Watch for first project?

[MichaelM]

Hi

I'm completely new to repairing watches...Has anyone a tip on which watch to start?

Maybe one with a movement similar to unitas 6498 or the eta one. or seagull 3620. The one Mark uses in the course. No complications...

Would be great to get some advice of you guys! Michael

[Nucejoe]

Pocket watches are easier to work on as they generally lack date complications and are larger in size. Spare parts are costly and sometimes hard to find, so ideally getting two movements of the same caliber to make a good one out of the two, saves on spare parts expense considerably. Finding a watch with a spare/scrap may require a good search but offers many advantahes instead. I hope this helps.

[rodabod]

A 6498 clone is a good choice. Take it easy with the balance / hairspring. 

[JGrainger]

Old American pocket watches are relatively easy. I'd actually suggest starting with two size 12 Elgins made between about 1918 and 1935 as this is probably the least appreciated size (cheap), the quality is actually pretty good, capable of good timekeeping, pretty easy to wear, and while not the largest of watches, they are reasonably large to work on. There's also plenty written about these watches.

On the downside, most parts have to be taken from other watches unless you've got access to NOS parts. Balance staffs are available for some but not all vintage watches (I haven't checked for these), and donor watches (as with all watches that age) need to be carefully selected from the same design / similar grade - vintage watches were often made in batches.

 

If you know an old watchmaker, there's a decent chance they might have a few AS parts watches / movements 19-22mm in size. Those aren't valuable, and they're not too bad to work on (excluding decades of potentially being exposed to poor servicing/ stripped or broken screws, etc. I once got a partial carrier bag of those movements for £10 from an antiques fair.

 

The new clones are also sensible choices, I believe (I don't have much to do with modern or new watches) it's possible to get complete balance wheels quite easily and cheaply for some. If you choose one you can customise then it's possible you can build your own watch how you'd like it.

[JohnR725]

15 hours ago, MichaelM said:

Maybe one with a movement similar to unitas 6498 or the eta one. or seagull 3620. The one Mark uses in the course. No complications..

The best approach would be starting with a broken American pocket watch because it's big 16 size is ideal. Broken so you don't care what happens to it but you can practice taking it apart and putting it together. Initially want to learn how to use your tools and get a feel for taking apart and put it back together preferably without destroying too much. Then you can move on to the Chinese clones of the 6498 or 6497 because they're cheap. Your clone preferably should be new as you want a running watch. You then practice taking this apart and putting it back together each time verify it still running. Then once you complete that you can start looking at a watch to repair and initially I would look for a watch that is more of cleaning then actual repairing.

Often times people want to start with an actual project watch something it's broken they're going to fix it because after all watch repair is supposed to be easy. The problem is without the skill set to successfully disassemble and reassemble, watch accidents happen but they often go unnoticed by the new person because you don't know what you're looking at or what you're looking for. This then means the success rate of fixing a broken watch is very poor and leads to frustration.

[Jon]

I always get my students working on a big ETA 6497 copy.

It's about 16.5 lignes in size, so pocket watch territory. In fact it originally was a pocket watch, which got turned into a wristwatch.

You can pick them up under the name: ST 36 or ST 3600. They are a Chinese copy of a Chinese copy, as Seagull originally copied the ETA 6947, but the Seagull will cost about £150, as opposed to the Parnis ST 36 which will be about £45 - £70. They are remarkably good, except the escape wheel pinions are really easy to break and the lyre springs will ping out very easily.

[rodabod]

Jon, are you at EFHC? I was taught by Richard and Lalit many moons ago! Currently just do clock restoration with Francis. 

[mikepilk]

I agree with @JohnR725. I started with American pocket watches - mainly Waltham and Elgin , as parts (and scrap movements) were easy to find. 

They are much easier to work on than wristwatches. 

I don't buy movement with less than 15 jewels. The problem is you will find plenty of broken jewels in the movements.

The good news is, it's not difficult to find replacements (whether they fit or not, is another matter !)

 

[Jon]

On 4/18/2020 at 5:25 PM, rodabod said:

Jon, are you at EFHC? I was taught by Richard and Lalit many moons ago! Currently just do clock restoration with Francis. 

Yes... I teach the watchmaker's beginner lesson on a Tuesday night, that Richard used to take.

Wow... small world!

I'm starting to take some Zoom online lessons from this Tuesday to fill the void.  We're in the process of getting Francis to start up his lessons again with his clockies, which you're one.

Good to hear from you and to know we're part of the EFHC family, so to speak