I have a front loader....

[diamondslayer]

I have a front loading watch and every time I put the Crystal on it put to much pressure on the stem and is very hard to set the time.

What am I doing wrong? Do I need to replace the Crystal? I polished the Crystal before i set it in. Did I miss shape the Crystal?

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[rogart63]

Original crystal or a replacement generic? 

[diamondslayer]

Original crystal or a replacement generic? 

It is one that the customer had on it. I believe it has been replaced with a generic. Is there a way to tell?


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[oldhippy]

I don't like that nasty mark round the side of the glass. I'm thinking it might need a tension ring glass.

[rodabod]

Remember to use a gold ring if you do use a tension ring crystal. It may not be a tension ring type if the ring would end up obscuring the dial text when fitted, but it's hard to tell from your photos. 

Does the inner rim where the crystal fits have a ridge?

[oldhippy]

20 minutes ago, rodabod said:

Remember to use a gold ring if you do use a tension ring crystal. It may not be a tension ring type if the ring would end up obscuring the dial text when fitted, but it's hard to tell from your photos. 

Does the inner rim where the crystal fits have a ridge?

The problem here is it might not be the right glass.

[vinn3]

looks like the wrong crystal,  who made the watch?   i have never seen a crystal with a " stem notch".   a "front loader" usually  requires a factory spec. crystal.

[diamondslayer]

looks like the wrong crystal,  who made the watch?   i have never seen a crystal with a " stem notch".   a "front loader" usually  requires a factory spec. crystal.

It was made by Hamilton. It has a Hamilton 818 movement. It is a beach craft award for service watch.


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[diamondslayer]

I don't like that nasty mark round the side of the glass. I'm thinking it might need a tension ring glass.

This is the one it came with before I serviced the movement. I don't remember if it was hard to set before I removed the Crystal to start the service.


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[ricardopalamino]

It seems to me that any crystal , even a generic , should have a flat bottom that would seat on the rim above the stem tube . 

Being a front loader , the stem is a 2 piece model or , there is a notch on the dial that can be accessed after the crystal is removed so the setting lever can be pushed to remove the stem ,  or the dial feet are friction fit into the holes in the movement , and after removing the dial the setting lever can be accessed to remove the stem .  In any case the point I am aiming at is that maybe the  stem is not original and there is a raised portion on the stem that is interfering with the crystal .  

[diamondslayer]

It seems to me that any crystal , even a generic , should have a flat bottom that would seat on the rim above the stem tube . 

Being a front loader , the stem is a 2 piece model or , there is a notch on the dial that can be accessed after the crystal is removed so the setting lever can be pushed to remove the stem ,  or the dial feet are friction fit into the holes in the movement , and after removing the dial the setting lever can be accessed to remove the stem .  In any case the point I am aiming at is that maybe the  stem is not original and there is a raised portion on the stem that is interfering with the crystal .  

Is it hard to align some movements and stems in front loaders? I have never had a problem in the past. But I don't get a lot of them.


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[ricardopalamino]

No , not really .  If it's a 2 piece stem the part with the crown will separate as it is intended to do , but the other half is still usually in the tube and because you pull to remove the crown half the part that is still on the watch is in the setting position and you have to use a tool to push it to the winding position so it's easier to remove the movement .  I have done Omega Cosmics ,Dynamics and other watches , and the movement nestles into the case . As a matter of fact I just remembered that on the Dynamic you put a pegwood in the dial hole for the date and rotate the movement counter clockwise 1/8 turn to unlock the movement from the case . Seiko has a front loader that after the crystal is removed , you use a screwdriver or tweezers on a ring around the dial to rotate the movement .

I guess the answer is to get info on the particular watch you are working on to know how to proceed .  In this forum a member was working on a Breitling Top Time and once he took off the crystal , he wasn't sure how to remove the movement or dial . The dial was a friction fit where the dial feet were pressed into holes in the movement that had plastic keepers . Once the dial was gently pried up and off it became obvious how to remove the stem and movement .  You can probably do a search for Breitling Top Time and get the actual procedure .