use these for small parts like Accutron index-wheels in the ultrasonic-- http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2ml-test-tube-sample-vials-container-with-snap-cap-x-25-Freepost-/120916343579?hash=item1c272cfb1b:g:8VkAAOSwPe1Tz5aQ The advantage is--being a sorta softish plastic, parts bouncing round due to the ultra dont get damaged as could be possible using a glass bottle/vial/beaker, being semi sealed you can use any cleaning fluid you like in them with just water in the ultrasonic tank keeping cleaner fluids costs down --Yup. I'm a cheapskate!

The post office just delivered this Astronaut ll . I got it to compliment my collection of my two other Bulova Astronauts . Bulova has seen to install three different types of movements for each . My first Astronaut is a vintage Accutron with the 214 Tuning fork movement . My second is the Automatic Buzz Aldrin signed limited edition version . And my latest is the Astronaut ll with the Very accurate Precisionist movement ,...what a smooth second hand . Here's a look at the second hand's sweep...... I chose the economical blue model with the blue textured leather strap because of its simplicity that seems to highlight the smooth second hand's sweep . Not a bad price at all.... And you have an option . Black dial and SS coffin link bracelet ,...at yet another deal.... From 2014... And the Watch...

I repaired a Accutron a year ago but I don't own one yet. All of my own Bolova's have Swiss movements. So I still want a older American made movement Bolova. Accutrons seem to fall victim to "free" battery changes. The one I fixed was a mess of corrosion from a busted gasket.

Wow , If you are ready to attempt a service on a bellmatic my hat's off to you and I wish you good luck . I have never really been a Bellmatic fan , but it just so happens that I picked up a free donor yesterday that has broken parts but a beauty blue dial and the original band . This watch has seen better days , but i picked up a running watch, head only , that is the same case as the non-runner . I hope to get one nice runner from the 2 watches . I guess I was on a Bellmatics roll because I also picked up this Nice running specimen for a good price . It needs a new crystal that I am in the process of getting , but it has a coffin link Bracelet that I'm a sucker for . I have a coffin link on my Bulova Accutron Astronaut and I love it . Do you have the Bellmatic / 4006 tech sheet ? It's quite long and involved and you may want to study it before you start your project . If I'm not mistaken , the Seiko 66 morphed into the 6602 which tech sheets are also available . You can go to the Seiko Citizen Watch forum and find those tech sheets and many other things Seiko and Citizen .

Howzit ramrod , 10 running and about 3 or 4 for in the works . I need complete balances with good coils for the 505 and complete contact springs for the 500's .Hard to get parts .There are donor movements for sale , and not cheap , but there's no guaranty on the parts being good ....Similar to Accutron donors . There are a couple more electrics I want to get and a few mechanicals of similar design . The problem is I started out with the more available , less expensive models . It's an uphill climb from here .

Make me appreciate my accutron even more.

Great video! I was given an Accutron recently and now I have a much better appreciation of its historical significance and technology.

jdrichard ask how to clean an electric watch . I am going to start this thread by posting from the Hamilton Electric watch manual.... And from the Accutron 218 Service manual.... With the Hamilton electrics it is a normal service cleaning procedure , EXCEPT for the Balance wheel . The balance wheel has a coil attached that should not be subjected to harsh chemicals , alcohol , or petroleum based solvents . I am speaking of the coil itself . As for the rest of the components on the balance staff I use a hairspring cleaner applied with an eyedropper directly on the hairspring and a fine cosmetic or watercolor brush to clean it and then lay it on absorbent paper and use my blower to dry it . I also use the brush to clean the the other parts on the balance shaft ,...and there are quire a few little goodies on it , and use the hairspring cleaner or 91 percent Isopropyl alcohol .

Howzit Shirley , Thanks for the kind offer of the service manual . I have a couple of versions . Some I found online , some in some watch repair books I have , and one really good one I bought online . Both the 500 and the 505 are pretty hard to get parts for . You can find donor parts for sale on ebay , but they are heavily sought after and expensive ., Most offerings say that the balance turns freely which is something you would look for in a mechanical watch , ...but the balance assembly has all the other parts on the shaft that have to be good to be usable . Also the 500 needs the plate with delicate trigger and contact springs . They get broken or knocked off very easily . I saw one of your posts where you mentioned you had Accutron parts . I will get around to sending you a PM to inquire about those parts soon , if that's OK ? Here is a pic of what the Everest looked like with the black band.... And here's a pic of what the Pegasus Model looks like . I just noticed that the pic didn't make it to the party in my original post .... Cheers , Louis

Just as a note of interest, timekeepers like the Bulova Accutron were electro-mechanical devices. The oscillating mechanism (tuning fork) was connected mechanically to the hands with a solenoid and ratchet mechanism. What some people call an electronic time keeper has to do with the way the tuning fork oscillations are counted. It was known for many years that running a current into a quartz crystal would cause the crystal to vibrate. Since the vibrations occur on an atomic level they vibrate at a much faster rate. The problem was quartz crystals were too large to fit into a watch. Japanese engineers figured out how to reduce the size of the quartz crystal by machining it into the shape of a small tuning fork. This allowed a much faster vibration that was not practical to count mechanically. This problem was solved by using a digital counting register available in an integrated circuit. The circuit works by using a string of 16 flip flop circuits. A flip flop circuit is the electronic equivalent of a latched relay. Logically it does the same thing but on a practical level flip flops operate at a much faster rate. The upper time limit of a relay is based on the response of its mechanical components while the upper time limit of a flip flop is based on the speed of electricity. The first 15 elements of the register count the vibrations from 2^0(1) through 2^15(32,768). The next vibration moves the count to 2^16 which is used as a flag bit. At this point the register is reset and a polarity reversing circuit is triggered. This circuit provides the necessary pulse to drive a stepper motor. A stepper motor consists of a rotor with a north-south magnetic field projecting radially from the rotational axis. When an electromagnetic field is generated around the armature it rotates to the field of opposite polarity and stops. When the field is reversed the armature again moves and stops. The direction of rotation is controlled by making the path of one field longer than the other. The stepper motor is connected through a gear train (plastic gears) that drives the hands. david

A week or two ago I read on a forum (I think it was this one, but I could be wrong) about an electrical mechanical watch they had repaired. This type of watch up until then I didn't know existed (How much I still have to learn). From what I understand these watches were very short lived in the 1970s and used an electrical circuit to energise a magnet to swing the balance and were just before quartz watches came into being. I'm aware of tuning fork watches like the Accutron, but know very little about these other electrical watches. Has anyone got a good resource they can point me at so I can read up on them more, or recommend a few brands / models to look out for to buy? At the moment I don't want any rare or super expensive ones, just some good ones to learn to work on. Thanks Tony

That second link is fascinating! I gotta save that one. This is my first exposure to the beta series. I've never heard of them before This Titus. I'll take a look at the movement tomorrow. I can say this about it: the second moved more smoothly than any of my other swissonics but it is NOT in the range of Accutron smooth. The ticks are barely perceptible. I should put up a video. So, I can assume that the dial says beta because it is a beta. Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

Ah thank you. Somehow that makes me feel better inside (as well as provoking laughter on the outside). Related- I serviced my father's Accutron about two weeks back. I spent more time on my hands and knees than I did sitting at the workbench. This is not an exaggeration!

Welcome, from one who does a lot of fishin on the bay, from my experience have found many good whole watches in "lots" that contain some pretty junky trash, the downside is you are left over with copious amounts of usually quartzers that are not worth any effort to fix. Also, some sellers are totally unaware of value, so that's a plus, other sellers try to strategically place an Accutron or other mid to high end watch in a pile of junk. (just to sell the lot), again if priced right in your budget you can have success. The one thing I watch out for is 'running' statements, I have seen sellers list watches as running, but they stop after short time, usually indicates an automatic, I have seen non-running auto's in need of battery! Still even other watches are out of category on the bay, so generic searches on manufacture/brand name, then check sub categories for more detail. If you do your homework and research the brand you want to work with you may find buying a bit more rewarding and yes a functioning watch is better to work on to start with then trying to diagnose and repair a broken one. Agree with oldhippy on this, I have been to estate sales and picked up Accutrons for as little as $25. I bought a 21j pocketwatch from seller on Clist for under $100. But look for complete watches, case, dial, hands, crystal, movement, bracelet/strap, once you get to working on them, less time and $$$ will be spent on parts. Condition is everything! so dials or hands that have rust will probably mean scrap. Good luck!

My name is Shirley. I have been fascinated by watch repair since the sixties. My father was a watch repairman for over fifty years in San Antonio, Texas, USA. He was a railroad watch inspector for Southern Pacific Railroad back when they used to have their watches inspected. That was before quartz watches. He worked on a lot of Hamilton, Illinois and Elgin pocket watches. When Bulova Accutrons came out, he worked on a ton of those. In fact, he wore a Railroad Accutron for many years. For a decade or so, he did watch repair by day (in my uncle's jewelry shop) and worked on the railroad at night. Eventually, he retired from the railroad and bought the jewelry store from my uncle and did watch repair full time. When he got older he developed Parkinson's and his hands became too shaky to repair watches. I bought his tools and thought I might try my hand at it, but it wasn't as easy as my father had made it look. I decided to take a watch repair course, but didn't get very far before my father became too ill and I had to quit and move back home to help take care of him. In the course, I had learned just enough to strip me of any false confidence I may have had. I can take a basic watch apart and put it back together... I don't promise I could repair it. But I'm dragging the tools and a few old watches out and trying my hand at it again. Mark's videos have given me back the confidence to try. I really look forward to interacting with any fellow watch repair friends here. I hope not only to learn a bit, but maybe share a bit of what I learn also. I will definitely take photos...

So, a lot of the guys on this forum really know their stuff and are heavily involved in servicing and the like. Some of the other forums have groups of 'fanboys' (I suppose they might be called) who will defend their brand of choice to the death. I got into horology through Seiko because of their low entry point (for mechanicals). To use an analogy, I'm probably still using stabilisers when it comes to knowledge. What I'm getting at in a roundabout way is....Should I be surprised that so many people on this forum love their Seikos so much? N.b. I've got several Seiko watches, so to mix it up a bit here's my Bulova Accutron Deep sea from 1970 (same age as me)

I've always loved watches and always wanted to collect them. Knowing That most of the watches I'm drawn too are well out of my reach, I never started collecting. I'd wear what ever Quartz someone might gift to me and once it was beat to hell I'd just toss it. At, 45 I decided to try and rebuild my first watch, another long time bucket list item. That was my 1968 Bulova Oceanographer that I picked up at an estate sale for $10 purely by chance. After that one I had intentions of finding, fixing, and selling vintage watches. That was back in January. I've run into a slight twist in the plan though. After fixing and wearing for a day or two, I can't bring myself to sell them. With that said, I have now become a collector. Here is my modest collection that I have gotten much enjoyment from. 1968 Bulova Oceanographer 1976 Bulova Accutron 1975 Timex Automatic Early 90's Zarja 3105 Early to mid 89's Vostok Amphibian Vostok Kommandirski (unknown age) Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Wow Seiko 7A38 , I don't know where the links for your Yema watches went , but that Yema Spationaute iii is Super .. My dinky Yema Meangraf pales by comparison , but I like it . One of Yemas rally models ... I started off this topic sharing some of the watches I have become attached to because of the various repair issues I had with each , therefore gaining an affection for them . Now I will share some of the watches that are truly some of my favorites . Each one of these just makes me feel good when I wear it . First off , top left is my Breitling 42 Abyss. The first real nice watch I bought a few years back before I started watch collecting . The depth rating for this one is 5000 ft . To be honest , I can't hold my breath for that long . To the upper right of that watch is an Accutron Astronaut . The favorite of my Accutrons . I like the look with the coffin link watchband . This model has the 214 movement . Just below those two watches is my Omega Planet Ocean . To me a very handsome and accurate watch with it's Co-Axial movement . What's not to like about this watch . The only white dialed watch in this group is a Junghans Max Bill design automatic watch . It has a classic look with the Bauhaus style . I had wanted a Max Bill design watch for a while and stumbled into this one at the pawn shop . I had bought , sold , and traded watches with the owner in the past , and he gave me a deal on this one I couldn't refuse . To the right of the Junghans is a Seiko 6105 - 8110 diver that I also got in the same Pawn shop . I looked like it had been under water for years when I got it . Salty , crusty , and not very good looking . To my pleasant surprise when I opened up the case back , the movement was immaculate and all of the gaskets were still supple . They did their job . I traded the owner straight across for a Seiko 6309 - 7290 diver that I had that was looking real good to him . Last , but certainly not least is my Omega Speedmaster Mark ii Chronograph . A good looking , good felling watch on the wrist .This watch came out the same year , 1969 , as the Omega Speedmaster Moon watch I hope you enjoy looking at them as much as I do ....Aloha , Louis

Hello Jason and welcome, I saw Georges reference and have PM'd you a list of PDF's and a site reference, hopefully there are no problems. I am in the process of creating an Accutron entry for the PDF / Document library and once Mark is back from Holiday he is amending my permissions to set it up and add other documents I have obtained in the public domain. If you have been servicing them for a few years doubtless you have come across info I and others will be interested in. I had difficulty up to the point where I bought a stereo microscope with 70x mag which was the the point where I was able to set the "draw" and phasing the accutron was more viable ie I could actually see the teeth on the index wheel. I know others have managed with other types of magnifying devices but my eyes are not up to it. The site I referred you to:- http://members.iinet.net.au/~fotoplot/acc.htm is a gold mine of information and you could do worse than reading through it. My thanks go to Rob Berkavicius and his co-writers for providing so much valuable information that set me off on the right path. Cheers, Vic

Hello and welcome! There are Accutron specialists hanging around here, I'm sure opinions will be plentifull.