Accutron tuning fork shims--history?

[LittleWatchShop]

The two washers that sit under the tuning fork are amusing.  Anybody know the history of those things?  Did they build it and then realize, "Oh damn, we need to shim this thing."

[JohnR725]

as far as I know they were always there sort of. In other words there they are to tilt the fork to be in alignment with the coil. The problem is they're not always the same as the image below shows there in different colors. Although I don't think I've ever seen a black washer usually the gold is the most common or the copper color occasionally. I am assuming there was a manufacturing tolerance with probably the tuning fork to get a line with the coil assembly.

So basically anytime you have the washers when I take the fork out I put the screws back in the keep the washers where there supposed to be that way I don't have to worry about mixing them up of two different colors.

[LittleWatchShop]

on the 218's I have worked on, the Nickel (silver) is toward the center and the gold is toward the perimeter.

Putting the screws back in is a clever idea!

[HectorLooi]

If the watch has been worked on by somebody in the past, we cannot assume that the washers are in the correct positions. The test is the fork must be properly centred in the coil formers and the index finger is in the same plane as the index wheel.

[LittleWatchShop]

Johns vast database of horological knowledge never ceases to amaze me.  He is the 'google' of horology.