My two latest pocket watch repairs.

[aitaita]

Finished up these two recently. Came to the conclusion with the Revue that I hate working on incablocs (2 Hours looking for a cap jewel on the floor), but I love mobile stud carriers (So much easier to work with than the Omega), and having a separate bridge for the escape wheel is nice, too.

The previous owner of the Revue had superglued down the dial after it flaked. Managed to buy a parts watch a few months later, and it came out quite nicely in the end. I'm going to experiment using Aquazol on some flaked dials I have at some point.

The Omega was my second balance staff replacement. Cutting out the balance hub on the lathe was probably the scariest part of the process.

Now, to spend the next 3 months waiting for an Omega to show up on eBay at a reasonable price.

 

[dancad]

Very nice restoration and apologies for posting like this, it’s an absolute nightmare to quote using the phone. 
 

Anyway I feel your pain, as with my first watch I opened and tried to service, I managed to loose two of those springs, but I learned my lesson and I am very careful when dealing with cap jewels and springs,especially the springs.

p.s: I love these Revue movements, you really feel the high Swiss quality in these movements. 

13 hours ago, aitaita said:

Finished up these two recently. Came to the conclusion with the Revue that I hate working on incablocs (2 Hours looking for a cap jewel on the floor),

Edited March 4 by dancad

[mbwatch]

1 hour ago, dancad said:

I managed to loose two of those springs

You wouldn't guess by looking at them, but a magnet will usually pick them up. Get some strong magnets, glue them to a ruler and you have a very valuable new tool.

Edited March 4 by mbwatch

[dancad]

9 hours ago, mbwatch said:

You wouldn't guess by looking at them, but a magnet will usually pick them up. Get some strong magnets, glue them to a ruler and you have a very valuable new tool.

Yes, I heard about it, but a strong magnet near watches ...it's kind of like smoking near the gas pump  , joking of course, but you're right, it might work. But having enough patience and a steady hand when dealing with these springs is more important than anything imo. 

[aitaita]

11 hours ago, dancad said:

Very nice restoration and apologies for posting like this, it’s an absolute nightmare to quote using the phone. 
 

Anyway I feel your pain, as with my first watch I opened and tried to service, I managed to loose two of those springs, but I learned my lesson and I am very careful when dealing with cap jewels and springs,especially the springs.

p.s: I love these Revue movements, you really feel the high Swiss quality in these movements. 

I've been tempted to make a small magnet broom for the number of times I've had a Yoke spring join the Swiss Space Program.

Or a tiny clear plastic tent/tarp over my workpiece which I can work under, but deflects flying parts downwards

[Neverenoughwatches]

56 minutes ago, dancad said:

But having enough patience and a steady hand when dealing with these springs is more important than anything imo. 

In time that will come as you become more proficient at handling small parts, and the learning of tricks to help you manage it. Tweezers might seem like a simple tool but there is a lot more to them than one might think . Most lost parts are due to tweezers pings, making sure they are dressed correctly at the ends so the tips close together evenly, parallel and don't open up when squeezed together. Tweezer choice is also a consideration, tip shape and size to match the part being handled, keyless springs require a good firm pair ...ahem .......to manipulate them in and out of their homes.  The type of metal the tweezers are made from is again something to think about, steels, brass, bronze,titanium, wood,ceramic, plastics. Some of these grip better than others,scratch less and have different compression tension. A nice light tension will prevent part drops, this can be adjusted to suit the feel that you want from them by reducing the tension at the tweezer join achieved by removing material from the thickness and the width, though that does require tip width adjustment as reducing the tension will close up the ends. And back to part gripping, you can add to the inside of the tips some texture with an abrasive paper, I like a 400g, best done with titanium or brass so the tweezers are less likely to scratch parts. As to the handling of the missing parts in question, inca springs are springy, counteract that with something that will absorb its springyness, a tiny amount of rodico on a stick serves. And lost jewels are better seen in the dark with a uv light. 

[dancad]

4 hours ago, Neverenoughwatches said:

inca springs are springy, counteract that with something that will absorb its springyness, a tiny amount of rodico on a stick serves. And lost jewels are better seen in the dark with a uv light. 

Exactly. For the other part of your message, I think I've chosen the right tweezers: bronze ones made by Horotec. They're perfect. In the two months I've been practicing with a dozen watches , I've never lost a part due to the tweezers. However, I have lost a few springs (some were found, others not), but that was due to poor handling on my part, not the tweezers handling. I wasn't using both hands, and I wasn't employing the proper tools. Now, I make sure to use a wooden stick with a bit of Rodico on the tip, or a jewel picker, just like Alex Hamilton suggested in one of his videos.

5 hours ago, aitaita said:

Or a tiny clear plastic tent/tarp over my workpiece which I can work under, but deflects flying parts downwards

I had that thought as well, but to set it up and to handle tools from the desk around it...not sure, seems not so practical, but it theory could have other benefits, like...protecting your desk and tools under it from dust particles.

[Razz]

I suggest a magnetic auto tool holder. Leave it in the hard plastic. Easy to clean and to retrieve the parts from the pastic. This has saved me hundreds as we as heart ache. The agony of defeat turns to joy of discovery when you find the part you pinged!