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By Terrinecold · Posted
Good progress made on the assembly. Next step the barrel (and gear train ) bridge time to breath a bit and go rock climbing. Interestingly lots of place where I thought one would put some oil (hp) Miyota recommends grease: center wheel pivots. Driving gear for ratchet wheel pivots reduction wheel pivots -
By ManSkirtBrew · Posted
I totally agree with @Mercurial's points on starting with a known-running watch, and the ST36 being larger and easier to service. That said, my first repair was an Elgin 345, which taught me an awful lot about non-interchangeable parts. My next one was a very similar Caravelle, and I have to say I really love those Bulova movements and have done many since. They are very nice to work on, and as you noted parts are readily available. For the most part you can get away with the phone camera's zoom, especially for assembly/disassembly pictures. One piece of hard-learned advice: take more than you think you need. Unless I know for a fact that screws are the same, I keep them segregated with the parts they were holding on. Right up until I bump my parts tray and mix them all up, at least. You can see here how the automatic works are in one compartment, the train bridge in another, keyless works in another. I like to keep the balance and pallet fork in the center with their associated screws--I clean them separately and want to make sure they're kept safely away from other parts. I heard a great phrase on someone's Youtube video that stuck with me: "good screw discipline." Yes, definitely a 4x or 5x loupe. With a 10x you get much shorter working distance (you have to be around 1" from the work) and shallower depth of field. I know it's a little spendy, but a stereo microscope is hands-down the best purchase I've made. Honestly if I had only loupes to work with I might not have stuck with the hobby. It's such a pleasure for my rapidly aging eyes and back. I've even figured out how to tilt it so I can use it to install hands and work with my staking set. Having both eyes also helps with depth perception. Hope that helps, and good luck! -
By RichardHarris123 · Posted
I did the same, even cleaning the parts individually, very time consuming, but it works. Eventually you won't need too, you will recognise the difference. -
By watchweasol · Posted
Hello and welcome to the forum. Just follow Richard’s instructions, pictures are always useful in determining problems. Cheap watches are usually pry backs and some can be very tight. -
There was a thread recently here on WRT (April or early May?) with ideas to keep the various parts sorted, so you may want to search for that. As mentioned above, with experience you will begin to notice the different traits of various screws as they relate to their function and it'll be easier to sort out, especially if you practice with a particular movement or movement family. I use a divided watch parts tray with lid when I'm working on something new to me. Each subsection of the movement is taken apart and the related bridges, springs and screws are placed together. I can then take a photograph before removing the large parts for cleaning. By referring to the picture you can easily reunite the parts during assembly after performing any needed manual cleaning of the screws and springs.
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