Quality Chinese Tools

[mbwatch]

12 minutes ago, SwissSeiko said:

Hopefully your new one works well

FedEx says it is on my doorstep right now.

[spectre6000]

I had a 3d printer motherboard delivered direct from China a few days ago with no issues or delay as well. Was a warranty part, so I didn't have to deal with anything on the paperwork or payment side. Seems that bit of chaos was short lived. New/more tariffs coming from the kakistocracy soon, so get 'em while you can afford to...

[valleyguy]

Horia clone from ali, the quality as gone down hill since the first one i got a while back it was ok until i had a little mishap,  i ordered a second that was delivered this morning, the thimble as alot of play it can be wobbled from side to side it's also missing the reference line/mark.

My old one had a pin in the side while this newer version as a grub screw, i've been going through photos on ali's site from differnent seller to see if i can find a seller that as the pinned version, a lot of sellers only have photos showing one side so you can't tell which version it is, i don't know if i just got a duff one or are all of these with the lower grub screw sub standard.

I'm going to start the return process to ali, then order another from a different seller.

Edited March 18 by valleyguy

[mbwatch]

20 minutes ago, valleyguy said:

I'm going to start the return process to ali, then order another from a different selle

I have noticed some are sold at around 25% less and assumed lower build quality. Did you pay on the higher, lower, average side?

[HectorLooi]

56 minutes ago, valleyguy said:

Horia clone from ali, the quality as gone down hill since the first one i got a while back it was ok until i had a little mishap,  i ordered a second that was delivered this morning, the thimble as alot of play it can be wobbled from side to side it's also missing the reference line/mark.

My old one had a pin in the side while this newer version as a grub screw, i've been going through photos on ali's site from differnent seller to see if i can find a seller that as the pinned version, a lot of sellers only have photos showing one side so you can't tell which version it is, i don't know if i just got a duff one or are all of these with the lower grub screw sub standard.

I'm going to start the return process to ali, then order another from a different seller.

Kwong Yuen Watch Repair Tool Kit 6175A Cover Lever Bottom  Dismantle Watch Ring Press Glass  Band for Watchmaker
https://a.aliexpress.com/_mPpKpRp

Kwong Yuen is the Bergeon of China. They are known for high quality tools. But their prices are only slightly cheaper than Cousins. 

[valleyguy]

I went for the mid priced one, middle of the road, i also thought they'd be lower build quality on the bargain priced ones so best to avoid, the one i got was £76, the lower priced around £50 while the higher priced £85, these are UK prices so not sure what prices ali charge in other parts of the world.

[Neverenoughwatches]

I paid 130 inc. Shipping 3 years ago, good quality steel and the spindle is quiet accurate,  not perfect but very usable. If you have a lathe and experience, the quality of the stumps and pushers are not so much of a problem, easy to knock out spares.

[nico]

I'm thinking of buying a pressure / waterproof tester. This one is not expensive (excepted the shipping costs) and looks like a La Pavoni espresso machine 

Does someone use this kind of machine ?

[LittleWatchShop]

I have one

[mikepilk]

I have one and it works well.

[spectre6000]

Link?

[Jon]

I use one of these

https://www.cousinsuk.com/product/calypso-wet-tester?code=W1839

For the money, I'm really impressed!

[nico]

I ordered the cheap one shown in my earlier post,  I can do a review in a few weeks if there's interest.

Edited April 8 by nico

[RichardHarris123]

2 minutes ago, nico said:

I ordered the cheap one shown in my earlier post,  I can do a review in a few weeks if there's interest.

Please do. 

[nico]

Just received today:

For only ~60$ *

(*) ~140$ with shipping and custom fees. 3.80 Kg

The pressure should be able to reach up to 6 bars.

The glass is thick

The closing system seems to be sturdy.

 

The plunger lever(?) and the valve:

The plunger lever locking system (I will make a notch on top to note the opening position):

I put 3 bars at let it for 20 minutes, the pressure didn't leaked at all.

 

Next steps:

Quick wash, maybe put some silicone grease on the seal of the lid ?

 

First test I'll do:

1. Put deionized water til the red line
2. Put a diver case in the tank, keep it outside the water
3. Pump (10 ~ 20 times?) to reach 3 bars (0.3MPa)
4. Wait at least 1 minute
5. Dip the case into the water
6. Gently release the pressure and observe

To be continued...

All comments are welcome

Edited April 24 by nico

[RichardHarris123]

Why deionised water for a pressure test? 

[nico]

Because the water is very hard with calcium where I live, and I saw that on a youtube demo ... Maybe it's unnecessary...

[ColinC]

I have one of these (different colour scheme) very happy with it!
Not so happy with the recent results...  but that is nothing to do with the tester.
My wife wanted a waterproof watch she could take on holiday so I fixed up a nice Mickey Mouse Seiko 5 for her.  But after getting a non runner working nicely it failed the pressure test with water seeping in around the crystal  

[MariusJacob]

1 hour ago, RichardHarris123 said:

Why deionised water for a pressure test? 

I bought an old Bergeon 5555. The bottom of the tank was full of petrified salts, which also corroded the metal parts a bit.

I would use just distilled water. 

[Sutcliffe]

On 3/3/2024 at 1:51 PM, Neverenoughwatches said:

How did you tidy up the ends of the pushers ?

 

On 3/3/2024 at 12:56 PM, iwillnotsaveyou said:

I went ahead and made another order for some more tools from the Kwong Yuen factory. 

Main purchases were Case Opener, Bezel Lift, Strap Puncher, Tube Remover, Jewelling Set, and a set of screwdrivers. Some pics below, happy to take some more pics of anything if someone wants more details.

 

 

I measured the jeweling set, and I'll say the sizes seem consistent, but a little small compared to the printed numbers. Pushers seem to come in about 0.04mm less than marked (220->216). As far as I'm concerned that shouldn't affect its effectiveness much. The actual pushing edge looks decent, but could be dressed to a mirror finish. They come apart and back together without any issues.

Here is one pusher out of the box.

and after a little dressing.. (first time trying, and probably needs a bit more):

How did you get on with the screwdrivers? I was looking at a set and wanting to use the Bergeon tips 

[mbwatch]

On 3/18/2025 at 8:51 AM, valleyguy said:

Horia clone from ali, the quality as gone down hill since the first one i got a while back it was ok until i had a little mishap,  i ordered a second that was delivered this morning, the thimble as alot of play it can be wobbled from side to side it's also missing the reference line/mark.

My old one had a pin in the side while this newer version as a grub screw, i've been going through photos on ali's site from differnent seller to see if i can find a seller that as the pinned version, a lot of sellers only have photos showing one side so you can't tell which version it is, i don't know if i just got a duff one or are all of these with the lower grub screw sub standard.

I'm going to start the return process to ali, then order another from a different seller.

I've been meaning to report back - I bought a Horia clone last month, making a point to pay over $100 instead of trying for one of the rock bottom priced sellers. I think I paid $107 at the time, and the one I received is good. There is almost no noticeable sideshake to the spindle, none on the micrometer head and it has the necessary reference mark on the frame.

I have not examined my pushers under magnification though. I assume they're not worse than any others.

[Poljot]

26 minutes ago, mbwatch said:

I've been meaning to report back - I bought a Horia clone last month, making a point to pay over $100 instead of trying for one of the rock bottom priced sellers. I think I paid $107 at the time, and the one I received is good. There is almost no noticeable sideshake to the spindle, none on the micrometer head and it has the necessary reference mark on the frame.

I have not examined my pushers under magnification though. I assume they're not worse than any others.

I also bought such tool and it's great. Absolutely nothing to complain about. It looks great, feels right and works like a charm.

[valleyguy]

On 5/1/2025 at 9:23 PM, mbwatch said:

I've been meaning to report back - I bought a Horia clone last month, making a point to pay over $100 instead of trying for one of the rock bottom priced sellers. I think I paid $107 at the time, and the one I received is good. There is almost no noticeable sideshake to the spindle, none on the micrometer head and it has the necessary reference mark on the frame.

I have not examined my pushers under magnification though. I assume they're not worse than any others.

Sorry i didn't report back on the replacement i received after returning the dodgy one,  like yours it's good with no excessive play in the thimble, it as the reference lines,  the stumps and pushes look in good condtion and fit snuggly,  i got a good un this time.

This good tool as the brass pin on the side below the grub screw, the dodgy one i got had two grub screws, in reality it's pot luck when ordering from ali.

Ali's return and refund went smootherly, they provided a prepaid tracked return label to a local warehouse in the UK, the refund was issued the next day after posting even before they'd received it, all good in the end.