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Timex Splined Crown/Stem?

spectre6000

By spectre6000
in Watch Repairs Help & Advice

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spectre6000 Distinguished Member

spectre6000

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I recently snagged a Snoopy watch. It was listed as not running, and it's missing a crown. It turns out to be a Timex "BN2" movement (I think). Google thinks I have fat fingers, and that it's not a thing; and maybe it's not... I don't know. I figure the Timex guys would know though.

Anyway, it turns out, the watch is in phenomenal shape. The crown must have come off early in its life, and it spent the last 60+ years in a drawer. The plating is excellent, the movement looks brand new and runs well (I haven't timed it yet). Other than a small crack in the crystal, this could easily be a very nice watch (for a Snoopy watch). 

Here's the hangup though, the stem isn't threaded, it's splined. The crown seems to need to be pressed on (?). I've not seen that before. Is this a Timex thing? Where does one find such crowns? Are the crown/stem supposed to be an assembly? Please advise.

IMG_2334.thumb.png.4f93ac224bddc666aca1068b7ba42d15.pngIMG_2333.png.12684cdb66bb12eecc10789d576d9e5a.pngIMG_2332.thumb.png.9a355976ce0587a343e035e88cd5a138.png

Edited by spectre6000
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watchweasol Distinguished Member

watchweasol

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Hi   Looking at the back plate it looks like a 24, Have attached the 24 manual and a couple of others for you.

I note there are no numbers on the dial so the will most likely be on the back, from the number you can devine its modle and mfg date.

24 (2).pdf Crown & Stem 401-1 TX1J Water-Resistant 1977.pdf Crown & Stem 401-1 TX2D Non-Water-Resistant 1971.pdf

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spectre6000 Distinguished Member

spectre6000

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I'm going to have to say it's probably not a 24 (assuming that's short for M24). Between the images at Ranfft and 17jewels, it's all wrong.

Ranfft suggests either M102 or M78... I'm leaning in the M78 direction given the lack of production numbers, but even then that movement is stated as being from 1965-on.

That's all fine and good, but the question is about the splined stem/crown. Cousins does not seem to have that as an option (as an example), or at least not using terminology I'm familiar with.

Edited by spectre6000
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spectre6000 Distinguished Member

spectre6000

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The M78 manual lists the crown/stem as an assembly (M102 makes no mention of it at all). That makes sense from what I am seeing; I've never seen a splined crown/stem. The number it shows is 401/1, but that seems to be a pretty generic part number, and I don't know how that would account for length unless they all went into the same size case.

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spectre6000 Distinguished Member

spectre6000

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OK. Found some time. I pulled the movement out, and under the reflector ring there is more dial. 

"UK 81713 11483" a 1983 114 movement. Ranfft doesn't have that in their archive, but it's on 17jewels. Following the crumb trail, it reads like the M114 is an M104, but produced in the Phillipines. It looks like that number is not in any of the above documents...

As I dig around on eBay for stems, I see they all have the crowns pre-attached... back to the assembly problem.

Edited by spectre6000
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HectorLooi Distinguished Member

HectorLooi

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 I would think finding a NOS replacement crown and stem would be next to impossible. I can only think of one person who might have some.

If you have a lathe, making one is relatively straightforward. As you already have the original stem, rounding off the square section of the stem ( or the spline as you call it ) and the cutting threads for a commonly available crown. You might have to change the case tube as well as Timex uses a really fat tube.

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spectre6000 Distinguished Member

spectre6000

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I do not have a lathe... There are a ton of NOS crown/stems on eBay, and I'm not in a rush. I just need to be able to figure out what it is I'm looking for. Now I realize I'm not going to find just a crown and reattach it like I initially thought.

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