Bradley Mickey Mouse - Can't Open Caseback

[gpraceman]

An old friend gave me her Mickey Mouse watch, from the early 1970's, to try to fix.  I can't even get the caseback off to investigate why the movement won't wind or run.  Prying it didn't work.  Just scraped off a small amount of plating.  The base metal is so soft as well.  Super gluing a hex nut to the caseback and wrenching it didn't get it to budge.  I don't want to force it and break off a lug or otherwise damage it.  Anyone have experience with getting this type of caseback off?  I know that this is low quality movement that will be a pain to fix, but I wanted to give it a go for my friend as it has sentimental value.

[RichardHarris123]

Try a one sided razor blade and work around the case back. 

[gpraceman]

1 hour ago, RichardHarris123 said:

Try a one sided razor blade and work around the case back. 

The caseback seems to be set into a channel, so there's no edge to get under.  My photo doesn't really show that well.

 

EDIT:

I gave a razor blade a try and was able to find an edge to get under and was finally able to get the caseback off.  Just a one jewel movement, as I expected.

Balance spins freely, which is good.  Just won't run for more than a few seconds.

Edited August 6, 2024 by gpraceman

[RichardHarris123]

Let us know how you get on, quite often sentimental value is way more important than quality. 

[AndyGSi]

If you need any parts it's a BFG 134 base

https://www.emmywatch.com/db/movement/baumgartner--134/

https://www.cousinsuk.com/category/filter/bfg-movement-parts

Edited August 6, 2024 by AndyGSi

[Nucejoe]

3 hours ago, gpraceman said:

Balance spins freely, which is good.  Just won't run for more than a few seconds.

My understanding of the above is: balance spins freely but " THE WATCH WONT RUN MORE THAN A FEW SECONDS"   whilst the oscilator  by itself spins freely longer than few seconds.

1-Oil escape teeth, its the most common cause.

2-Check end shake on balance, check balance jewel and lower pivot.

3- Check all shakes within your reach.

A good clean and lube always helps.

Good luck

Edited August 6, 2024 by Nucejoe
Double post delele

[gpraceman]

2 hours ago, Nucejoe said:

My understanding of the above is: balance spins freely but " THE WATCH WONT RUN MORE THAN A FEW SECONDS"   whilst the oscilator  by itself spins freely longer than few seconds.

1-Oil escape teeth, its the most common cause.

2-Check end shake on balance, check balance jewel and lower pivot.

3- Check all shakes within your reach.

A good clean and lube always helps.

Good luck

With a puff of air the balance wheel will spin for a few seconds and then stops.

I took apart the balance settings.  One had a cap jewel and the other had a metal cap.  Old crusty oil on both.  I'll start by cleaning and oiling those settings and see how it goes from there.

[Nucejoe]

6 hours ago, gpraceman said:

With a puff of air the balance wheel will spin for a few seconds and then stops.

I took apart the balance settings.  One had a cap jewel and the other had a metal cap.  Old crusty oil on both.  I'll start by cleaning and oiling those settings and see how it goes from there.

 Oiling teeth of escapement wheel is a must with pin pallets. Some old pieces refuse to run without oil.

Is impulse,  jeweled or  old finger type? 

Usually running a few seconds is a sign of two thin balance pivots, older type had cone &  cup for lower setting. 

Rgds

 

[gpraceman]

1 hour ago, Nucejoe said:

 Oiling teeth of escapement wheel is a must with pin pallets. Some old pieces refuse to run without oil.

Is impulse,  jeweled or  old finger type? 

Usually running a few seconds is a sign of two thin balance pivots, older type had cone &  cup for lower setting. 

Rgds

 

Here's some photos of the balance, pallet fork and the balance jewel settings.

Edited August 7, 2024 by gpraceman

[Nucejoe]

All parts look OK. Your own plan should suffice. 

I wouldn't expect it to run without oiling escape teeth. 

I oiled the impulse finger, on the only one of this type I ever cleaned.   Not sure what the right approach is though. 

This is a 404 club piece, they work on all junk of this type. 

Rgds

 

 

 

 

[AndyGSi]

57 minutes ago, Nucejoe said:

All parts look OK. Your own plan should suffice. 

I wouldn't expect it to run without oiling escape teeth. 

I oiled the impulse finger, on the only one of this type I ever cleaned.   Not sure what the right approach is though. 

This is a 404 club piece, they work on all junk of this type. 

Rgds

Being a BFG I'd probably call it a cheap movement rather than junk.

[Nucejoe]

OK Andy cheap.

Baumgartner made lots of movements.

Hairspring coil must be flat, looks coned in the pic from top view.

 

[gpraceman]

19 hours ago, AndyGSi said:

If you need any parts it's a BFG 134 base

https://www.emmywatch.com/db/movement/baumgartner--134/

https://www.cousinsuk.com/category/filter/bfg-movement-parts

Thanks!  Good to know.  So far it doesn't look like I will need any parts.

45 minutes ago, Nucejoe said:

OK Andy cheap.

Baumgartner made lots of movements.

Hairspring coil must be flat, looks coned in the pic from top view.

 

Hairspring looked fine under the microscope.

While a budget watch, it isn't quite as bad as I was expecting.  Though, knowing that getting all of the pivots to line up would be an exercise in frustration, I haven't disassembled the wheel train.  Under the microscope, the wheel train looks quite clean.  The only signs of lubrication I have seen was the dried oil in the jewel setting and faux jewel setting.

With the pallet fork out, the train spins quite freely. 

With the exception of the main plate assembly, I have washed all parts.  Did a quick buff on the case and got out most of the crystal scratches.  So, it is coming right along.

[rehajm]

I’ve done a half dozen of these. WRT professional educator Jon has extensive information on servicing these pin pallets. See this below and look for my other posts on servicing…

 

Edited August 8, 2024 by rehajm

[gpraceman]

17 hours ago, Nucejoe said:

I wouldn't expect it to run without oiling escape teeth.

What oil is good for that?  I usually use 9415 for pallet fork jewels.  Maybe 9010 instead?

EDIT:  Checking around, 9010 looks to be the recommendation.

Edited August 8, 2024 by gpraceman

[gpraceman]

Mickey has a heart beat.  Got oil applied to two escape teeth and it just took off.  That was last night.  Still running this morning.

 

[gpraceman]

Mickey is all done.  Turned out pretty nice.  Buffed up the case, removed most of the crystal scratches and put a new band on it.  I think my friend will be very happy.  She's expecting the original vinyl band, which is too small for an adult.  I'm surprising her with the new band so she can actually wear it once in awhile.