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The coil from @JohnD arrived in the post and set about modifying the metalwork to allow it to squeeze in place of the original. An hour or so of careful filing and Dremel work and it now fits like a glove. I also took care to ensure that the new wiring is double insulated with a few patches of Kapton tape a nylon bushing to replace one of the original brass nuts and some heat shrink sleeving ensuring that there is little chance of this ancient synchronous motor giving anyone a shock, even if the thing is dropped or the wires are pulled. I can't remember where I got the strange dayglo green cable ties from, but since nobody will see them, who cares about the colour. It got a good clean while it was apart as unsurprisingly it was filthy. The worm gears both had a thick pasty gunge on them that probably started life as either grease or oil. All of the bras surfaces were sticky and nasty. Surprisingly it worked first time. After gingerly flicking the brass starter on the rear I let it run for about 10 minutes to see if it would overheat, but it was fine. No shocks, no smoke, no nasty electrical skid marks, no scary surprises. I then stripped it all down again and gave everything one more clean to ensure that I had removed all of the dust and filings from the modification and rebuilt it again gave it a proper oiling. This time though when I flicked it into life, it started to click ominously. My initial fear that the insulation might be breaking down and the coil arcing were unfunded, I has simply misaligned one of the gears and it was jumping. With that remedied I buttoned it all back up again and it is now sitting in my explosion containment test stand (the fire hearth) and whirring away with a low but pleasing hum. The patented tick also works. If you look carefully in the pictures of the mechanism you can see that it consists of a small steel blade that rides over some serrations on a brass wheel. Each time it falls off a tooth on the wheel, it clicks. The teeth are arranged to it ticks about twice per second. I've switched this off for the time being so I can listen out for any other strange noises it might produce. If testing goes well, then I'll case it back up and let it run, so I can see if it keeps good time. After that comes the tricky bit. Making a replacement for that wooden decorative trim. Here are some pictures of my test fitting of the coil, showing the modified brass top plate, the plastic spacer and some close up shots of the gearing.
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Thank you for your introduction and welcome to this friendly forum.
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Have you demaged? Its a hairspring issue, sticking, rubbing, short length or wrong spring. So a bit of history might helps.
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Hello everyone I have a deep interest in vintage watches and watch repair and am trying to learn as much as I can about the subject. I normally service pocket watches but have recently started to service wristwatches too. Looking forward to hearing back from you all. 🙂 Kieran
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Question
MikeRaleighNC 4
Hello - I'm trying to source a mainspring for the Seiko 70XX series (GR2377x) and Cousins is out of stock. Not the first time that Cousins seems to be the one and only place to get a mainspring (among other parts). Anyone aware of another way to order GR mainsprings and/or source a suitable replacement? I am resourceful and am aware of them popping up on ebay from time to time and the ability to get one from a donor movement. However, Seiko mainsprings often need a refresh more than their swiss brethren, IMO.
Thanks in advance!
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