Greetings from Luxembourg

[DocTomoe]

Hello all,

I am from Luxembourg (the only Grand Duchy left in the world!) and have stumbled into watchmaking very recently (read more or less a month ago) by watching a couple of Mark's videos on Youtube (they are simply great!) and ever since I am passionate about it. I got started by reading a couple of articles on the Internet, buying some helpful books, along with a basic toolset (which I have already supplemented by a number of replacement tools because the quality of the Chinese toolset was not great) and a couple of cheap and simple manual wind watches I can tinker on.

I have so far been able to disassemble two of the watches (I think/thought without breaking anything) and reassemble one. The one I reassembled (dry) after cleaning kind of works but not very well (balance wheel has very low amplitude), so I guess I was not careful enough along the way (or could it be because I did not oil when reassembling?). Anyhow, when trying to determine the cause (and I started with trying to add oil to the balance jewels to see if the balance wheel would run better) I managed to lose (well it detached) one of the incabloc springs (yay) and then fought to get it back on but without success. It all looks so easy in Mark's videos, doesn't it? After losing two springs and breaking one, I gave up. I have in the meantime learned that I will probably need  a staking tool to get the incabloc out and replace the spring. So I kind of put that watch aside and disassembled the second one which is exactly the same (Chinese or Russian, no clue) movement. I still need to clean and reassemble it. Let's hope I will have more success with that one. I will probably revert back to the experience of this forum along the way :-)

One thing leading to another, I also got quite interest in the vintage watches one can find on Ebay, so I started a small collection (and should stop soon before I ruin myself), including a manual wind Judex watch (French manufacturer that went out of business in the 70's) with an unknown movement, as I did not yet have a chance to open it and take a look, a very nice Fidelius Chronograph with a Landeron 248 movement and an automatic Ebel which does not run.

The Judex seems to run fine and in good condition so I guess I will not touch that one for a while (except replace the watch strap). The Landeron Chronograph works but seems to require a good service at the very least, as the Chronograph reset does not work very well. I guess that will be for when I have a lot more experience, as it looks very complicated (or maybe I will ask someone to do it for me, but so far I have found nobody in Luxembourg who would work on anything less than a Rolex - and assorted budget). The Ebel does not run and so far no clue why, but the rotor already seems very wobbly to me, I guess I will disassemble that one, once I will have had some repeatable success with the tinker watches.

I will share photos once I had a chance to take some of the different watches.

I am very much looking forward to learn from you all and to exchange views, tips and tricks. In the meantime, I will probably have to restock on cheap tinker watches :-P My apologies if I did not get the terminology right, I am still learning what is what in 3 languages (most of what I read is in English, but the closest suppliers for tools and materials are in Germany and France)

Greetings,

Olivier

[Geo]

Great introduction Olivier, I look forward to reading about your horological exploits in the future.

[Cad101]

Olivier a big welcome to you. Keep buying those cheap inexpensive movements or a couple of cheap working pocket watch movements they are bigger and easier to work on until you get to grips with your tools just take them apart reassemble them and see if it still works. I'd leave the landerton alone for a while you don't want to break something so nice as yet. Good luck and happy tinkering and ask any questions you like someone will answer.

Mick

[DocTomoe]

Thank you very much for the warm welcome! I think indeed I will leave the Landeron alone for quite some time. Fortunately Ebay seems to never run out of tinker material... (and nice tools).

[oldhippy]

Welcome to this friendly forum. Plenty of info on here for you.

[frenchie]

Welcome!

[clockboy]

Welcome Olivier,  Lots here for all levels of horology. It is a very addictive hobby but can be very satisfying when things actually go right. Enjoy

[bobm12]

Welcome to the forum Olivier! I guess everything has been said: Landeron for later and big pocket watches makes beginner's life easier...also, those big ones, make sure they are current and ticking, you don't want to be stuck with a vintage one that has no spares. I'd say a nice ETA 6498 (or actually the "vintage" Unitas 6498) would be suitable.

All in all, oil is quite necessary after cleaning and the problem with your first watch may be in part because of the absence of it. Don't buy cheap oil and don't buy a lot (or too many kinds) either.

You can check on line the difference "courses" offered like the free Seiko class and the TimeZone (not free) but very comprehensive for the level. Mark also has classes on our site, which are highly recommended, probably the most recommended along with his other related videos.

Most important, ask any questions, no matter how trivial and we will do what we can to answer them right....for a fee! (No, just kidding! Answers are free! ) We like to help in all horologically possible ways!

Cheers,

Bob

 

[DocTomoe]

Thank you very much for all the good tips. For the oil, I got some Dr. Tillwich oil, which seems to work for most parts of the watch instead of buying different sorts of Moebius oil. I guess that's for later. I also got some grease from the same company for the winding parts.

Once I will fix my incabloc disaster I will give the first watch another chance with some oil then.

In terms of courses, I found a copy of the courses of the Chicaco school of watchmaking which seem informative. But I mostly watch Mark's videos, as a video tells a lot more than just words. I also found a copy of "Watch Repairing as a Hobby: An Essential Guide for Non-Professionals" by DW Fletcher on Amazon which seems to have some good tips (like putting the mainspring back into the barrel with a pin vise instead of doing it all manually which proved impossible for me).

As promised, I also add pictures of the three vintage watches I got recently (and of course did not touch yet, safe some minor adjusting for the Judex):

The Judex:

I still have no clue what movement is in it, as it is not marked, but it is nicely decorated (any idea?):

After some minor adjusting it keeps very good time (beat error around 0.2ms and only a couple of seconds a day in different positions on the timegrapher).

The Fidelius Chronograph (my favorite so far):

It also seems to keep reasonable good time on the timegrapher (around 15 seconds a day) and I did not try any adjusting.

And the non working Ebel:

[bobm12]

Great choice, I like all three! Regretfully, I can't see much detail from the Judex in my computer, that's one reason I can't tell you much about the movement. It looks like the finish is "hammered" (I believe that's the name?)

When you talk about a staking tool for the incabloc in your first watch, I can't figure why a staking tool set...maybe with a picture it could be determined...sometimes you only need the spring (or the assembly that will drop in?) Not a lot of money in that case.

Cheers,

Bob

[DocTomoe]

For the Judex, unfortunately my smartphone does not focus closer... I will try to take another picture with a proper camera over the weekend.

For the incabloc, as I did completely lose the spring, my understanding was that you could not fit a new spring to the incabloc without removing the bloc from the mainplate, as you have to hinge it with the larger end under the incabloc frame (or what do you call it?), which I was not able to successfully do with the incabloc in the mainplate. But I may be mistaken there and just not good enough yet with those tiny parts  

I will start a new thread once I feel confident enough to try to fix that and then hopefully document it properly.

[clockboy]

You have many here who sympathise with your dilemma. Fitting a shock spring can be a tricky job without the correct tools & method. However this all part of the fun with horology you will never stop learning.
For the shock spring fitting you will need real good magnification,sharp tweezers the have been dressed & peg wood 
Also a demagnetising tool is real handy for this job & many other jobs you will encounter in the future.
I personally use a binocular microscope for the magnification & various tools depending on the style of shock spring being fitted. If you post a pic someone here will be able help you with the spring you need. 

[clockboy]

Here re couple of PDF's to help with identifying the shock style & size.

KIF shock springs.pdf

 

Shock spring sizes.pdf

 

[DocTomoe]

9 minutes ago, clockboy said:

Here re couple of PDF's to help with identifying the shock style & size.

KIF shock springs.pdf

 

Shock spring sizes.pdf

 

Thank you very much, that looks very helpful and will go into my archive for future reference :-)

[Vich]

Hello Olivier and welcome,

looks like you are going to fit in here very well and help will be given when needed.

Like you I am a collector of older watches and a tinkerer and my ability to renovate and repair them has been outstripped by my compulsion to buy them.  However, I am trying to get a grip at the moment and calm down on the buying.  I had a look at my "collection" and got a bit of a surprise at what I had amassed.  I am considering stocktaking and listing my stuff - should be interesting if not a bit scary.

Fortunately I am in the right forum and I share my "problem" with quite a lot of the other chaps so welcome to the club.  After all a hobby is meant to be enjoyed.

Cheers,

Vic

[DocTomoe]

Hello Vic and thank you for the warm welcome. I can understand your "problem", it is kind of the same for me. I look at all those nice "not running or barely running" watches on ebay and imagine myself restoring them, but for me to do that for real is probably still years away. And still I find it difficult not to buy them, just in case!

But it seems really good fun (and I say "seems" only because I started only very recently) and worst case, I can still resell in the future. It seems some watches and parts always sell for a minimum price. And the community on this forum is really great as well, so I feel I made the right choice for a new hobby.

Cheers,

Olivier

[Vich]

Hello Olivier,

I started out thinking I would sell as well - didn't happen! When I fixed them I kept them - part of my problem 

ps there is a full history of Judex watches on watchuseek.

Cheers,

Vic

[Vich]

Additional info - trace for "Judex-a convoluted early history"

Cheers,

Vic

[DocTomoe]

18 hours ago, Vich said:

Additional info - trace for "Judex-a convoluted early history"

Cheers,

Vic

Thanks!

[dadistic]

Hello and welcome!

Gee, you're off to a great start, have fun!

[DocTomoe]

Hi all,

It has been some time, but I wanted to provide an update on my incabloc adventures. I finally was able to successfully fit a new spring onto the block. As I had suspected, a staking set was what I needed (and it took some time, but I sourced one at a reasonable price on ebay). Took the bloc out, refitted the spring, secured it (without the jewel) and used a larger stake to fit it back in (with support from the other side to ensure it is flush) without hitting on the spring. After oiling the incabloc jewels on both ends, the balance started finally moving with a reasonable amplitude and the movement continued ticking merrily throughout the night.

So that's a huge success for me, as it is the first movement that I took apart that I was able to reassemble in a working fashion :-P

Next step will be to disassemble again and then oil all the required spots (I assembled it dry for now, safe for the balance jewels), then assess performance.

Greetings,

Olivier

[bobm12]

Excellent job Olivier! How does it feel? Wear it with pride!!

Cheers,

Bob

[DocTomoe]

I have not recased the movement yet, that's one of the next steps. I will however likely never wear the watch, as I believe it's a ladies' watch (14mm lugs). Was part of a larger lot of watches to tinker with and learn :-)

[bobm12]

aw, nooo! Next one has to be a gentleman's one so you can wear it!

[DocTomoe]

I have a few of those in line, but I wanted to destroy first the ones I would likely not wear :-)