Does it cost more to have a small watch serviced?

[MrRoundel]

I have worked on a few ladies' baguette movements lately for some friends and relatives. On these, even the simplest jobs are challenging. At least they are for me. This made me wonder whether watch repair people charge more for working on these little 5 1/2 ligne'ish gems? While I'm sure it gets easier with practice, it seems that mishaps are more likely with these small watches. I mangled my first hairspring on one.  I wouldn't be surprised if watchmakers turn the work away for this reason, or at least charge 25-50% more for working on baguettes.

Oh, this brings my other question to mind, is "baguette" the proper term for watches in the 5 1/2 x 7 ligne range? Cheers.

 

[Chopin]

I don't know but they should... Smaller movements are a bit more complicated to work with...

[MrRoundel]

Yes, they are quite unforgiving and difficult to hold, etc. I'm working on my GF's heirloom 4LLV/13.15 Longines baguette right now. That's the one I killed the HS on. I got a parts movement and cleaned it very carefully. Every screw is a special challenge. Despite this model using a well-advised balance-guard at the perimeter, it's still dangerous to hold from every angle.

I have it running nicely. Unfortunately, I put it back in the 14k case, and the winding arbor doesn't seem to be going deep enough to stay in wind position. It's like the crown just won't get close enough without hitting the case. The watch stops while it's in limbo. There's a little bushing that goes between the case and the crown. It almost seems like I'll have to shorten that bushing. Truth be told, I may have mixed up the bushings between the original and parts movement. I plan on taking a depth measurement on the two bushing tomorrow to see if there's any difference. They look the same to the naked eye. Well, at least I've got it running. That's a step in the right direction. Cheers.