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Crystal press advise needed

Len33
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Len33 WRT Addict

Len33

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Hello, everyone!

As a general purpose crystal and rear cover press for wrist and pocket watches, what (reasonably priced) press and die sizes would you recommend?

I'm not sure if separate die can be puchased afterwards for any pecific press.

Thanks.

Len.

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chrisdt
chrisdt

Depends what type you intend to get. I use the screw down type like the pic. Seems to give you more control but the princible is the same. The smaller die presses down on the inside of the crystal and

jdm
jdm

Hi LWS, I had recently updated about my activities in the not-watches section. I surely want to go back to more watch repair, occasinally posting what is my direct experience and reasoning, in th

Galilea
Galilea

I was talking about this topic today in another thread and said I would post pics of a kit I have. I hope this is the right place. I should mention I cannot give any advice because I am new and have n

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clockboy Distinguished Member

clockboy

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I have been looking for a good set of these for a while & arrived a few days ago a almost complete set of Robur dies for a Robur press. Had to replace couple that were damaged & also a couple to complete the set. The replacements however are marginally smaller but should work OK.. I will try and repair the damaged dies on my lathe but it might be a difficult task but worth a try. Anyway see pic below.

 


Robur.jpg

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chadders1966 WRT Addict

chadders1966

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Very nice. I have one myself I picked up some time ago although the press is much older - yours looks pretty new. Some of the bakelite dies with my press were chipped as well but I find I don't often use them , I use the the metal dies instead. I was fortunate enough to get both the straight and curved metal dies for a good price.

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chadders1966 WRT Addict

chadders1966

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Hi Rog

I've got one of those myself, it's very good I think - very expensive new as well. You are missing the square and rectangular dies from along the top and the attachment for pressing crystals out that goes in the bottom left. These were missing from mine as well. You can either buy them new or look for some coming up for sale, which is how I found mine.

 

Stephen

 

Edit: just found the post and photos I made for this. I can take another photo of what it looks like now if you want.

http://www.watchrepairtalk.com/topic/2726-new-toy/#comment-26728

 

Edited by chadders1966
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noirrac1j Distinguished Member

noirrac1j

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4 hours ago, toptime810 said:

Do you think a $10 crystal press on fleabay would do the job?

Sure you can use an inexpensive crystal press...I have one with the curved metal base and aluminum dies with a few teflon bases for pressing  casebacks They work pretty good but be careful not to put too much pressure or you'll break the crystal and possibly damage watch case.

 

JC

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rogart63 Distinguished Member

rogart63

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16 hours ago, chadders1966 said:

Hi Rog

I've got one of those myself, it's very good I think - very expensive new as well. You are missing the square and rectangular dies from along the top and the attachment for pressing crystals out that goes in the bottom left. These were missing from mine as well. You can either buy them new or look for some coming up for sale, which is how I found mine.

 

Stephen

 

Edit: just found the post and photos I made for this. I can take another photo of what it looks like now if you want.

http://www.watchrepairtalk.com/topic/2726-new-toy/#comment-26728

 

Wow . Yours look to be in a slightly better condition then mine. But nevertheless i think i got a really nice price. Paid only about £170 or $240 for the lot.  I didn't dare to wait? So i just buy it now price. Instead of risking missing it. The small dies for pressing out i am sure i can do without or find something else to press out with. Square dies i seldom use. 

Edited by rogart63
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dman2112 Watch Enthusiast

dman2112

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Hi all,

 

First off I would like to thank those who offered me previous advice.  It has helped me greatly.

OK, for my actual question.  I have a GS Flexo vintage crystal press set that is complete and I would like to utilize it for pressing in an Omega plastic crystal on a vintage seamaster Cal 601.  This is the PX5000 crystal with INNER tension ring.  Will this press work OK or should I invest in a modern press with screw on dies that are tapered for the tension ring crystal?  I was thinking about pulling the trigger on the Hortec press set #MSA 06.136.

Any advice would be great.  Thanks again everyone.

 

dman2112

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Tiktok WRT Addict

Tiktok

Posted
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Looking for a case back/glass press and was looking for opinions.

I have put a few things on eBay and after just selling my first cleaning machine for £180 I now have £180 to spend on a case back press.

I have seen this one below which looks better made than the bergeon 5500 and seems to take all the same dies. Are flume a known quality brand and are they Swiss? Total cost with postage for the flume one is around the £150 mark.

 

image.png

The other option is the bergeon 5500 which are expensive or the Chinese copy of the bergeon 5500. Has anyone used the Chinese version, they are around £100 but don't want to get one and find they don't line up and sit wonky because it would just be a waste of money for fitting crystals.

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dman2112 Watch Enthusiast

dman2112

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Hi oldhippy.  I finally am back home and was abe to take a pic of my GS press.  My concern as mentioned is the use of this press on an Omega crystal with inner tension ring.  Let me know your opinion.  I was trying to avoid buying a more modern press with dies that are tapered for tensioned rung crystals and I usually dont like buying cheap tools so it would be an investment.  Thanks in advance

GS Press.jpg

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