Bulova microscope...useful as a general-purpose bench tool?

[LittleWatchShop]

The idea hit me...the microscope is stored in the closet in its pretty little wooden box--I do not work on Accutrons.  My Dad bought it.  I remember him asking my opinion--I was graduating engineering school.  It is pristine.

I have a stereo microscope with a very nice and huge boom stand...too big for the bench.  I use it for inspection often.

So...why not use this cute little thing on the bench.  It has limitations of course.

I am going to give it a try and see just how useful it can be.  I am sure @JohnR725has an opinion.  I am sure he has one.

[HectorLooi]

3 minutes ago, LittleWatchShop said:

I do not work on Accutrons. 

Why not? I'm sure you'll love them. 

I'm stuck on one Accutron 214 at the moment. It keeps good time in all positions, except "12 o'clock high" position.

[LittleWatchShop]

Just now, HectorLooi said:

Why not?

Because I have not mastered the other stuff!!  I have a friend who asked me to fix his.  I want to (he is a friend), but I feel it may be a steep learning curve.  Also I have about six clocks in the queue, another Vulcain Cricket, and a drawer full of miscellaneous mechanicals.  I will never get bored.

[HectorLooi]

Looks like you've got your hands full.

But Accutrons are really interesting. They are the only watches with true burnt coils, unlike quartz watches. Quartz coils normally break when someone slips with a screwdriver and scratch the surface. Accutrons have open coils with absolutely no visible physical damage.

If one can repair the burnt coils, Accutron owners will beat a path to his front door.

[JohnR725]

1 hour ago, HectorLooi said:

If one can repair the burnt coils,

Fuzzy memories they can't white focus on? Some worry saw the suggestion that the wire breaks at the solder connection. With the suggestion that may be the protective coating holding the wire is maybe? Don't love was thermal expansion and differences of something but basically the wire would break right at the joint. With the suggestion that you could just apply a little solder and fix the wire again. Zero idea how that plays out in real life. 

Typically as far as physical destruction it was only the 218 cell coils that got destroyed from bad battery changing. This is why supposedly in the US we ran out a cell coils before everywhere else in the world because all sorts of interesting people change batteries with zero experience. Basically all the places where you get a battery change the watch that they barely grasp what a watches. My favorite used to be what I'd go to whether drugstores in the old days we get a film processed and did look on the floor you'd see spring bars because in addition to taking your film and getting a process to change the battery in your watch how much skill could be required to do that obviously none.

Then I believe there's somebody out there that rewinds the coil's.

4 hours ago, LittleWatchShop said:

I am sure @JohnR725has an opinion.  I am sure he has one.

You suspected correctly that I have one it's sitting in the other room now with its protective cover on. Yes it should be in the box but not quite sure where the boxes right now. Considering the price it really isn't a bad microscope and it does exactly what it's supposed to do. I find typically I have a hard time using stereo microscopes as my left thigh is so much stronger than my right I just have a hard time. So it works out fine only have a one lens.

But I have seen you know someone who bought a Nikon stereo microscope well worth the money unfortunately it's a heck of a lot of money. At work they have a clone of probably the Nikon same pretty white color it's a microscope that's what they share in common but it just doesn't quite have I can't quite remember. I don't think it has the same working depth or he just doesn't quite have the quality but it cost a fraction of the cost and it does its job.

 

 

[LittleWatchShop]

Another thought on this microscope.   I have a nice stereo scope, so when I need close up work, it works quite nicely.  It is mounted on a large boom and takes up a lot of space, so it is a little cumbersome for lathe work.

This morning I had the idea to use the Bulova for turning.  I did a test and turned a 100um pivot using pivot steel.  It might work.  I wish I had a little more working distance, however.

Edited April 18, 2022 by LittleWatchShop
100um not 10um

[LittleWatchShop]

I have been using this setup for several days now.  It is permanent.  Better than a loupe.  More efficient in terms of space relative to my big stereo scope and boom.