Dial Repair

[mcoulton]

Hello

I'm working on a watch dial for a friend and one of the indicator rings has fallen off the dial. Please see the attached picture. My question is: What type of glue do I use to stick the part back on? I have Gorilla glue, but do I need something other than that? 

Thanks in advance for any help that can be provided. 

[HectorLooi]

I would use a slow setting epoxy.

Trial fit the ring back into it's correct position first, to make sure that there's no obstruction. Then clean off any remnants of the old adhesive. DON'T clean the dial with any liquids like alcohol, lighter fluid, etc. Not even water. Dab off any dirt or smudges with Rodico.

When glueing dial parts, remember that less is more. It can be really messy and tedious to remove excess adhesive.

Good luck.

[GuyMontag]

I just glued some dial markers back on using Epoxy 330. It has a decent working time and unlike some other glues/epoxies I've used it handles really well so that you can pick it up with an oiler and when you place it it doesn't tend to string up on you.

[Waggy]

@mcoulton When I repair loose markers I glue them from the opposite side of the dial, I first replace the marker on the front of the dial in its correct position and nine times out of ten the friction will keep it in place long enough to let me turn over the dial to the back, I then use a liberal (well, liberal in watch terms) amount of 5 min epoxy on the feet that are poking through the dial. Using this method there is very little chance that any stray glue/epoxy will make it through to the front of the dial. Once dry you can remove any excess adhesive with some wet and dry paper if there is any concern that it will get in the way of anything.  I assume this method would work in your case also. If you look at the back of a dial you can see that this is how it was done when they made the dial, you can see the glue dots around the feet of the markers and date window etc. quick example I found on the web to illustrate my point:

In your case I wouldn't try to remove any of the old glue under where the ring was on the front of the dial, If you use the method above the ring will cover this up, and it won't get in the way as it wasn't in the way previously - no need to make life hard for yourself