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AS 1950/51

Andyworks
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Andyworks Member

Andyworks

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Good afternoon

 

I have an old Rotary wristwatch that has an AS 1950/51 movement. The watch was old and dirty when I got it at a car boot sale. It would run but roughly and due to time constraints I never had time to work on it and clean it up and service it.

 

I have finally got around to stripping it down fully and have ultrasonically cleaned and have lubricated it all and it is all back together but it doesn't run. Well I say it doesn't run it does but not properly. When you wind the watch the escape wheel and pallets kick into life immediately and with the hands on the second hands sweeps around non stop until the mainspring is unwound but the minute and the hour hands do not move.

 

The minute and hour hands move freely when you pull the crown out to set the watch and there is no binding whatsoever. I remember that when I stripped the watch down I noticed that the small cannon pinion that is part of the keyless works drive was friction fitted and took a good pull to remove it but the minute cannon pinion was not and it came away easily.

 

I read that some watches have friction fit cannon pinions and some do not and rely purely on friction grease as used on automatic watch mainsprings to allow them to grip the barrel wall. I have cleaned the minute cannon pinion again and applied some friction grease to it and rebuild the lower end but alas same thing again. 

 

Does anyone know if the minute cannon pinion is a friction fit on this movement or if it is friction grease that drives it? I am at a loss as I am so near yet so far to having the movement back in it's case and being able to enjoy wearing it.

 

Many thanks

 

Andy

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Andyworks Member

Andyworks

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Hi oldhippy

 

Yes that is the movement I have. The cannon pinion you have pointed at in your pic is friction fitted but the usual one under the hour wheel is not and is a slip fit. Is the issue with the cannon pinion you have pointed at?

 

Andy

 

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rogart63 Distinguished Member

rogart63

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AS1950 has a what you call a friction pinion . It's not the minute wheel in the middle that is slipping. The friction is done with a small friction pinion on the  large wheel . AS call it calm wheel i think. The cannon pinion should be loose. So don't tighten that up. 

Edited by rogart63
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oldhippy Distinguished Member

oldhippy

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1 hour ago, Andyworks said:

Hi oldhippy

 

Yes that is the movement I have. The cannon pinion you have pointed at in your pic is friction fitted but the usual one under the hour wheel is not and is a slip fit. Is the issue with the cannon pinion you have pointed at?

 

Andy

 

Yes that's the one.  As this type is small in height, you do not have much to tighten. You might have to get a replacement.

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Andyworks Member

Andyworks

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Hi old hippy

 

Apologies for not replying sooner but have been so busy I have not been near the watch until today. It is a tiny part with not much to tighten like you said. I didn't have a punch or pair of pliers small enough to get in on the stem to deform it slightly to improve the friction fit so thought outside of the box and used  pair of nail clippers. Not the go to for watch makers or repairers I am sure but none the less as an engineer I like to think of solutions to problems. I gently held the inside of the pinion and found the original spot where the pinion tube had been deformed during manufacture and gently set the cutting edges of the nailclippers on the same spot and squeezed ever so gently. I refitted the pinion to the watch and ……………….

The friction to adjust the time has greatly improved and the watch hour and minute hands are now moving as they should so success. 

Thank you ever so much for all your help and a big thank you to everyone who took the time to read and also those who replied to my post.

 

Andy

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  • 3 years later...
EdB Member

EdB

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On 6/8/2018 at 8:25 AM, Andyworks said:

Hi old hippy

 

Apologies for not replying sooner but have been so busy I have not been near the watch until today. It is a tiny part with not much to tighten like you said. I didn't have a punch or pair of pliers small enough to get in on the stem to deform it slightly to improve the friction fit so thought outside of the box and used  pair of nail clippers. Not the go to for watch makers or repairers I am sure but none the less as an engineer I like to think of solutions to problems. I gently held the inside of the pinion and found the original spot where the pinion tube had been deformed during manufacture and gently set the cutting edges of the nailclippers on the same spot and squeezed ever so gently. I refitted the pinion to the watch and ……………….

The friction to adjust the time has greatly improved and the watch hour and minute hands are now moving as they should so success. 

Thank you ever so much for all your help and a big thank you to everyone who took the time to read and also those who replied to my post.

 

Andy

I have the same movement with the exact same problem. I'll try to tighten up the canyon pinion to see if that resolves the problem. 

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