Hi, my name is Ross. I am a rookie watch enthusiast and I am really puzzled here.
Could someone explain to me what kind of a problem am I facing with my timegrapher?
I do two sets of measurements with the same watch (1 day or 6 days apart) and receive vastly different results - to the point of being completely different from what I observe in real life.
For example, my timegrapher shows that my watch is running fast (or ahead of time), while in real life I observe that it runs 7 seconds per day behind. I even recorded a video about it so you could see it for yourself: https://youtu.be/mhGzf6aLMlY
How should I interpret that? Am I doing anything wrong?
Hello.
I am working on a vtg. Citizen cal.7520 automatic movement.
I have put the watch on the timegrapher
The graph looks OK but the beat error shows 9.9ms. I presumed that beat error should be around 1.0~2.0 given the shape of the graph.
Is the beat error actually bad or the timegrapher is wrong??
Thank you!
Hello Everyone,
Padd here from the UK.
It all started with a desire to fix a Submariner replica I bought off a lucky lucky man in Pisa, Italy while on a European tour.
Next thing I know I'm investigating Submariner replicas and building my own, signed by me, using a Seagull ST2130 movement, adventure watch.
Now I'm hooked, I took inspiration from Marks videos, now I'm happily starting to work on parts of the movement, and have recovered one or two movements where the stem came out, but wouldn't stay back in. I have built a few watches for friends and relations, but now I need to be able to service them when they come back to me.
I also have a couple of movements that run really badly, so I will be practising on those over the winter weekends. Full repair/servicing kit IS my Christmas present.
I really want to get one of those ST2130's, serviced and tweaked by me, doing a -------------------------- on my timegrapher. not a -.'-.'''--,'.'.' (and worse) that they do at the moment.
I wont start to list my watch collection, but it runs from a Casio digital to a Rolex pocket watch with Seikos, Citizens, Omegas and home builds in the mix.
Must do Mark's course, but I'm afraid I may have already learned 60+% of it already.
Just in case, I came across this "Watch-O-Scope" software. To those who have a need for it. Also here is an instructional video how to install. I hope it will help somebody here.
Shellac is never useless Mark . From small drawers to large antique cabinets it's a lovely and rewarding material to work with.
Yes, there are many varieties of flaked shellac, from the most common raw which may even contain pitch, to low wax, to wax free, which is clearer and more resistant to humidity. To remove wax from shellac dilute in alcohol 50% leaving it a week, then seep with paper filters.
Well that question got me googling...
There is a lot of discussion about this on the ”interweb”, but mostly in relation to woodworking and nail polish!
Shellac is a natural product, subjected to various purification processes prior to sale which have changed significantly over the years, so firstly, the shellac we buy today is likely to be much purer and more consistent than in the past.
Shellac flakes sold for making wood finishes definitely deteriorate with age. After a period of time the can no longer be dissolved in alcohol. I haven’t found out exactly why, but moisture, heat and light are all cited as causes. So, keeping your flakes in a sealed dark container would be a good thing.
Shellac in stick form will have a lower surface area for a given volume and therefore certainly less susceptible to moisture.
Once mixed with alcohol, shellac will start to react chemically, (search for esterification if you want to know more), and evaporation of the alcohol doesn’t get you back to where you started. This is why pre-mixed shellac varnishes have a short shelf life.
Shellac is chemically similar to acrylic, and hence made of long polymer chains. I’ve read conflicting information about whether these will cross-link in ultraviolet light (the process that causes unbreakable watch crystals to go yellow and brittle). However, I would expect it to behave in a similar way - again, this is a non reversible reaction.
All of this may go some way to explain why some people reprt there is no problem with cleaning pallets in alcohol and others saying it softens the shellac.
I’m now into this deep enough to need a good chemist to get me back out. Any volunteers?