404 Club

[RichardHarris123]

3 hours ago, RichardHarris123 said:

This. Looked it up, it's seaside grade but the case is railway grade, I think.  Look at the cutout on the front of the case, that was for the setting lever. 

Oops. Not seaside grade, wrong company.  But interesting case.

[Neverenoughwatches]

24 minutes ago, RichardHarris123 said:

Oops. Not seaside grade, wrong company.  But interesting case.

You not having much luck with hairsprings Rich. This one looks like it needs some tlc. Good to have you back btw. Nice to have some Yorkshire in my corner.

[RichardHarris123]

18 minutes ago, Neverenoughwatches said:

You not having much luck with hairsprings Rich. This one looks like it needs some tlc. Good to have you back btw. Nice to have some Yorkshire in my corner.

Plenty more to come. 

[AndyHull]

A couple of mystery watches on their way. They come with some random LCD modules too. The whole job lot cost a pound.

The LCD above may be a Seiko but has lost its "glass" which is going to be somewhat difficult to source, so I may get creative with this.
The LED is a complete mystery, but the case looks to be in good condition and possibly stainless steel rather than chromed.
Here are the rest of the motley crew.

Edited February 18, 2023 by AndyHull

[Waggy]

My first 404 watch build, bought a batch of 20 for £57.00 (average of £2.85 each):

Here are the before and after pictures. All it needed was a service and new crystal.

And the finished item:

 

[AndyHull]

Any idea what the caliber is. I haven't seen one of those before.

[Waggy]

6 minutes ago, AndyHull said:

Any idea what the caliber is. I haven't seen one of those before.

I couldn't spot a calliber number, only marking was the *JD on the barrel/train bridge - I included the other pictures I took when stripping down in case you spot anything I missed.

[RichardHarris123]

2 hours ago, Waggy said:

I couldn't spot a calliber number, only marking was the *JD on the barrel/train bridge - I included the other pictures I took when stripping down in case you spot anything I missed.

What does it say on the dial, can't make it out.  I like it. 

[Waggy]

It says Newmark

 

[spectre6000]

404s have been slim pickin's lately... I guess we had a whole conversation about 500s now, but even then... Us pandemic issue watchmakers have really eaten up a lot of real estate...

[AndyHull]

 

There are still a fair few interesting 404 examples here in the UK. I just picked up this 051/0b Kienzle from the late forties or early fifties for ninety nine pence plus shipping. 

I think I may have some suitable gold coloured sub-second hands that will fit it (assuming the pivot is still there to attach one).

I can't tell from the pictures if the hairspring is OK, or the balance is sitting square and complete, but for that price, its certainly worth the gamble.

2 hours ago, Waggy said:

It says Newmark

If you want to know a little more about Newmark (the original, not the new company namesake company set up recently) follow the link. 

https://chronopedia.club/Newmark

[RichardHarris123]

I troll ebay every day.  Filter for the lowest price, bid up to £4 and sit back.  Usually lose but occasionally win. 

[Waggy]

Managed to pick up this USSR Zim on eBay for only $0.01 a while ago and worked on it this weekend

Here are the before shots:

 

Balance staff was broken.... and donor #1  had a damaged balance spring...

But Donor number 3 did the trick, finished watch:

I left the patina on the case as it was after a thorough clean in the ultrasonic and then a polish with Flitz as it turned a nice gun metal grey and thought it suited the style of the watch, rather than plating it with shiny nickel. 

[RichardHarris123]

This cost £1.50. It's not working, can anyone help me diagnose the problem?  Hehe. 

[SpringMangler]

That's a bigger hole than Wolves defence last weekend.

[RichardHarris123]

13 minutes ago, SpringMangler said:

That's a bigger hole than Wolves defence last weekend.

Not a football fan but I'm guessing they were pretty dismal. 

[SpringMangler]

40 minutes ago, RichardHarris123 said:

Not a football fan but I'm guessing they were pretty dismal. 

They played Leeds last week, which is why I mentioned it, and yes, they were.

Edited March 22, 2023 by SpringMangler

[RichardHarris123]

36 minutes ago, SpringMangler said:

They played Leeds last week, which is why I mentioned it, and yes, they were.

Originally a Bradford lad. My friends were big fans so I was at a very infamous game. 

[SpringMangler]

52 minutes ago, RichardHarris123 said:

Originally a Bradford lad. My friends were big fans so I was at a very infamous game. 

Sadly, I remember listening to that match on the radio. 

[RichardHarris123]

2 hours ago, SpringMangler said:

Sadly, I remember listening to that match on the radio. 

We were in the paddock, in front of the stands, where it started.  We were pushed onto the pitch, by the time we were out the heat was unimaginable.  I have studded fire engineering and the fire was used as an example. 

[kxxchoke]

On 3/9/2023 at 9:31 PM, Waggy said:

My first 404 watch build, bought a batch of 20 for £57.00 (average of £2.85 each):

Here are the before and after pictures. All it needed was a service and new crystal.

And the finished item:

 

You guys are like rock stars to me. I don't even know where to begin with my petty issues hahah.

[RichardHarris123]

5 hours ago, kxxchoke said:

You guys are like rock stars to me. I don't even know where to begin with my petty issues hahah.

It's cleaned up very well.  Are you on with your next? Pictures please. 

[AndyHull]

I took a look at the "Eros" today. It even got a new old stock strap (new in the 1960s I would guess).
This, despite its size is probably a gents watch and was produced around 1935.

The caliber is likely to be a Phenix 110. although the main bridge shape is slightly different from the one one shown on ranfft.

Clearly a bit of effort was made with the finishing of the movement.
There is a little damage to the plating on the movement and the case, but all in all, it has survived the last eighty pus years quite well.

It runs pretty well all things considered, at around +30s/day or so. The beat error is around 3ms but I left that well alone, as I didn't want to fix it till it was broken. 

The mainspring is probably a little tired, but I had nothing suitable to replace it with. I didn't find a suitable small seconds hand for it either, but I will take another look through the stash when I have more time.

Here it is with a couple of other recent additions to the club.

Edited March 26, 2023 by AndyHull

[RichardHarris123]

18 minutes ago, AndyHull said:

I took a look at the "Eros" today. It even got a new old stock strap (new in the 1960s I would guess).
This, despite its size is probably a gents watch and was produced around 1935.

The caliber is likely to be a Phenix 110. although the main bridge shape is slightly different from the one one shown on ranfft.

Clearly a bit of effort was made with the finishing of the movement.
There is a little damage to the plating on the movement and the case, but all in all, it has survived the last eighty pus years quite well.

It runs pretty well all things considered, at around +30s/day or so. The beat error is around 3ms but I left that well alone, as I didn't want to fix it till it was broken. 

The mainspring is probably a little tired, but I had nothing suitable to replace it with. I didn't find a suitable small seconds hand for it either, but I will take another look through the stash when I have more time.

Here it is with a couple of other recent additions to the club.

Working? 

[AndyHull]

4 minutes ago, RichardHarris123 said:

Working? 

Absolutely. It is sitting a little fast at around +30 sec per day or so. I haven't attempted to do anything about that yet. 
I'll wear it today to let the lubrication settle, and finish regulating it tomorrow, but it seems to run without any issues, at least so far.

Those other two, the Kienzle and the Addora also work, but I haven't wound them today.

Edited March 26, 2023 by AndyHull