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Pocket Watch Arrival

Gary

By Gary
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Gary Super WRT Addict

Gary

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Hello All!

 

Picked this up on the bay the other day and it just arrived. No one bid so I felt obligated. I need a watch. Anyway, great case the hinges and release button works well. No name on the dial. opening the back it is a key wind, Swiss, about 33-35 mm movement. Anyone have any guesses as to what is under the hood? I am afraid to open this one as I would like to keep it and use it on occasion. LOL. Seems pretty clean.

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WillFly Distinguished Member

WillFly

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Nice wee watch Gary, well done. Where's Will when you need him? :)

Probably in bed... :D

 

From the style, it looks like a typical pocket watch from the 1860s or 1880s or thereabouts, though key winding continued into the early years of the 20th century. The front glass hinges open so that the the hands can be set by the key - note the square pinion in the middle of the hands - and the movement is obviously key wound through the dust cover. Do you have a key for it? One key should do both winding and hand setting.

 

The case is Swiss silver - from the "0.936" mark on the inner side - but I can't date it (UK silver has datable hallmarks). The movement is very typical of its period - I had a J.G. Graves English Lever movement that looked almost identical to yours - but I've no idea as to make. There were many movement manufacturers whose movements were used in signed and unsigned watches at that time.

 

The balance looks nice - is it a good runner?

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Gary Super WRT Addict

Gary

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Thank you! I don't have a key Will. I will be ordering one today. I was thinking about the same time frame due to the style. The balance moves and will run but then slows to a stop. I see a lot of grime on some of the jewels. I'm guessing 11? Not sure. I know nothing about pocket watch repair as I'm just learning. I don't know anyone in the are that works on pocket watches. I would really like to open it up but I'm holding back. I may have to put it in the safe to keep it safe, lol

I will let you know when I get a key and can give it a turn.

Thank you again!

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Gary Super WRT Addict

Gary

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Well, curiosity got the best of me. So I opened it up and must say it was really simple movement. I will post some of the photos later if the inside. It was more than dirty. I cleaned my jars twice while cleaning the parts. My fear was the "lever"escapement? Not the usual pallet fork but it did look to have two clear jewel inserted. The most difficult part was longing everything up. Lubricated with the oils I have and placed the balance cock back on and she just started ticking. I recased and let it sit on my desk and it ran about 7 hours. First four it kept very good time. The next day I wound it a little but it kept stopping after 2-minutes. Took it out of the case and finally realized I may not have had it lighted up in the case properly. I removed it again and repositioned. It started running again but now over the course of 5 hours it has gained 10-12 minutes. I'm thinking magnetized? Thoughts? I need a demagnetizer and a lot of other toys! And another job! Lol

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  • 2 weeks later...
Gary Super WRT Addict

Gary

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**update*

Disassembled and cleaned the parts as well as I could. Had to do a lot of fiddling with the bridge and the lever pallet. Took me a couple of times to get the balance cock back on correctly but she went together lightly lubricated and clean. Ticking away for a couple of days now.post-337-0-00030600-1432784720_thumb.jpgpost-337-0-04809900-1432784747_thumb.jpgpost-337-0-25073700-1432784779_thumb.jpg

After 36 hours and a few winds here and there it is keeping relatively great time considering its age. I don't have a timegrapher (yet)! So I set it with the computer and it has been holding it steady and pretty spot on! post-337-0-69394800-1432784813_thumb.jpg

Edited by Gary
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deanloveswatches Watch Enthusiast

deanloveswatches

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Posted

Hi Gary

I just bought a few cheap pocket watches from the bayster - and several of them were unsigned

I went here https://pocketwatchdatabase.com

I put the serial numbers in and tried all the different manufacturer combinations - and got 2 hits with unsigned movements - might help you - if you have the patience

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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