L&R Cleaning Machines

[DouglasSkinner]

I picked up an L&R manual cleaning machine at an estate sale for next to nothing--including a several baskets and washing and rinsing solutions.  It works great.  Also have an ultrasonic but, frankly, so far I can't tell the difference.

[Brian3]

Have been reading with interest the threads about watch cleaning machines and I thought I'd post a pic of mine that I purchased on eBay a few years back, old L&R Master, it was in a pretty unloved state when I bought it, motor ran, heater did not and paint finish was all chipped, worn off and just looked not nice, I paid $130 for it as I knew it could be brought back to life with a little love and attention.

I re wired the whole unit (original looked downright hazardous, threadbare fabric insulation) and rubbed down paintwork and sprayed unit and jar lids with grey hammerite paint, replaced the bulb inside the red display switch and the heater was operating, (the builb acts as the fuse for the heating element).

Spent under $20 in Home Depot for everything that I needed.

Hoping this might help someone who has been looking to get a machine, it really was a pleasing job fixing it up and it's a great little machine that I now love dearly.

[94marconi]

Very nicely done,Brian3. I think I have just as much fun restoring the old tools as I do the watches. One of my other hobbies is restoration of antique radios. A lot of the skills from that hobby transfer over to the restoration of the watch tools, especially the electrical side and the polishing and cleaning. Good choice on the colour and lucky the faceplate survived in such good shape. I will have to settle for an ultrasonic cleaner for the time being as I would never be able to justify the purchase price for the amount of use it would get.

Ron

[oldhippy]

That's an old boy. Well done with your achievement and it looks fine. Surprising what one can do.   

[Pip]

That's a great job, how often do you use it and what are the advantages over an US out of interest?


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[Brian3]

Thanks all.

I don't use it a great deal Pip, perhaps averages out one cleaning session per week, just depends what I happen to be messing around with at home.

Not really sure of advantages over an ultrasonic, the machines at my work have it built into the cleaning cycle if you want it, this old boy obviously doesn't but parts come out surprisingly clean and I'm real happy with it, and it's a small unit that doesn't take up much space which is a bonus. Perhaps more knowledgeable people here on the forum could answer your question.

Brian

[thessler]

Great work Brian !

I just bought a L&Road variomatic that looks terrible but I have it running now.

I doubt mine will look as good as yours but I'll give it a try.

I can't use it yet, it did not come with a basket. On the hunt now for one.

Thanks for sharing,  Tom

[Brian3]

Thanks Tom. 

Im sure you already are but keep an eye on eBay, usually baskets appear on there.

Good luck!

Brian

[Pip]

Thanks all.

I don't use it a great deal Pip, perhaps averages out one cleaning session per week, just depends what I happen to be messing around with at home.

Not really sure of advantages over an ultrasonic, the machines at my work have it built into the cleaning cycle if you want it, this old boy obviously doesn't but parts come out surprisingly clean and I'm real happy with it, and it's a small unit that doesn't take up much space which is a bonus. Perhaps more knowledgeable people here on the forum could answer your question.

Brian

Thanks Brian, I find stuff like this fascinating.


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[deeclee]

That's awesome Brian. Thanks for posting.

I just bought one myself but haven't tried it yet. Nice to know that if something's wrong with it there might be an easy and cheap fix.

Cheers.

[OmarHaltam]

Congrats on your purchase, i have the exact same one and it works like a charm.

[measuretwice]

I've an L&R cleaner, the style with the three jars and heater.  The lids for each jar,of  a sort of bakelite material just sit on top of the jars with the edge of glass in a ring groove recessed in the lid..  A while ago I made a batch of solution (home brew that worked well enough, next time I want to acquire the proper chemicals for a better cocktail) but after some time about 50% evaporated from each container and what was left was a lot less effective.  I conclude that its the VOC's with the umph that were the quickest to depart,and the evaporation was possible because of the very poor seal of a plastic lid just resting on top.

Bad enough to lose the home brew let alone the crazy expensive commercial stuff - at $50 US per gallon.    A pro might use it often enough that frequent replacement does matter, but as an amateur I need it to last as use is infrequent.   I could drain and store in seal-able containers, but that's a pita to do every time.

So I want to seal these jars.  Any ideas?  Best I come up with a thick disk of steel (3/4") with a treplanned groove to fit the glass  rim.  With a rubber gasket glued in the bottom of the groove and basically the weight of the disk provides the seal.  I actually cut disks today, but it seems like a bit of blunt object solution.

Better ideas?

 

[oldhippy]

All the machines I have had in the past the lids screw on with a seal fitted inside the lid, this prevents evaporation and vapour from leaking. I would say what is happening with your machine you do not have the proper jars or the seals been damaged. I see different jars come up quite often on ebay. I just used to store the fluids in there containers in a shed away from sun light.   

[clockboy]

My L&R also suffers with evaporation loss. I found if I cover the machine with an old towel this helps but does not totally eliminate the evaporation. I am sure I have the original jars but no seals on the top covers. I will investigate.

[oldhippy]

I remember one of the machines the seals were cork.

[Mark]

Have you considered using cling film when the machine is not in use?

[Mark]

37 minutes ago, oldhippy said:

I remember one of the machines the seals were cork.

The older Elma machines use cork. Pain in the ass as when the cork degrades, you get fragments fall in the fluids. Not sure about the newer ones but I suspect some kind of rubber seals are used now.

[oldhippy]

12 minutes ago, Mark said:

The older Elma machines use cork. Pain in the ass as when the cork degrades, you get fragments fall in the fluids. Not sure about the newer ones but I suspect some kind of rubber seals are used now.

I did have one of those Mark at some point, can’t say I had any problem and it was quite old.

[Mark]

Just now, oldhippy said:

I did have one of those Mark at some point, can’t say I had any problem and it was quite old.

 

Your cork must have been special

[clockboy]

Cling film is a good idea. I will start using it as from today. Thanks Mark.

PS filtered the cleaning solution last week using coffee pod filters & this works great to. Thanks old hippy.

[SSTEEL]

I purchased new jar screw tops from cousins as a couple of mine (ELMA) were cracked, they come with a cork seal ring.

ELMA Jar Top by S STEEL, on Flickr

[Mark]

1 minute ago, SSTEEL said:

I purchased new jar screw tops from cousins as a couple of mine (ELMA) were cracked, they come with a cork seal ring.

ELMA Jar Top by S STEEL, on Flickr

Yes, and I'll wager they wont be available for much longer as the RM90 and Super Elite are completely discontinued now in favour of Elmas new jobbies.

[oldhippy]

42 minutes ago, Mark said:

Your cork must have been special

I always used L & R cleaner and rinse. Don't know if that had anything to do with it, also it would have been back in the early 80's so it could have been been quality

[Mark]

5 minutes ago, oldhippy said:

I always used L & R cleaner and rinse. Don't know if that had anything to do with it, also it would have been back in the early 80's so it could have been been quality

 

To be fair - the only reason I worry about cork these days is when I break one trying to extract it from a bottle - always a bummer when that happens!

[oldhippy]

5 minutes ago, Mark said:

To be fair - the only reason I worry about cork these days is when I break one trying to extract it from a bottle - always a bummer when that happens!

A good quality corkscrew is what you need.