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Cleaning pinion leaves on train gears. Disassemble?

mikepilk
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mikepilk Distinguished Member

mikepilk

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When cleaning pinion leaves, I have used pegwood with some abrasive paste (rouge). It's tricky on small wheels.

I have some with slight corrosion (new parts not easily available). Is it usual to disassemble the pinion from the wheel for cleaning ?

I remember seeing Alex on "Watch Repair Tutorials" doing this and using a Dremel to polish the leaves (but I can't find the video).

It would be an easy way to get a good finish, but I haven't taken wheels apart, and worry about how easy it is to damage the wheel?

a.thumb.jpg.0881f88378cf40b0ad5a14e1da6b17e9.jpg

 

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VWatchie Distinguished Member

VWatchie

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3 hours ago, oldhippy said:

Unless you need to cut a new wheel or pinon never take it apart.   Diamantine powder with a little oil is good for polishing steel.

Do you mix oil and Diamantine or is there a ready-made mix? Do you then dip a piece of peg wood into the mix or do you have some other method?

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oldhippy Distinguished Member

oldhippy

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17 minutes ago, VWatchie said:

Do you mix oil and Diamantine or is there a ready-made mix? Do you then dip a piece of peg wood into the mix or do you have some other method?

Just add a drop of oil and mix, you can shape the peg wood to fit between the pinons. 

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VWatchie Distinguished Member

VWatchie

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Likely nothing new to you but as it has been working so well for me I just thought I'd mention that I got a tip from @nickelsilver to pre-clean the pinions by pressing them into peg wood soaked with a degreaser. It has made a significant difference and has saved a lot of time.

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Waggy Distinguished Member

Waggy

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It would be interesting to get a better understanding of what is causing the leaves to look this way and to what degree this impedes the running of the movement, ie if it is cosmetic or actually a mechanical issue. I realise this will be different for every movement, and maybe even every wheel (?!) and I suspect one could never know definitively the answer to this question so we must use our best judgement on a case-by-case basis?

Also, I think we need to weigh-up if the cure may be worse than the disease, will any restorative treatment actually make matters better or worse?

What I do (and more than open to the idea that I am wrong) is remove any obvious chunks from the leaves with peg wood or an old oiler, then if still a concern I leave in de-rusting solution for a while, checking every 20 mins. I then look under the microscope and if it looks mechanically sound then I'll call it a win even though it may not look pretty (de-ruster tends to blacken de-rusted steel), then into the cleaning machine with the rest of the parts. Otherwise, I'll seek a replacement.

I think, at my skill level, trying to remove and repair the pinion from the wheel would only serve to rapidly top up the swear jar with a poor outcome.

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oldhippy Distinguished Member

oldhippy

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Diamond paste is used but water based and not oil, so you would need to make sure everything has been removed of the paste, I don't know if it come in different grades it is an abrasive. I don't see why you can't use it with a drop of oil it would be safer then water on steel.   

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HectorLooi Distinguished Member

HectorLooi

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1 hour ago, Waggy said:

It would be interesting to get a better understanding of what is causing the leaves to look this way

Most likely from the use of a water based cleaner and inadequate drying.

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