Timex Watches Need Love Too:)

[jeffc83]

This is definitely the watch of the day plus I caught the Timex bug at the same time, lol.  What started the bug you may or may not ask?  One watch that was in the bottom of a box.  It looked like crap, didn't tick even when shaken but it had some kind of charm to it so I went for the full service.  Although I didn't take pics because I was cursing up a storm during the service process, I can tell you that it worked out VERY well in the end by completing the "full movement dip" method to clean it, going through a solid rinse, blow drying it then oiling correctly by following the Timex repair procedure.  So, without further ado, I present to you a fully working 1980 gold plated (0.00000001 microns too, lol) Timex manual wind watch with date. (Great Britain version)  It must have cost a dollar or three back in the day but boy am I proud of this one, even if it isn't worth a penny now!   :thumbsu:  I have about 40 more Time watches on order and am looking for more victims, I mean patients:D  This is so much fun, I just don't understand why this is a dying breed!!!

[Geo]

Ah, the good old Duncan Swish cleaning method, I like that! :)

[bobm12]

Beautiful and excellent job, Jeff! I wonder where can I get the Timex specs you were talking about. I'd love to do a similar job...it will be my first since I don't usually work on Timex watches but these, I could very well make an exception! Love the watch!

 

Cheers,

 

Bob

[jeffc83]

Beautiful and excellent job, Jeff! I wonder where can I get the Timex specs you were talking about. I'd love to do a similar job...it will be my first since I don't usually work on Timex watches but these, I could very well make an exception! Love the watch!

 

Cheers,

 

Bob

 

Thanks guys!  I like dunkin swish, sounds professional too!  Bob, since you asked;)  http://timex.digidep.net/manuals/  Some of them are way beyond repair but I'm happy even by saving just one....god, I sound like such a tree hugger, no that's not right, watch hugger, lol.

Edited February 29, 2016 by jeffc83

[bobm12]

Thanks Jeff, excellent link, I've bookmarked it and plan to be perusing it quite often!

 

Cheers,

 

Bob

[jeffc83]

Pleasure!  I also find myself looking at the 60's and 70's catalogs quite often....very intriguing information!  It's just ironic that I've always said "I don't touch Timex's for any reason" and here I find myself collecting them, lol.  Cheers!

[oldhippy]

I think somewhere in an old post of mine I said my master and I would have a bit of fun with old Timex watches, we would smash them up with our watch makers hammers because they were rubbish  and it was a good way of relieving tension. We must have gone through hundreds of the ruddy things. We used to laugh if someone brought one in for repair, because we knew what repair we had in mind. This was a long time ago before I went into high grade watch repairs. 

[jeffc83]

@oldhippy - Funny you said that because that's EXACTLY what I did when I started watchmaking! (well, I threw them)  I really hated whole "Timex" idea....thought they were cheap, crappy watches for the low income worker, which they really are.  Every single time I'd "mess" up on a movement or just make a HUGE mistake, I'd throw an old Timex at a brick wall as fast/hard as I could...those things tend to send shrapnel everywhere, especially the smaller ones, lol.  This particular one was going to be chucked at a wall one day as well but something happened when I picked it up out of the box lot and looked at it further.  Can you service my Rolex then?  LOL, I just don't know when I will have the confidence to do it on my own to put it nicely;)

Edited February 29, 2016 by jeffc83

[oldhippy]

@oldhippy - Funny you said that because that's EXACTLY what I did when I started watchmaking! (well, I threw them)  I really hated whole "Timex" idea....thought they were cheap, crappy watches for the low income worker, which they really are.  Every single time I'd "mess" up on a movement or just make a HUGE mistake, I'd throw an old Timex at a brick wall as fast/hard as I could...those things tend to send shrapnel everywhere, especially the smaller ones, lol.  This particular one was going to be chucked at a wall one day as well but something happened when I picked it up out of the box lot and looked at it further.  Can you service my Rolex then?  LOL, I just don't know when I will have the confidence to do it on my own to put it nicely;)

Lovely story. I'm glad I wasn't the only one.

[jeffc83]

Lovely story. I'm glad I wasn't the only one.

 

You're certainly not alone!  Heck, just because we discussed this yesterday, I smashed a corroded one up with my "cheap china" watchmaker hammer, lol.  Next time, I will take pics for you:D  

[ramrod]

this falls under the heading of every watch is worth saving. i have a soft spot for timex watches - it was my first watch bought by my mom and dad. i still have it, but can't locate it at this time.

i think they serve their purpose - a timekeeper for every one. they serve the .....less than wealthy, let's say.

good for you, jeff. keep it up.

[jeffc83]

this falls under the heading of every watch is worth saving. i have a soft spot for timex watches - it was my first watch bought by my mom and dad. i still have it, but can't locate it at this time.

i think they serve their purpose - a timekeeper for every one. they serve the .....less than wealthy, let's say.

good for you, jeff. keep it up.

 

Thanks for your support my friend!  Something hit me right then and there because I am now buying up all the Timex lots to try and give them a second chance;)  I always think about how much wrist time these things got but not necessarily who wore them, lol.  The only ones I totally disregard and smash are the rusty/corroded ones, which cannot be saved.

 

P.S. - Love your profile name, I must have seen Super Troopers 50+ times....makes me think of car ramrod, lol.

Edited March 1, 2016 by jeffc83

[ramrod]

my last name is ramsey. when i started a new job back in 1996, one of the guys started calling me that. when i type in a user name on a new forum or something like that, you would be surprised at how many times it's already taken.

 

at least you can be sure of one thing - if you are in an auction for timex watches, you have little competition. you're gonna win a lot of auctions.

[jeffc83]

That's cool, guess we all have our nicknames. The name just reminded me of that movie a little too quickly I guess, lol.  As for competition, it does not exist....I have 30+ on order and stopped there for now.  I can only have so many Timex's man, haha.

[ricardopalamino]

I went through my Timex phase a few years ago . I have a boatload , mostly electrics .  Here's one I like ....a quartz no less . It's from a collection called

" Waterfall " , or something of that nature . I'm trying to dig up an old post on the Timex forum that  ID'ed  it .

 

[ausimax]

I usually try and avoid Timex, the old pressed metal movements are a real pain to but back together, I got a heap in a batch lot I bought about 8 months ago moved them on quick smart, not saying they are no good some of them just can't be killed as their slogan used to saw "Takes a Licking and keeps on Ticking".

Sometimes the cheap movements are winners, I recently bought a batch of 10 watches all Swiss 3 with good quality movements and the other seven cheap 1 jewel movements, the 7 cheapies are all now up and running, the "quality" movements all had broken parts that are uneconomical to repair - go figure!

 

Max

[ricardopalamino]

Aloha ausimax . No argument from me that that the pressed metal movements and most Timex are a real pain to put back together . It's not that it can't be done , but do I really want to spend that much time and effort to do it ? I get much more satisfaction in working on the pain in the ......eyestrain , Accutrons . 

  That being said , I'll take a mechanical movement anytime. 

[oldhippy]

Many years ago Timex wouldn't repair their own. If you sent it back to Timex they would replace it with a new one for the price of a repair. They went to some place in Scotland but I can't remember the town.

[Geo]

They went to some place in Scotland but I can't remember the town.

The town is Dundee where I live. I worked in the Beano factory D.C.Thomson just a few hundred yards from Timex, it was amazing how many Timex watches you got offered from time to time, especially in the local pubs.

We had our own slogan for Timex watches here in Dundee, "Clunk klick every tick".

[ramrod]

i wonder what their highest grade watch was?.....back in the day.

[oldhippy]

i wonder what their highest grade watch was?.....back in the day.

There was no such thing as a high grade Times. :D

[Marc]

Timex did do a 21 jewelled (yes I did say jewelled) series of their own movements (M72, M74, M75) which I believe were still pin pallet movements but with ruby pins rather than steel. Google Timex 21 or Timex M72 for more info.

 

They also marketed at least one family of watches that used Swiss movements. I have had a couple of Timex watches go through my hands, and still have the remnants of a third, that had AS1940/41 movements in them.

[oldhippy]

I never new that. They say you learn something new every day.

[bobm12]

If I remember correctly they were the official time keepers in many an event (sports, etc). They might still be although I'm not on top of who does what nowadays.

[Geo]

If I remember correctly they were the official time keepers in many an event (sports, etc)

There must be a few dodgy world records back in the day! ;)