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I don't think there is any mainspring winder set that will be able to fit all the watches you'll will work on in your lifetime. Either the barrel size is wrong, the arbor size is wrong or the winding direction is wrong. I have already accumulated 5 different sets, from very small ones for ladies watches, to very big ones for pocket watches. But every once in awhile, there will be some odd sized mainspring that just won't fit any of them. So my advice is if you are serious about watch repair, just jump right in and throw your paycheck into the black hole that is horology.

Here is my weekend 404, part of a job lot, so works out at £3.50. Gold plate was coming off the case, so only a light clean with Flitz, and left the watch with an aged two tone effect, bought into the rustic look and used a distressed style strap. Before and after shots: Before: Here is the before movement: And the finished watch:

If you wear glasses you can get a clip on loop. This is the sort of thing, there are many different types around.

I have seen previous posts here also on other forums that after some beginners had lost parts like the typical springs and jewels that beginners often ping away, they were unable to obtain any replacements to have that movement working again. Possibly resulting in another purchase of that movement. Personally i wouldn't have liked to start my learning on a low cost Chinese movement. I understand Seagull has been long established, something like almost 70 years and is the largest manufacturerer of mechanical watches in the world. But I still class it as super mass produced rubbish. Some things we cant avoid like electronics, anywhere else cant match their costs. And I've seen cheap power tools and electrical items last little more than a year or 2. The UK used to make some very long lasting equipment years ago, i expect most of the companies long since gone. But the things they made still around and working well, i see them all the time at car boots. I would always want to learn on and see quality first before having to deal with cheap crap.

I am new and am finding the classes very helpful. The first thing covered include a tools list, and I find it is very relevant because they also show you how to use them. The list of tools increases with one's learned skills.

New forum member @ChrisMcKeith saw my previous thread about fixing the electronics in my 219 movement and was foolish trusting kind enough to send me his to work on. It's been an interesting journey and I thought some folks might find it useful or interesting. The capacitor, resistor, and coils were all within spec, and a little pluck got the fork humming, so we were off to a good start. Full tear down, clean, oil, rebuild. Got to break out the Horia clone when the second wheel jewel surprisingly popped out of the main plate. After depthing the wheel, I inly had to tear it down twice more because I forgot to put the hacking lever under the train wheel bridge...then forgot to put the fork under the train...good practice, I keep telling myself. Then I started phasing it. Adjusted the tension on the index and pawl fingers by the manual, applied voltage from my power supply, and it ran...for a half revolution of the index wheel at a time, no matter how I adjusted it. After some more diagnosis and manually moving the fork, I had the hunch that the index wheel has some bad teeth. 45x is as high as my microscope goes, but it sure looks like those teeth are rounded/flattened: I compared it to the index wheel on the 219 I have that runs: Seems like a big difference in the sharpness of those teeth. Literally as I took this picture, I got a message from our friend @LittleWatchShop, who generously offered to try re-pivoting the 4th wheel on my 219. Since it didn't work, he's sending me a spare 219 movement! Hopefully we can use the 4th wheel for my 219, and the index wheel for Chris'. The kindness and generosity here does not cease to amaze and delight.

This article appeared in this months BHI mag and I thought worth Sharing part of it as I am sure many here will be interested in this and its conclusions. The contributor made a watch based on a Chinese Seagull ST36 movement (an ETA 6498 lookalike and wore it for two years. After this he serviced the watch as part of his BHI D14 exam. Conclusion After two years, the wheel train and the escapement remained in good condition. However, the brass used for the pillar-plate, the steel used for the screws, and the keyless work are too soft and poorly treated to meet good horological standards, and parts started to wear out or crack following 24 months of daily use, Figure 5. The broken or worn parts were replaced by ETA 6497 parts or scavenged from a new movement. As of writing this review, the ST36 movement costs £35-£60 on eBay, including shipping. During use, the movement needed adjustment several times for timekeeping. So, what would be the use of such a movement? Based on the findings, I would not recommend it as a replacement for ETA 64xx. Also, the movement is not viable for custom-made watch projects.

I've used surgical loupes in my line of work for almost 20 years. Can't live without them. They cost me about $2000. Had to modify the design several times to suit my needs. But surgical loupes are not really suitable for general watch repair. As @Neverenoughwatches stated, the working length is too long. The working length had to be about 12-16 inches long, depending on the users height. This working length was important for 2 reasons, to maintain good posture and to keep us out of the patient's face. But the surgical loupe is a game changer in dentistry. Previously, only middle aged dentist use them to compensate for deteriorating eyesight. But now, dental schools are starting off their students with loupes right from the start. Because you are only as good as what you are able to see. Surgical microscopes are becoming more common in dentistry. If I had another 10 years of working life, I would have invested in a surgical microscope. Those things are really expensive. A low end setup us typically about $12000. Even a Chinese knockoff is about $4000. But coming back to watchmaking, I had to dig up my surgical loupes a couple of days ago to setup the escapement in a grandmother clock. So, there is still a limited use for it.

Not necessarily the younger generation but a variety contributing factors like YouTube. Look how easy and simple it is to disassemble clean and reassemble. It would be really interesting with YouTube videos if somebody was doing there usual disassembly cleaning reassembly and? And if they would stop and say oh we have a problem okay we will need to diagnose the problem. Then once that's diagnosed they fix the problem and possibly re-clean reassemble do you ever see that in a video? So yes I find it troubling with the videos that make it look so simple people want to practice on live watches. My reference that watch repair is like learning to be a doctor but typically doctors don't start on live patients. Typically doctors get the practice a lot before they touch a live patients. But yes were now in the instant gratification world of I want to start on something right now like my Rolex or great grandpa's watch that the family would disown me if I destroyed it and I have these videos and what's the worst that could happen.

I understand that completely John , people can be eager to run before they can walk. Much more related to a younger generation. I'm 56, so have outgrown most of my impatience, and have always had some kind of order as to how i do things ( admittedly not perfect, we are only human after all ) Your tool use needs to be accurate and efficient to do good work, makes sense to know how to use them correctly first and in a way that works best for oneself. Bad habits are difficult to remove, i once read somewhere and this is related to muscle building but still applies. It takes approximately 500 repetitions to develop a form ( a body movement, a habit created by a mind to muscle connection ) . If that form ( habit ) that you have been practicing is poor it can then take another 5000 repetitions to break that form and create a new correct one . Moral is get it right first time or waste time retraining to get it right. That was my theory behind practicing with all the broken watches, just to get a technique pattern down solid before i even touched anything working. There with you John, most of the world is dependent on China's production. They pull the plug on it would leave us screwed. What have we done . But did we know any better all those years ago when buying all those nice cheap things in one go without having to wait. Someone must have and kept it quiet.

Microscope is perfect for watchmaking, but relatively costly. I think that lately there's been a shift towards using microscopes (probably also because they got cheaper overall), but interestingly, they don't look "watchmakery", I guess, hence in ads with "artisan watchmakers" characters you'll always still see humble loupes. Even if you have a microscope you still would need some kind of loupes or similar devices for some types of work (e.g. it's tricky to look at things from the side through microscope — for cases/bracelets disassembly, in a jewel press, in a lathe, etc.). There's also this kind of optivisors https://www.cousinsuk.com/category/optivisors-head-band-magnifiers . They seem to be popular, but I've never used them. Adam Savage also recommends them (he's not a watchmaker, but a maker of different kinds of stuff, sometimes minuscule). Personally I have a microscope from Aliexpress I ordered a while ago (very similar to this one, but with a bigger table and a viewer for a camera), and it's really good. I have to say, though, that Aliexpress ordering is a bit of a lottery and things that come from there need to be thoroughly inspected. BTW, note that using a microscope / loupe would require different sitting arrangements and take it into account when you plan your working space. Using loupe for a prolonged time is more comfortable and natural with a high table. Using microscope would require a table closer to "standard" ones (i.e. dining tables), since you can keep the hands close to the table while the visors are located above. In some cases for hobbyists purchasing a microscope would be a good financial choice because you can get away with a table you already have.

Hi the clock is attributed to C.A.RICHARD &cie. Rue de Bonny,Paris Frankenriech 1867 from your description it sounds very much that the escapement is all out of kilter. What needs to be done is remove the movement from the case, and set on a level base with the clock level and see where it’s at, check the state of the anchor/ pallets for wear, broken or bent pivots and worn pivot holes, In other words the obvious. Check the pallet locking on the escape wheel. The state of the plates looks like it’s in need of a good clean and oil. Maybe a new suspension spring as any kinks bends or twists render it useless. Enough for starters, but remove the movement set it up and then maybe more pictures especially of the escapement. By the way it a nice little clock.

I will never stop giggling at "wig-wag" pinions.

It's the wig-wag pinion. If you search it's easy to find the parts lists for these movements. Omega1010,1011,1012,1020,1021,1022NEWS.pdf

With Hector on this one, i have 3 sets and 6 adjustable ones. You just can't have too many. But what you have here is a starting point, if the price is ok then go for it. You will add to it anyway no matter what you buy. Thats just the nature of the beast. Its about being patient and buying wisely. Not even going there, that sounds way too kinky for me lol. Just thought I'd mention the expensive one i posted on Saturday, I'm sure you'll need it soon. Yeah we all know it don't we Rich is a real ass

I am in the same boat..... just when i think "that's it... I dont need anything else for a good while" someone on here posts about a new tool or gizmo that they have that then become my new must have fix...

Another's 404 for my watch if the day

If tools and parts you can just horde them like me and NEW (Rich) joking aside anything you are never going to get into or use I would make them available to the hobbyist community at reasonable cost as best I could. I have some stuff I have stripped, cleaned and lubricated as well as more to do that are surplus to my needs and this is my intention. If I get a bit of cash to go towards stuff I do want and likely to use then that would be great. Tom @Galilea don’t necessarily write off quartz, it is a marvel of engineering mixed with electronics. Sure there are the 50 cent movements in $5 watches but there are also really nice movements out there with jewels in them that are also serviceable, never mind the high accuracy quartz (HAQ) movements. Alongside that citizen have the most accurate watch currently, a couple of seconds out per year, a triumph of horological achievement. Tom

What lathe? Not sure I will go all the way. I wonder if there are watch repair enthusiasts who stop at replacing a balance staff, MAYBE a jewel if it's cracked, winding stems, crowns and crystals? Expert cleaning and buffing, like that. Still, maybe I could someday aspire to lathing. Time will tell, or is that joke as old as time itself? Also, I wonder at what point one can get the hand off of one's forehead, avatar-wise?

Yup chamfer down facilitates mesh with teeth of sliding pinion when you pull the stem out to set time etc.

@Neverenoughwatches Well, since rubies (synthetic and real) fluoresce under a black light, maybe turn out all the lights, and break out your black light (and maybe some gummies)...

An old classic 96, are the headlights permanently on