Replacing jewels on a pocket watch

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My steep learning curve may about to become steeper still. As my first project I am working on a 17 jewel, Cyma 999 movement for which the replacement mainspring is now ordered.

On closer inspection I can see that some of these 17 jewels are totally knackered so have been reading up on jeweling tools. On eBay the majority of interesting jeweling and staking sets are in the US. What is the most cost effective way to get myself kitted out? I have seen references to combined staking and jeweling tools but looking on the Cousins site they are two different tools. Is a Chinese imitation of a Horia like this any good:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Horia-Clone-Watchmakers-Micrometric-Jewelling-Tool-Set-4mm-4mm-Multiple-Colors/303690725547?hash=item46b560b8ab:g:~LUAAOSwG-dfXw~Y

Many thanks.

[Marc]

I think it may be more complicated than you think (or less depending on your perspective) as those appear to be rubbed in jewels rather than friction fit.

[JohnR725]

10 minutes ago, Marc said:

I think it may be more complicated than you think (or less depending on your perspective) as those appear to be rubbed in jewels rather than friction fit.

Notice the quote above rubbed in jewels or burnished in jewels? Plus look at the color of them those are natural stones they always have flaws in them or can always have. You need to look very carefully at the hole itself is it nice and shiny does the crack extended in such a way that you can see it. Look at the pivots do they have score marks where the crack scored cut into the pivot? What unlikely the answer is the jewels look fine at least from a bearing point of view and the pivots are fine.

Then notice the color the jewels which by the way can be any color but these are clear? Modern jewels are a nice pretty intense red color which means you're going to change the look of the watch. Probably nobody cares here if you are restoring something nice it would look really bad.

Then I'm attaching an image jewel on the last is a burnished in jewel. Instead have a straight sides like the modern jewel the sides are tapered. You can actually modify relatively easy modern jewels to that shape. But you require additional tools to do the burnishing and sometimes it breaks off no matter how careful you are.

Or you can replace it with the modern jewel which is what the picture showing.. But you have to open up the whole large enough so it's nice and smooth for the modern jewel. Which means usually there physically bigger than what was there before.

Then in addition to all of that the watch is old enough that the whole sizes might not correspond to standard jewel slices of today perhaps. Then have you looked up the cost of those tools is this watch worth it.

Then the tool at your link I have the Swiss version is an outstanding tool. Personally I think it's almost a must have for doing jewels as it makes it really easy to push them get them exactly where they have to be. But you still have a problem? The problem is modern jewels require a very specific hole size. That's usually made by a tool from the same company that makes the jewels and that means basically you have to have both.

Normally what most people do is buy a tool like at this link. Notice the price looks quite reasonable right now check back when the auctions completed it's going to be quite a bit higher as a guess

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Seitz-Jeweling-Set-for-Watchmaker-Swiss/373424385098

To understand the tool above which looks in a really outstanding condition normally log a little bits and pieces go missing with time or whenever there. The most important aspect of this tool is the reamers which I circled in the image. Then to understand the tool I've also attached the PDF manual for it. Basically wouldn't need the tool above if you have this one. I just think the tool above is much nicer for adjusting jewels.

 

seitz BOOK.pdf

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The colour of the jewels is definitely paler than I have seen in more modern movements so they may very well be natural stones as you suggest. In the shots I attached in my previous message, they were photographed through a loupe with my phone on max magnification and against a green background so the colour came out a little different.

I have inspected the pivots and they actually look is decent condition as far as I can tell. The fracture lines on the jewels are clearly visible but the hole looks relatively ok.

I think what I will do is keep it as is and put everything together again once the mainspring arrives and see how it runs.

Thank you John for the Seitz book PDF. Really useful as I will get one in the not too distant future. Is this watch worth it? No almost certainly not but it is training ground for what comes after.