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Favre-Leuba


Johnnie

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Hello one and all, the postman arrived yesterday bringing me this watch! Being pretty new here and of very little experience I thought the I would run it past you all for advice and opinions. It is quiet a small watch measuring a tad under 30mm without the crown. Looking at the movement it says "twin power" and when you try to wind it, it feels locked up or as I used to say before joining this forum "overwound" any advice gratefully received. Johnnie

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Sorry to say but i think that dial is repainted. Movement is a genuine Favre-Leuba though . A so called Twinpower. http://www.ranfft.de/cgi-bin/bidfun-db.cgi?10&ranfft&&2uswk&Favre-Leuba_259

A really nice movement . It would probably need a service. It has double mainsprings so probably not the easiest movement to start with? 

Edited by rogart63
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Nice watch.  A lot of Favre Leubas show up with repainted dials for some reason.  I think they were popular in India and haven't aged well in the climate.  I like the movement but I wouldn't want to pay for two mainsprings in one service- funny but that's the first thing that came to my mind when I saw the double barrels!

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Hi Ry. Two mainsprings well that's a one in two chance of making a pigs ear of it LOL. I will try and read up on this movement before I touch it. Will Google it and see if anything useful comes up about it. Best wishes Johnnie

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Hi Johnnie, I love this movement.. when you get it working you'll see that it winds super smooth and it's pretty accurate too!

Does the balance swing freely? Could be it had a 'jolt' and the impulse pin came out of the fork. If this was the case the balance would stop on one side like it hit a brick wall.

Its a simple enough movement. I usually keep the barrels separate. I seem to remember one being slightly different but its been a while since I worked on one. Anyway, even if they're identical its good practice to re-install them where they came from as they would have worn together.

One peculiarity on this movement is how FL fixed the end of the hairspring, it is screwed to the underside of the balance bridge. To adjust the beat you have to remove the balance + bridge, loosen the holding screw (enough so there's still a bit of friction), install balance + bridge, set the beat-rate by moving the visible end of the hairspring end (you can just see a metal piece with a hole below the bridge above the balance). Remove the balance+bridge, tighten the screw fixing the hairspring end. reassemble. The beauty of this arrangement is that it will not move if the watch is dropped.

Anilv

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Hi Anilv, thanks for replying and the information (much needed) as I could write all my watch repair knowledge on the back of a postal stamp. The balance wheel moves freely when I use a puffer on it, so I am hoping that there isn't too much wrong with it? When your knowledge is as limited as mine is you can't always spot what is wrong unless it is obvious, but hopefully with time and more reading and practice I will become more competent. As I disassemble the movement I will take a photo every time I remove a part that way I will at least I will know where all the pieces go! Thanks again Anilv best wishes. Johnnie

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Hi Rogart63, Sorry for late reply, I did reply but forgot to click submit reply (had a senior moment) I seem to be getting them more often of late!!!! Yes I think you are right about the dial and it not being an ideal movement for a beginner.. I didn't know what movement it had until I opened it up. Thanks for the link, very useful. Will read up as much as possible before I touch it. Best wishes. Johnnie

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