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Drying parts after cleaning - L&R #566 + #3


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I recently made the switch from Zippo lighter fluid/naptha over to actual watch cleaning solutions, and I have to say the difference in effectiveness is night and day. Absolutely worth the expense.

One question I do have is regarding drying after the final rinse in #3. I know watch cleaning machines do a drying cycle, but I don't know for how long or how hot.

I've been putting my parts baskets in my toaster oven with a thermometer. Last night I did 30 minutes at 150F, and they still had a lot of liquid on them. I had to lay them out on watchmaker's paper to blot and dry before putting them back in the parts tray.

Is there like a best practices for drying, or just keep checking until they're done?

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8 minutes ago, ManSkirtBrew said:

I recently made the switch from Zippo lighter fluid/naptha over to actual watch cleaning solutions, and I have to say the difference in effectiveness is night and day. Absolutely worth the expense.

I found exactly the same - parts so clean, and metal so shiny 😃

11 minutes ago, ManSkirtBrew said:

One question I do have is regarding drying after the final rinse in #3. I know watch cleaning machines do a drying cycle, but I don't know for how long or how hot.

After 30s final rinse in IPA, I use a puffer to remove most of the IPA from the baskets, then a hairdryer. It doesn't take long, probably about 30s. I then tip the parts out on the tissue paper to check they are all dry.

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23 minutes ago, ManSkirtBrew said:

Thanks guys. I was wondering if the moving air is an important part of the drying process, and it seems like the answer is yes.

Yes, moving air is forced convection.  If you put your hand out of a moving car window on a hot day the air temperature is the same as not moving but the moving air removes heat from your hand quicker. 

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On 5/16/2023 at 9:55 PM, kd8tzc said:

once I do the rinse in the IPA, I have found they dry very fast even without a food dehydrator or anything.  The IPA just evaporates very fast I have found

That's risky, though. The cool evaporation of IPA can draw humidity from the air / condensation on the parts. Hence, a risk of rusting. It'll probably be fine most of the time because IPA dries so quickly, but some heat would make it a safer process. 

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On 5/16/2023 at 10:48 AM, mikepilk said:

After 30s final rinse in IPA

when I was cleaning watches at home using a hairdryer to dry I found that it just wouldn't. then the hairdryer I was using I inherited and my suspicion was was rejected because it was just too hot. I actually moved it away from the watches by quite a bit this wicked mix in a little fresh air and parts came out nice and warm almost too warm but they still have the rinse. So one of my friends suggested alcohol a trip to the hardware store and nice can of alcohol not isopropyl. The exact same alcohol that will dissolves shellac but it's only in there for a few seconds to remove the rinse and in straight on to the dryer. At work Elma suggested isopropyl alcohol better for the shellac and we have no problems with the rinse drying off. Somewhere in I don't know if somebody made the story up or whether it's true the suggestion was the rinse will not evaporate at sea level. But I don't often it's a story or not. So basically your final final rinse needs to be alcohol if you want everything to evaporate and come out nice and dry.

 

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  • 1 month later...

I just switched to using 566 + #3 with my DIY rotating cleaner I made using a lab overhead stirrer and Elma basket. I've tried using stoddard solvent before (#3 is 60-70% stoddard solvent if I remember correctly) and I hate it how it doesn't evaporate like IPA. That's why I do my manual cleaning with IPA. Anyway, I too use IPA as the final rinse for 30 secs and do a proper spin in the end. No need for a heating cycle. 

Just a little demonstration. First time I'm cleaning a full basket. The jar starts to wobble when running on high speed. No problem, I can support it with hand.

Edited by Malocchio
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3 hours ago, Malocchio said:

I just switched to using 566 + #3 with my DIY rotating cleaner I made using a lab overhead stirrer and Elma basket.

I'm in the process of doing the same thing. I have an old overhead stirrer from a defunct path lab and have purchased a 64mm Elma basket complete (carrier and 3 tray system) + matching Elma lid (including spring steel lid hold-down) + 600ml Elma Jar complete (has the baffle / wavebraker, lid and seal), which I'm hoping to be able to cobble together into a watch part homogeniser. Will likely turn to Mr. Kilner for the rinse cycles and then do some gentle naked spinning for the drying stage with a carefully aimed hair dryer. The stirrer has a soft start and gradual slow down built in and is adjustable from 10-2000 rpm in steps of 10. There is also a built in timer which will only go up to 20 minutes (maybe thats enough?). Hitherto, I have been laboriously doing a 3 stage process in an ultrasonic machine with suboptimal results (other than the case work which seems to come out really well). And that is despite using Elma WF pro ultrasonic cleaning solution. 

Other than the wobble you mentioned, were there any other traps I should avoid falling in to?

What speeds (rpm) should I be using in general for the different stages?

Thanks for posting this. As a complete beginner, its reassuring that others have had the same delusions as me.

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17 hours ago, DrHWO said:

I'm in the process of doing the same thing. I have an old overhead stirrer from a defunct path lab and have purchased a 64mm Elma basket complete (carrier and 3 tray system) + matching Elma lid

That seems to be the same basket I have. My stirrer has an 8mm motor shaft and the hole in the Elma lid is 8mm. So there's a 8/8 shaft coupler and an 8mm shaft that I cut from a beaker holder that came with the stirrer. Those jars are just some kitchenware but the lids are metal and there's a rubber seal. Not the tightest one around so you can smell the 566 if you sniff the jar close. The shaft goes through a lid that slides up and down and acts as a splash guard while spinning the basket. It also keeps most of the flammable fumes and odours inside, which is nice. The jars are not very uniform, there's a little deviation in diameter and roundness so one jar fits the base better than the other but I just stick a piece of cardboard in if there's too much space. What or who is Mr. Kilner?

First I was about to buy an Indian basket but I read and saw some bad things about the randomness in quality so I went with Elma. The machining is precise so the basket doesn't wobble in the shaft. The wobble I experienced is due to high RPM, jar not supported properly, long shaft and the shaft going through a tight hole. But no problem if I support the jar with hand. I have no idea about RPM, still experimenting myself. The Elma wavebreakers seem to work fine so I can go a little higher speed. I went with 10 min wash and 5 min rinse, and finally 30 sec rinse in IPA. I guess you can do a longer wash cycle when not using ammoniated cleaner? The results are very satisfying. I haven't tried using ultrasonic with L&R 566 but before I had hard time getting all the gunk off pinion leaves. Now they come up all clean and shiny with no precleaning.

 

1688039309286.jpg

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That’s one very nicely constructed unit. Thank you for the additional details which will be most useful in my endeavours. Kilner is the name of a jar manufacturing company here in the UK. Named after John Kilner who set the company up in the 1800’s. Think Mason jars ( but better!).  I doubt I’ll be able to make anything as visually appealing as yours, but as long as it works. 

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After a bit of further research, the recommendations from Elma are given below, FWIT. Bearing in mind they quote percentages of their machines' maximum which is 1200 RPM and will optimise their settings for their chemicals. For the novice watch homogeniser, this will vary according to the ambient temperature, relative humidity and type of cleaning / rinsing solutions used. So a visual inspection to see there is minimal frothing and central cavitation is probably the real world scenario.

 

Elma Spin Speeds and times.jpg

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  • 2 months later...
2 minutes ago, Mightynimrod said:

Has anyone tried an air fryer to dry their parts?

Circulating fan, timer and complete temp adjustment

These can be purchased for as little as £25-30 and seem highly suitable for drying watch parts in their baskets, especially if the baskets are suspended 

I've heard of some people using a food dehydrator.

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5 minutes ago, gpraceman said:

I've heard of some people using a food dehydrator.

Yeah me too, I was using our air fryer today and realised that just a small one would be absolutely ideal to dry the parts after their final IPA rinse

For what they cost I'd say it's worth a punt, I can always return it back to amazon if it's pants.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Salter-EK2817-Compact-Removable-Frying/dp/B07NY34113/ref=sr_1_3?crid=HTN4BPDOBBNO&keywords=small%2Bair%2Bfryer&qid=1694983656&refinements=p_72%3A419153031&rnid=419152031&sprefix=small%2Bai%2Caps%2C115&sr=8-3&th=1

Edited by Mightynimrod
alteration
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On 9/17/2023 at 11:00 PM, gpraceman said:

I've heard of some people using a food dehydrator.

I read about this too and now do it myself.

It is working well. I put the mesh baskets straight into the food dehydrator after the last rinse and then maybe 30 mins later I carefully take all the parts out of the baskets and put them back in the parts trays.

Everything nice and dry and contained so I don't lose little screws etc!

I am guessing the temperature control is better in the dehydrator, min has a dial for settings from something like 30° to 80° C?  I typically set it to 60°C

Edited by ColinC
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