Jump to content

Recommended Posts

Posted

Hello again, I had a further question about this M24 movement. I've given it a dunk in naptha (with the dial and ratchet wheel removed) and the balance wheel danced nicely for a bit afterward but eventually stopped. The watch is wound. I allowed it to dry completely, then lubricated with Moebius 8000 according to the service manual guidelines, however I haven't attempted to oil the V-conic bearings. I'm not certain I could reinstall the balance assembly if I were to remove it to fill the bearings 3/4 full as the manual indicates. I have a Bergeon fine oiler... is there a way to oil the V-conic bearings without removing the balance assembly? Or, is there something else I should check first to determine why it's not running? Thank you in advance.

Posted
4 hours ago, MyFavoriteObsession said:

Please disregard, three escape wheel teeth lightly oiled and it's running right now... fingers crossed!

This all sounds very familiar. This watch for example had a similar issue.

If theses mechanisms seem a little erratic after cleaning, then the escape wheel is often the culprit. Very light oiling of the pins on the fork, and the teeth on the wheel does the trick. Don't drown them though, or things will get worse, not better.

The symptoms are that it stays in beat for a number of seconds, then jumps wildly about, then runs OK again, then repeats, often the erratic running is enough to bring it to a complete halt.

This behavior shows up nicely on the time-grapher. 

Posted
5 hours ago, MyFavoriteObsession said:

is there a way to oil the V-conic bearings without removing the balance assembly?

I have had some success by carefully oiling from the side of the bearing. As with all of these things, less is more. Be very sparing with the oil or you will swamp the thing and bring it to a halt, and take care not to get any on the hairspring. Stand the mechanism on a blob of rodico to keep it rock steady as you focus on your target.

Posted
10 hours ago, AndyHull said:

I have had some success by carefully oiling from the side of the bearing. As with all of these things, less is more. Be very sparing with the oil or you will swamp the thing and bring it to a halt, and take care not to get any on the hairspring. Stand the mechanism on a blob of rodico to keep it rock steady as you focus on your target.

Thank you for the advice, that's exactly what I needed to hear, or read rather. The Mercury is still going strong this morning, so strong in fact that it's a good thirty minutes fast with the regulator set as far toward S as it will go. Happy New Year! According to my Timex, it'll be 2021 around teatime. 

  • Like 1
Posted
12 hours ago, MyFavoriteObsession said:

The Mercury is still going strong this morning, so strong in fact that it's a good thirty minutes fast with the regulator set as far toward S as it will go.

Sounds like the hairspring has some oil on it and it is sticking to itself. Give it another quick bath. You should be able to regulate it to a few seconds per day if it is running correctly.

  • Like 1
Posted
20 hours ago, AndyHull said:

Sounds like the hairspring has some oil on it and it is sticking to itself. Give it another quick bath. You should be able to regulate it to a few seconds per day if it is running correctly.

It turned out to be so heavily magnetized that it moved a compass. I've got a Chinese demagnetizer coming in the mail soon... hopefully that will sort it out. 

Posted

the Timex watch forum stood by a 3 stage process when it came to the typical mechanical movements. This is what I use and it is successful the majority of times and when it is not it is because of wear or damage that has occurred to the parts.   The following are the basics.  Of course more detail in each step and one day I'll write a book. Nah, I hate writing 

1) ammonia bath - water rinse

2) lighter fluid bath - air dry

3) oil and grease

  • Like 2
  • Recently Browsing

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Topics

  • Posts

    • Hello and welcome to the fo4um. Enjoy
    • Welcome to the forum, enjoy.
    • You're asking a pretty broad question and you didn't specify the machine but yes it's simple especially if you have the right machine. The question has problems but I'll take it as it is. Is it really that simple yes especially if you have the right machine. So in the video below he's making a screw and yes it really is that simple but pay attention to the machine it is not simple at all probably wasn't cheap but it is small it will probably fit in your garage. Unfortunately wouldn't fit in my garage as it's far too cluttered up with things. In the video he talks about making a screw and pay attention to the machine. The machine has lots and lots and lots of cutters and lots of things to do lots of machining all-in-one machine conceivably one step after another all programmable. If you look at his channel lots of CNC's stuff and there are several other videos related to this machine. He goes to the factory where they talk about it and show all the other machines they make in Switzerland.  I did look up the specifications the machine I don't recall the price it's not going to cut wheels I think it has a maximum diameter around 11 mm basically it's really good for making small diameter watch parts. Then in one of the other videos he goes to a factory that used to make parts with waterpowered machinery been in business for 100 years and everything they now make is made with CNC machines including this one. What was interesting with the factory photo was that when they make some parts they can put them on a optical comparator comparator compares with whatever the reference is and the machine can be programmed to adjust its cutting to make sure everything is actually being made to specifications. Oh and then somewhere in all of this there was at least one picture of a balance staff can't have a CNC Swiss machine without making balance staffs.   It would be really nice if we had pictures of the machine. Then yes if you look at the page for wheel cutting you can enter parameters and it will generate a G code but he left out things? Notice he has a picture of a complete wheel but the G code isn't making a complete wheel it's only cutting the gear teeth I don't see whereas the program for crossing out the spokes? Typically when you see people cutting gears once the teeth are cut most the time the spokes are cut by hand. Occasionally someone will mill them out but typically not with the program which seems strange if you have CNC capability for instance one of my friends fill it used to design assembly line equipment or things to make things. So his hobby was to continue to make tools to make things like clocks. Very interesting and clever clocks but his true fund was making the machines to make the clocks. Then machine is not controlled by G code like we would typically find today as the stepping motor controller he has was made a long time ago and the individual controllers used a textbased program. So the company had a editor you could write a program to cause each the stepping motors to do something. So basically once you figure out how to cut a gear he would just change the parameters for different size gears so here's an example of a gear as you can see we have the teeth and the spokes. Then we have a picture the machine which sucks because it would've been so much nicer if I could've taken a picture when it was cutting a gears so we can see things better. Then yes there is a worm gear stepping motor indexing this is a mini lathe and the indexing is at the end of the lathe head hiding. The basic operation of this machine would be brass sheet not cut to a specific diameter size not even round mounted on the machine. Then it turns and a milling cutter will cut the diameter. Then the gear would be cut with a gear cutter. The same mill cutter for the diameter although conceivably change the size I don't know but basically the same milling for cutting the outer diameter would be used to cut the spokes. I really can't remember how he did the center hole but whatever it was was very precise.          
    • Yeah I know the site and the creator of it.  the two video clips are good examples of the quicker method and a full tear down.  the quick method will work in many cases. But not always and not for all the different movements.  I strongly suggest to not bend the four tabs as was done in the first clip.  Instead there are three tabs that insert into the top plate, Much saver way as to not break a tab.
    • I found a motor that is 3/4 hp and another that is 1.2hp. They come with speed controller. So I don’t think I would need a wiring diagram. But I sure appreciate you offering your help! Do you think 1.2 hp would be too much for a watchmaker’s lathe?
×
×
  • Create New...