Hello From West Virginia!

[DouglasSkinner]

I'm really thankful to have come across this site and Mark Lovick's great videos.  For someone trying to learn the craft here in a log cabin in West Virginny, they've been a godsend.  Aren't too many watchmakers in my neck of the woods.

 

I've been studying watchmaking at home for about a year now.  I've also been taking classes at NAWCC's School of Horology in Columbia, PA but the school no longer has a degree program; so, I have to take them as they are available.  They are a great experience and I've learned a lot but it's slow going.

 

I've set up the beginnings of a shop in my basement using my great-grandmother's vanity, mounted on blocks, as a workbench.  I'm still "tooling up"; looking for things I can afford on a limited budget.

 

I've attached a picture of the watch I'm wearing now.  It's an Accutron automatic.  Didn't know Accutron made mechanical watches (I got an original Accutron tuning fork watch when I graduated from high school in the 1960's) but one day I chanced by it at a jewelry store near my office.  I liked square case and the dial and since it was a clearance item I got it for a very good price, so I bought it.  I can't afford really high-end watches unless I can get a good deal on one that needs restoration which I can do myself. 

 

So that's my goal: to develop the ability to someday take a good watch that's not working and make it work.  I particularly love Omega watches.  In the meantime I have had a few successes with cheaper watches but I'm still breaking more than I fix!  Given that I'm "old" my greatest difficulty is steadying my hands but I've improved at that by putting in a lot of "tweezer time".

[bobm12]

Hi Douglas,

 

Welcome to the forum! That's a nice -- and interesting -- Accutron! I'm sure you'll find a wealth of knowledge here and hope you'll enjoy the relaxed and friendly atmosphere of the forum. I, too, have been "self taught" if online classes can be counted: which leads me to one question:

 

Are the AWCC classes you refer to, available on line?

 

In any case, enjoy our forum and share your experiences. We definitely are looking forward to that...and please, don't hesitate to ask questions, we always have someone that "has been there and done that", ready to help!

 

Cheers,

 

Bob

[Geo]

Thanks for the insight into your horological exploits Douglas. I very much admire you attitude and perciverance, you will undoubtedly make good progress with that attitude.

[noirrac1j]

Welcome Douglas!

 

J

[clockwatcher]

Hi Douglas!

 

Love your avatar! Shows you're a man of taste. Alastair Sim is one of my favourite actors.

 

Keep those posts coming in.

 

John

[Maurice]

And welcome from me too!

[Vich]

Hello Douglas and welcome,

This is a great place with good advice and helpful people and you will be at home here. Now if I could only stop humming country Roads

Talking about humming, I love the Accutrons and have Three at the minute. The phasing is quite trying but worth it to get that Hum.

Cheers,

Vic

[DouglasSkinner]

Actually, I was born and raised in Southern California (Manhattan Beach later Corona).  I've lived in LA, New York, Chicago and Washington DC.  My wife is from Detroit; bottom line being we're tired of cities.  So we found a little town of 700 souls to settle in.  George Washington really slept here.  Not only that he surveyed much of the town and owned property just around the corner.  He was a frequent visitor.  So I'm a transplant. 

 

I'm a great fan of Alistair Sim and a lot of other great British actors and actresses: Roger Livesey, Niall MacGuiness, Finlay Currie, Mervyn Johns, Leo Genn, Joan Greenwood, Valerie Hobson, to name a few.

[clockwatcher]

Ah, names from the greatest era of British film making. 'The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp', 'Green for Danger', 'Great Expectations', etc., etc.

Life in West Virginia sounds delightful. I like the idea of GW sleeping there. Queen Elizabeth I slept in the next village from here, where her father had built a small castle. Land steeped in history!

All that and watches too.

Welcome aboard!

John

[DouglasSkinner]

I own copies of The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp and Great Expectations.  Reminds me that I particularly enjoyed Bernard Miles as Joe Gargery.  There was a sort of golden era of English film making after the war and into the 50s.  My wife is always amazed at how many movies I've seen.  But heck, I grew up not too far from Hollywood.

 

We live in a "quad state" area.  We live in West Virginia.  Go to our gym in Virginia.  Church is in Maryland.  Car repairs in Pennsylvania.  Had a very cold winter the last two years.  It's not an exciting place but we've both seen the world (more than once) and we just want to settle into old age.  It's very nice to be watchmaking while the snow falls outside.

[clockboy]

Welcome Douglas, This is a great forum for tinkerers and beginners because there always seems someone who can help. Once you start with horology it's difficult to let it go. Enjoy.

[autowind]

Hello Douglas,  Few interest's are as absorbing as the world of watches,  as they say "Practice makes perfect",  of course this only holds true provided you are practising the right method.  Regarding the hand shaking,  one of the tips I learnt from "Practical watch repairing by Donald De Carle",  which I believe is available for free as a PDF file on the net,  is to keep a finger of the hand holding the screwdriver in contact with the movement,  this way we all shake together.  I cannot recommend "Practical watch repairing" too highly, it is full of practical information.  Good luck with your endeavours.  

[Mark]

Welcome to the forum Douglas.

 

My favourite is An Inspector Calls - his screen presence is unbelievable.

[DouglasSkinner]

Thanks Mark.  When I mentioned my own shaky hands I had you in mind as a goal towards which to aspire.  Your work is beautiful and makes it look easy, but I know that it takes years of practice.  I used to teach mathematics and my students always said the same about me.  "Gee! Mr. Skinner, it looks easy when you do it but when I get home it all seems to fall apart!"  In reply to which I'd tell them that when you've done something for 40 years it always looks easy to newcomers.

 

I think I've seen An Inspector Calls.  Unfortunately Netflix doesn't have it, while Amazon has it for a whopping $37.88 (£24.94).  Yes, I know what you mean by presence.  I really like Sim's rendition of Ebenezer Scrooge.  His nuances of expression are superior to every other actor who has played that role.  And he has great diction, unlike a lot of today's actors.  He must have taught elocution.  (Just checked Wikipedia and guess what? he was!  He was Fulton Lecturer in Elocution at the University of Edinburgh.)   Well I'll be!  Should have taken it myself only I was a science dweeb--only took math and science courses and avoided all else. 

 

I also like Jack Warner (for fellow Americans not to be confused with the movie mogul.) .  I've seen him in The Blue Lamp, Scrooge and My Brother's Keeper (also starring the great George Cole who, I think, is still with us).  His Mr.Jorkin in Scrooge taught me the expression "gammon and spinach".

[Mark]

Now you have me going Douglas! George Cole was my hero when I was younger - as Arthur Daley in Minder (The Dennis Waterman years - not that other fellow) :D

 

And I agree, Sim was the best Scrooge without argument.

[frenchie]

Welcome Douglas. I LOVE West Virginia. I used to have very good friends in Philippi (site of the first land battle of the Civil War). It's such a peaceful place.

[DouglasSkinner]

bobm12: Regarding the NAWCC classes, I don't know if they're online.  I don't think so.  The School of Horology is only 100 miles away (in Columbia, PA) so I drive up there to take them.

[DouglasSkinner]

frenchie: Well, you know, it really is peaceful, even if many parts of it are relatively poor.  My wife and I often take US 50 when we drive to her sister's in Columbus, OH.  It's adds extra hours to our drive but we love to take it at a leisurely pace, taking pictures of its "hills and dales."  There are stretches where there isn't hardly any traffic at all and there it is wonderfully pastoral and peaceful.  Another highway we often take to her parents in Michigan is US 250.  Now there is a twisty-turney road, going up and down and it's very narrow in a lot of places, but you can't beat it for scenery.  Along the way one passes through little hamlets and churches with old graveyards beside them.  You get to feel what it was like to live in Appalachia in the old days: square dances, corn likker, apple butter, smoked ham, handmade quilts and farming.

 

I like the fact that there are fewer than 2 million in the whole state.  in fact the town of Corona, CA, where my dad still lives, is ten times the size of Morgan County where I live. 

[bobm12]

Hi Douglas,

 

Thank you for the information about the classes. Much appreciated. I'm also a transplant, grew up in the Mid West, Chicago to be more precise. Only, back then I wasn't into watchmaking and down here, well, it is hard to find a place where I can try "watchmaking while the snow falls outside". :)

 

I just can't wait and retire (only a few more years) so I can find the perfect spot as you did! Great having you around.

 

Cheers,

 

Bob