New to site and watch repair

[JRod]

Hello all,

I am very, very new to this hobby/trade.  I find this very relaxing watching repair videos, and I've watched hundreds of videos of different watch repair channels on you tube, taken some online classes, and read thru a few books.   Taking watches apart and just seeing the movement is really cool.  I've got over 60 junk movements, faces, hands to practice on, from sellers on ebay and etsy listed as 'steampunk' jewellery.  I've got some basic tools from Cousins uk, Perrin's and looking at Esslinger.   I feel this will only be a hobby, but it will be very rewarding restoring an old watch back to working order. 

I look forward to learing from all of you, and thank you.

JRod

[Drew]

Hi JRod, 

welcome to the forum! we are happy to have you here. Looking forward to seeing what you are working on. 

-Drew

[oldhippy]

Thank you for your introduction and welcome to this friendly forum.

We all look forward to your contributions and continued involvement. 

[JRod]

Thanks guys!  I worked on an old Waltham hunter watch,  I actually got it all back together and I think the balance has been switched.  I think it was a parts watch.  the scroll work on the balance and the 3/4 plate are different.  Plus, the balance is way too sloppy for movement - up and down, as well and side to side - but none of the other parts are.

I also got a parts Certina DS2?  and looking at practicing on that.  the rotor is missing, it has a bit of rust under the sealing gasket, and I had to use a pick to get the security gasket out.  It was like a rock.

 

 

[JohnR725]

19 minutes ago, JRod said:

I worked on an old Waltham hunter watch,  I actually got it all back together and I think the balance has been switched.  I think it was a parts watch.  the scroll work on the balance and the 3/4 plate are different.  Plus, the balance is way too sloppy for movement - up and down, as well and side to side - but none of the other parts are.

would've been nice to have a serial number for this watch so we can look up something.

did you look at the pivots on the balance wheel to make sure they're still there?

Then regarding the serial number notice how most of the parts have a partial of the same serial number on the main plate? Usually the balance wheels have the serial number scribed on it sometimes is hard to see so you'll have to look carefully

 

 

 

[JRod]

7 hours ago, JohnR725 said:

would've been nice to have a serial number for this watch so we can look up something.

did you look at the pivots on the balance wheel to make sure they're still there?

Then regarding the serial number notice how most of the parts have a partial of the same serial number on the main plate? Usually the balance wheels have the serial number scribed on it sometimes is hard to see so you'll have to look carefully

 

 

 

Great info John!   I didn't notice so much as I was totally focused on carefully taking it apart, and not messing up.  My first watch taken apart.

the case's number is 509315 - 07

AWC co. 25 years

inside of movement cover - 509315

3/4 bridge - 14569769

the number on the inside of balance - 69769 

I looked carefully at the balance pivots, and the one on the top side (hidden by the hair spring) looks like it's broken off/damaged.  

 

[JohnR725]

5 hours ago, JRod said:

 I didn't notice so much as I was totally focused on carefully taking it apart, and not messing up.  My first watch taken apart.

the problem with watch repair is, is a heck of a lot of information you have to learn and you can only acquire that over time.

6 hours ago, JRod said:

the case's number is 509315 - 07

AWC co. 25 years

inside of movement cover - 509315

Watch repair is interesting and that there are no absolutes sort of. If this was a much newer watch like a modern Omega watch the number inside the case number or the serial number you can look up a heck of a lot of information about your watch providing you had access to a database that you wouldn't normally have access to. But on the vintage stuff most of the numbers art entirely helpful. But we do find it does a 25 year case the plating which is not played it is probably a rule gold plates was meant the last 25 years before where through.

 

5 hours ago, JRod said:

14569769

the reason for the serial numbers so we can go to the link below the pocket watch database marvelous place that puts a whole bunch a reference books basically online in one place look up your serial number and hopefully identifier watch

https://pocketwatchdatabase.com/search/result/waltham/14569769

then there's a minor problem with the pocket watch database that your watch has. Database is based on parts catalogs parts catalogs were not meant for watch identification there only meant for parts. Depending upon when in which Longer looking at you can end up with interesting confusions perhaps. Notice were other people of identified whether their watch matches the database description or not. There seems to be differing jewel accounts for instance. Also as you and down the pictures notice some of them are nickel plated some are gold plated and some have really fancy plates. So in real life very likely these are all separate models of watches but for using a parts catalog they all become the same thing.

 

depending upon which catalogs they're using on the left-hand side it says parts we can look up the parts for your watch except oh dear doesn't seem to exist at least not on the database.

6 hours ago, JRod said:

the number on the inside of balance - 69769 

the reason why their serial numbers on all the parts are a lot of the parts are there were manufactured together. So despite the fact that there is a parts Log indicating that everything interchanges there may be fitting or some other variations. Such usually very bad mix-and-match pocket watch parts. Also why the balance wheel has a serial number corresponding in your case dear watch that is your balance wheel.

5 hours ago, JRod said:

I looked carefully at the balance pivots, and the one on the top side (hidden by the hair spring) looks like it's broken off/damaged.  

that would explain why the balance wheels wobbling around. I

 

now you end up with a problem balance staff replacement is an advanced subject. It also requires tools that you probably don't have and are expensive to purchase when you're starting out as there's so much other tools you have to buy. Watch repair the always be another tool you have to buy for all of us.

But at least in the pocket watch database we find out something we get this

Grade:Seaside

Model:1890

then we need a reference book at the link below you can see the book or downloaded in a variety of formats the major you viewing requirements I usually download the PDF's.

https://archive.org/details/catalogueofwalth00walt

now we run into an amusing problem which is why they probably didn't have the parts list. We get an image like the one below tells us where the parts can be found  but we get lots and lots of variations for the exact same watch. Because the parts book is for parts and all of the various watches with a nickel plating are gold plating of whatever probably worse separate? So in other words the sales catalog they would've been separate watches but here for parts availability they're all the same for parts.

What I was curious about was to separate balance wheels and of course there is a variation. That means two separate balance staffs and it doesn't say this here but another one of the references I have the pivots sizes will be different. Typically with American pocket watches you will get a staff number but the pivots sizes will vary further whichever watch they went into. Higher grade watches usually have smaller pivots

then usually in my parts books I get a much better description of the various balance staffs and only getting the description of one of them? I'm not going to go searching but conceivably in the Waltham catalog they might actually list the balance staff someplace else.

[Nucejoe]

Welcome to the WRT forum.