Jump to content

How To Remove A Rusty Spring Bar?


Recommended Posts

Hi mark, I have this diver watch whom which i used it as a daily beater. Its has been with on my wrist during shower almost on a daily basis (tap water of course! Not water heater) and the spring bar is somewhat rusty. The rust has also causes the spring bar to thinner. After seeing that, i know i must do something with it as im afraid if constant wearing the watch with a broken spring bar, imagine the spring bar just broke and the watch land on the ground hard and causes the case tube to broke! So i use the screwdriver and try to open as i dont own the correct size of the fork style spring bar tool and with all my might, i managed to remove 1 spring bar out of 2. Do you think its a good idea to soak it in acid like maybe lemon or something to dissolve the spring bar? Thank you very much. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Depends on the fitting - if I can get my cutters in I would snip it off.

Thank you. You're right. Unfortunately i dont have the watch with me now. Its in my office. I shall try on friday since today is labour day! If it couldnt get in, what are the methods would you use apart from this? Filing?

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

A screw slot file, or a fret saw with a fine blade should do it.

Thank you for your reply but sorry for my incompetence, but how would a fret saw with a fine blade would do it since the watch case is attached to a metal bracelet? Thank you. And also may i also check with you what kind of waterproof grease you use to apply on the crown tube like the one video where you change the omega battery and you apply some silicon grease on the crown tube? Was it made by bergeon?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You did not mention the kind of strap on the watch - I was just trying to describe a few strategies I would adopt depending on the circumstances :)

https://www.cousinsuk.com/catalog/consumables/silicon-greases/grease-seiko-silicon#select

Oh I see :) thank you for the link! Appreciate it :) I guess I will file it. As you know the spring bar have the edge for you to use the fox style spring bar tool to slip through and push it backwards in order to release the spring bar but in my case it doesn't have the edge. Mine spring bar is beyond recognition. May I also ask the hand removers lever style that you used to remove the small tiny hand from the chronograph subdial is which model? It's from horotec but I'm not sure is which. In your video I've seen you own both lever style one which is flat bladed where the other have a v shape. And the v shape you mainly used it to remove the tiny hands. Thank you. I'm sorry to bother you :) you're very helpful :)

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There you go:

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/HOROTEC-WATCH-HAND-LIFTING-LEVERS-2-5mm-/260653799808?pt=UK_Jewellery_Watches_WatchAccessories_SpareParts_SM&hash=item3cb02d5980

 

:)

 

You will likely see them cheaper elsewhere but thats what I like to use as they have a very polished surface unlike the Bergeon ones. But my Bergeon levers are now highly polished - I used Micromesh Polishing cloths to bring them up to a mirror finish just like the Horotecs.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

There you go:

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/HOROTEC-WATCH-HAND-LIFTING-LEVERS-2-5mm-/260653799808?pt=UK_Jewellery_Watches_WatchAccessories_SpareParts_SM&hash=item3cb02d5980

 

:)

 

You will likely see them cheaper elsewhere but thats what I like to use as they have a very polished surface unlike the Bergeon ones. But my Bergeon levers are now highly polished - I used Micromesh Polishing cloths to bring them up to a mirror finish just like the Horotecs.

Thanks a lot! 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You will likely see them cheaper elsewhere

 

Holy crap. Cheaper elsewhere indeed. £46 for 2 small metal levers… Watchmaking tool pricing  from the high-end brands is pretty crazy.

 

In some cases it might be worth it, but in other cases I doubt it. You can get the same tool for £3. Is the Horotec really worth 1500% extra?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

You can get the same tool for £3. Is the Horotec really worth 1500% extra?

I certainly agree with you that a lot of horological tools are well overpriced, but the levers that you have indicate here are certainly not the same as the Horotec ones. I know because I bought a set a while ago. They do have there uses and are good value for money, but they are not as fine and are not suitable for really small hands unless you modify then.

I have made a set like the Horotec, all that is required is two small bits of 3mm silver steel turned down slightly at the end then formed on a grinder. Finish off with a good polish and job done. Cost about 50 pence!

Link to comment
Share on other sites



  • Recently Browsing

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Topics

  • Posts

    • Rich, this one seems rather regular movement to me. Yes, what You describe exists, but I doubt that the one on the picture is something similar.
    • @Neverenoughwatches Many thanks for your remarks. As I wrote earlier, I was a bit reluctant to disassemble this movement, and you gave me further motives to be careful. I'll just remove it from its case so as to clean it a little.
    • I am not sure for the terms in english, but if I directly translate from Bulgarian or Russian, there are 'magnetic soft' and 'magnetic hard' magnetic materials. The first group will not get magnetised, thow they will be attracted by magnets. The soft iron for example. The second group, like hardened steel, will get magnetised. So non magnetic hairspring aloys belong to the first group.
    • Looks like it is only dirt. If rust, then this means the strenght of the spring is reduced in places with rust, so the spring is damaged and useless. Only light surface rust, which is rather residual from other places activity of rust can be cleaned, and no chemicals that can etch the metals of the spring aloy should be used Be aware that this usually happens when the dial/hands have radium lume! One of the pivot looks little bent. Not that much to prevent the movement from working, but may be amplitude will be a little bit smaller when this pivot down, resing on the cap stone. Bent pivots always means the balance is out of poise, but it depends on the severity of the bent. Yes it can be straightened, but at this point I will advice to leave it as is and check how the movement performs.
    • Hello, I'm after some help on getting a functional tool for removing and replacing case tubes, the friction fit type not the threaded type. I have previously owned two Chinese Ali Express tools, which worked, but in each case after using on a watch case with an angle the watch had to be manually held perpendicular and when this angle was not perfectly aligned the pusher pin inevitably received a slight side load and the tool body was damaged. Due to the fact that the hole which holds the pusher pin is so close to the end of the block and the material wall is so thin: The result was that the hard pusher pin stretched and deformed the hole and the pusher pin was then slack and no longer perpendicular, and eventually the material split altogether. After I looked at the tool I realised that the block the hole was machined into was aluminum, this coupled with the extremely thin wall made this hole very weak and prone to the deformation and damage I had experienced. I looked to another reputable supplier (see below) who advertised their tool as "all steel" and I even contacted their customer support who confirmed that the block in question was made of steel. I was very disappointed yesterday when it arrived and found that it was in fact aluminum and not steel as promised. I could tell by the feel of the material (weight) and confirmed with a magnet which would not 'stick' and have since requested a return/refund. Assuming the return/refund goes smoothly, I am still left with my original problem of not having a tube pusher tool - does anyone have any recommendation for a tool which will work and will also stand the test of time?
×
×
  • Create New...