Jump to content

Recommended Posts

2 minutes ago, chrisdt said:

Still think the chinese copy of the Bergeon 5700 is the best value for money.

Yes it is. But the alternatives above have the advantage of being more compact, or simpler to use without removing the band, and more economical.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

I'm an on AliX shopping spree. The regular size opener came today, $10 round with quick (18 days) shipping.
Good quality, tight action, it's made of machined plates of some alloy, not stamped/plated one. Tip retainers are a flat spring, not ball and spring (which can pop out).  I had to slightly reshape one square tip.
BTW, I have learned that Chinese tools are not all the same. My opener came branded as Chainda, which is the equivalent of Bergeon, redistributing products of better quality from other factories. But in this case the original manufacturer leaves their marking on the product.

china-2688-Watch-repair-tools-triangle-open-back-cover-tools-can-open-the-maximum-of-36mm.png

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm an on AliX shopping spree. The regular size opener came today, $10 round with quick (18 days) shipping.
Good quality, tight action, it's made of machined plates of some alloy, not stamped/plated one. Tip retainers are a flat spring, not ball and spring (which can pop out).  I had to slightly reshape one square tip.
BTW, I have learned that Chinese tools are not all the same. My opener came branded as Chainda, which is the equivalent of Bergeon, redistributing products of better quality from other factories. But in this case the original manufacturer leaves their marking on the product.
china-2688-Watch-repair-tools-triangle-open-back-cover-tools-can-open-the-maximum-of-36mm.png.d8faab32028c26fad0db6eec90cd22de.png

Where is the link so I can buy one!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, jdrichard said:


Hey, thanks. Plus, usually free shipping:) I live in Canada.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

    "spend it while you got it" !  i am still trying to find the double handled one.  a good investment till the next crash.  vin

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 10/30/2019 at 6:24 PM, vinn3 said:

  does Cousins  have a store in the U S ?

We aren't talking about a multinational.
They apply actual shipping cost, and you don't pay any customs fees. Hard to do better than that.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 10/14/2019 at 5:32 PM, jdm said:

Here's the new one I was waiting for, I have received it today for $33. DSC_0073.thumb.JPG.8782fee99f70fd01a32ee52f3172b06a.JPG

I can now vouch that it works very good and it's worth its price. Opened a tight Vagary (Citizen) in 10 seconds, which has so many ugly scarves from failed attempts. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The issues I had with two different Jaxa copies was that there was slight play in the bit holders. This isn't a good thing when working on more expensive watches. The Swiss ones by Wit or Bergeon (same fabricator) don't have excessive play.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 hours ago, rodabod said:

The issues I had with two different Jaxa copies was that there was slight play in the bit holders.

Check if they have a ball and spring retainer (bad) as opposed to a flat spring (good) as mentioned above. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This holder block is an absolute winner for $1.31. Sturdy as hell, 10 times better than the ones with the 4 round posts that alway bend and pop out.

The lever below it has the same small price, I haven't tried it yet but looks like can pry strongly when inserted. 

DSC_0105-800x600.JPG

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

This holder block is an absolute winner for $1.31. Sturdy as hell, 10 times better than the ones with the 4 round posts that alway bend and pop out.
The lever below it has the same small price, I haven't tried it yet but looks like can pry strongly when inserted. 
DSC_0105-800x600.JPG.a6fa6574af6105f3ef255039f41dfbd4.JPG

Please post a link to one of these, or tell me where you found it. Google is not my friend, all I can find are the 4-round-post-that-pop-out kind. Thank you!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, bobo383 said:

Please post a link to one of these, or tell me where you found it. Google is not my friend, all I can find are the 4-round-post-that-pop-out kind. Thank you!

No sweat, https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32854299738.html
May I suggest that that you don't include pics when quoting. As it makes the topic more cumbersome to read. 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 11/7/2019 at 7:19 PM, jdm said:

Check if they have a ball and spring retainer (bad) as opposed to a flat spring (good) as mentioned above. 

I had a look, and all the the Swiss ones have a round spring and ball which retains the bits. However, there is no play here as the bits are almost an interference fit in the bit holders. The cause of the play that I found was in the threaded rods and bit holders which are held between two plates.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

21 hours ago, rodabod said:

I had a look, and all the the Swiss ones have a round spring and ball which retains the bits. However, there is no play here as the bits are almost an interference fit in the bit holders. 

Good, but isn't so on the Chinese ones, the ball can even pop out and get lost as happened to mine, that's the reason for my criticism.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...

Somebody wasn't happy with the size of the Bergeon order, and decided to move some product in the grey market :-)

Or it's an out and out fake. 

Both happen, I hear complaints about these things all the time.

Turn about is fair play, at one time it was the Swiss who were doing this to American watches and products!

Edited by dadistic
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 6 months later...
  • 4 months later...
  • 1 year later...
On 10/10/2019 at 11:31 AM, jdm said:

I began taking work from a local jeweler and finding again that fashion watches can be surprisingly hard to open and close, so I decided to refresh my weaponry a little.

First, the oversize Jaxa tool. I have a bench opener but I'm too lazy to use it on every time.

PA101002.thumb.JPG.49aeec0d4e93d3ad4cf20ea108652339.JPG

It is built well and tight, with no play. The screws are fine thread and allow precise adjustment. Inserts are held by a flat spring instead of a lousy ball, and include the most used square tips - which is not a given with other types. Very happy about it for  $12.88, and will get the regular size from the same brand.

PA101003.thumb.JPG.5ca392827be4e873158739287b56fd82.JPG

Then the Japanese style openers, all the four types. Getting the original Seiko wouldn't have broken the bank but I decided to give these a chance for just $7.61 and receiving in the relatively short time of 2 weeks and an half. I think the rounded tips are good for safety but one may use a bit more grip by flattening it.

I have more coming and will add to this thread. 

 

Would you min do let me know where you got this set of knives?

And by $7.61 do you mean for all four of them?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.




  • Recently Browsing

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Topics

  • Posts

    • Yes @SwissSeiko, most of us here are just hobbyist and some horological products are simply too expensive. For example, cleaning fluids. I think even you find L&R cleaning fluids expensive. But I haven't found anything that shines up parts like #111. So I just bite the bullet and fork up the $$$. Here in Singapore, a bottle of #111 is $180SGD. ($134USD) The Rinse #3 is the same price. Oils like 2ml of Moebius 9010 is around $45SGD. Imagine if you had to fill your car engine with 5 quarts of 9010! I have been using odorless kerosene to preclean my parts before putting them into the #111. The kerosene does such a fantastic job that I may use that in place of the Rinse #3. But I can do without the #111, but now its role is just a brightening agent.  So my cleaning regimen will be kerosene, #111, kerosene and IPA. I see how that works out. I might even re-distill my used IPA to save even more.
    • What works for you, is good enough for me. You and I have great interactions on here, and you've taught me some things! I guess I should approach things with the thought process that most of the users on here are probably doing this as a hobby. I find myself reading some posts and thinking, that's definitely not how I would do it. But I do this for a living, I have overhead costs, bills to pay, taxes, tooling costs ect., and to many on here, it's probably just fine to do it as is necessary to work. So I'm probably a little overzealous when it comes to finishing. You should know, we(for sure at least me) appreciate you. If someone chimes in on my posts, it's usually you, and you're a good chap!
    • Hi. Just curious. Is there an official service center for orient in your area?  I had a problem with my orient mako before. I was regulating the movement and lost focus on what I was doing. I accidentally hit the balance wheel . I had the same issue in finding parts for it so I ended up sending it to the official service center here in the Philippines.
    • I think it was HectorLooi that posted some information at the time that we were discussing what materials to use for cleaning jars in an ultrasonic machine. It was decided that steel jars transmit the cavitation bubbles better than glass or plastic, which was considered the worst as it absorbs their energy. So I've tried a few different cleaning solutions, mostly non-proprietary watch stuff. There is a thread I made last year experimenting , actually I might have tagged it onto someone else's thread,  I can't remember.  Just mirror residue and evaporation rates. 🤔 Elma pro ammoniated,  paraffin,  ligher fuel , Ipa, meths, and I think break cleaner was in there as well. Elma and paraffin have a very slow evaporation rate, probably days. Both have wetting properties and are far reaching, paraffin being very much so, if you're looking for a deep cleaning solution then paraffin soaks well and finds every nook, cranny and crevice. When I use paraffin which is usually if I hand or US pre clean then i place the parts on absorbant tissue  afterwards to soak up the excess then spin them off and use IPA or break cleaner to rinse them off after that a rotary wash with elma and ipa for rinsing . I don't use a US that much, really just if any wheels and pinion leaves are really gunked up, which is when I hang them on the little wire tree. I kind of base how i will clean by how dirty and gunked up the movement is. If it's bad the procedure will follow : soak in paraffin for a couple of hours, peg out plate and bridges and hand clean what I can with a small brush to remove the bulk. Then onto the USM, some parts that can be hung go on the tree like wheels etc,  others that can't go in a slow rotating mesh basket, all in paraffin, the USM  loosens the crap up . Then put them in a rotary basket, spin them in paraffin, spin off the excess, then in elma then 3 rinses in IPA. That's like the full valet, if the movement is really dirty. The parts that don't get that treatment are the balance complete and the pallet fork, which I really like to clean by hand.  Screws and springs I also won't put in a machine, too easily lost, these are easily cleaned by swishing them in a jar of whatever you fancy . If I get a really stubborn sticky hairspring, that will be removed for cleaning separately, brreak fluid is good for that or tetrachloroethylene. Thats one way to get rid of the mother in-law, at 85 yrs old mine is heart attack territory.....🤔....I could accidentally have an envelope with certain contents fall out of my jacket pocket onto her dining room table...accidentally....🤔
    • Yeah, that's the guy. I told him it's cheaper if I just send the pictures to my  mother-in-law directly. 😮 
×
×
  • Create New...