Jump to content

Recommended Pocket Watch Starter Tools

LukeShoe
 Share

Recommended Posts

LukeShoe New Member

LukeShoe

Posted
Posted

Hello!  I am a noob and this is my first time posting on this forum.

 

I have been watching Wristwatch Revival on YouTube for quite a while now and have found the videos quite fascinating.  As a result, I have decided to try my hand at disassembling and cleaning a mechanical movement.  In one of the videos, it was recommended to start on pocket watches since things are a little larger to work with but represent the same idea and process for cleaning and repair.

 

I will start with a cheap China pocket watch from Amazon to disassemble & reassemble a few times to get my feet wet and hone my hand-eye coordination but after that, I want to move to cleaning one I got on eBay (see below).  It's in decent shape, so I would eventually like to use that one for my Sunday morning attire at church and the occasional wedding.

 

With all of that said, what size screwdrivers do I need?  I assume they can have larger tips than a wristwatch size but what does that translate to?  I am on a bit of a budget and so I don't want to buy a $200+ set to see if I enjoy doing this.  I have noticed that a lot of people are saying that Bergeon is the best but is there a cheaper brand with a hardened tip set or even just 2 (?) sizes (for now) of screwdriver that would do the job?  Also, tweezers.  Any top two recommendations with pocket watch size parts in mind?

 

Does a movement manual, if there is such a thing, have a list of tool sizes needed?

 

*I do have some very basic tool kit that my daughter got me from Amazon for Christmas to nudge me into giving this a try so I realize that screwdrivers and tweezers are not the only tools needed but these are the ones I don't have.

 

Has anyone ever worked with this movement before?

 

Is there a pocket watch forum/channel/store you recommend?

 

THANK YOU for your time and any tips or suggestions are greatly appreciated.

 

 

My pocket watch looks very close to this one (dial text is slightly different).  Turn your volume down, the video has loud music in the background.

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/-S_wym7jYFk

 

From what I can tell, (I opened the back cover to look) this is the Molnija 3602 Movement

https://17jewels.info/movements/m/molnija/molnija-3602/

Link to comment
Share on other sites
rjenkinsgb Watch Enthusiast

rjenkinsgb

Posted
Posted

You can get a Bergeon 30081-p05 screwdriver set for around £40 new if you search suppliers; that's the one I got and I'd highly recommend it! It's far better that the cheaper ones I tried before.

It has six sizes, from 0.8 to 1.6mm & should cover most normal watches as well as pocket watches.

I've also added a 0.6mm from the same series, for some very small wristwatch movements.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Bonefixer Watch Enthusiast

Bonefixer

Posted
Posted

As a relative newbie myself I’d recommend this:

Decent tweezers - as soon as I upgraded my £10 set of 7 tweezers for a single pair of Dumont’s my parts stopped pinging, and I was suddenly able to do everything much more effectively. 
 

Screwdrivers - my first set were a midrange set from Amazon - 0.8 - 2.5mm. They were fine, about £50. 
 

You can keep spending and spending on more tools. But don’t skimp on the basics. 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
VWatchie Distinguished Member

VWatchie

Posted
Posted (edited)
22 hours ago, LukeShoe said:

I will start with a cheap China pocket watch from Amazon

If you can link to it we could have a look and give you our opinions!

EDIT:

Sorry, missed the link. I'd recommend a Unitas 6497 or a Chinese clone Seagull TY3600. When you start out you want Incabloc anti-shock springs as they are the easiest to handle. Quite often you can find genuine Unitas movements for not much money on eBay in pocket watches. For example: https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2332490.m570.l1313&_nkw=196326170759&_sacat=0 

Also, if you later want to design your own watch around a Unitas 6497 you find tons of options, cases, hands, dials, on eBay.

Edited by VWatchie
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
 Share
Go to topic listing


  • Recently Browsing

    • No registered users viewing this page.

  • Topics

  • Posts

    • UNiCOM
      My 'go to' repair talk resource ...

      By UNiCOM · Posted

      No matter how trivial and obvious I'm looking forward to having ALL of my queries answered and explained in detail here ... 
    • VWatchie
      Chinese clone demagnetizers

      By VWatchie · Posted

      I agree, it's so sad how we chose to use our inventive abilities. I saw this video about what would happen if a single Russian nuclear bomb detonated in New York and it scared the living daylights out of me. Everyone should see it, especially our politicians who I'm not sure are aware of the destructive power of nuclear weapons. They don't seem to worry much. Perhaps they think they will be safe in their bunkers. In the video, it is mentioned that just a single intercontinental ballistic missile "SS-18 Satan" corresponds to over 530 Hiroshima bombs. It's all beyond comprehension. Humanity and civilisation wouldn't stand a chance. Sorry for going OT again!
    • clockboy
      First movement = First broken movement

      By clockboy · Posted

      The best advice I received when starting watch repair was don’t force anything.. screws, lifting bridges etc etc.. The other vital skill is using tweezers without losing the part., for me never hold a part tightly and the tweezers must be dressed.
    • Murks
      Breguet hairspring frequency

      By Murks · Posted

      Hi can someone tell me where a can buy this chart for breguet hairspring frequency?
    • nevenbekriev
      Without Our Forum

      By nevenbekriev · Posted

      OK Rich, may be You are just a little bit more worried than really needed. Who am I to say, jus a newbie here but... Such a big forum will not collapse in any case, exept if the people loose their interest to participate. If something happens to the owner,  then senior members will be able to handle the forum. Let me show an example where one of the moderators of the russian forum (thow He was not russian), a man of great knowlage abd big heart, passed away in 2023. Thow His personal site is still working, the russians coppied the whole site to safe place here. I mean, all depends on the people and if they need to do something, they will find the way. Actually, the forum is place where people can meet and share. As a final measure, people can share their phone numbers and use Viber to comunicate, at least people who are interested to keep connection between each other.
×
×
  • Create New...