Leaderboard

Moved in. Now working out the best place to have things so moving around the room makes sense. The wooden movement testing rig may end up being suspended from the roof with some pulleys and ropes that I salvaged from some alfresco blinds that we replaced. I always seem to salvage things from things we scrap thinking, "I have an idea what I can use these for." I hope I'm not the only one that does that. My wife hates me for it. "What are you going to do with all this crap?" Anyway, here you go. If anyone has suggestions for workflow around a room, speak up. All Ideas are appreciated. The bench on wheels will carry either a laptop or my Samsung table for using with the little camera that is on the tripod for photos while dismantling etc. The small bar fridge in the corners going to have water etc in it and I might move the coffee maker from the kitchen out there as I am the only one that uses it. I want to get an ultrasonic cleaner so I may set up some sort of cleaning rig in front of the glass of the sliding door. Where the grandmother clock is currently standing. I'm hoping that I will be able to transition my working area, which is the table that the stool is sitting in front of, fairly easily between clocks and watches. I'll be doing my best to make sure that tools for each are separatedwhen stored. Logistics. I'll have a bit of wall space for being able to hang clocks if I find some that I wish to keep or hopefully at some time to be able to hang customer clocks for monitoring after servicing/repairs. The clock on the left in the blue pillow slip and the grandmother clock are earmarked for Jarryd and his wife, Sara. He helped me move the benches in today. And then went on to tell me that ticking clocks drive him nuts. Who doesn't like the rhythmic ticking of a clock? I have a green pad for adding to the bench for a working surface. It is not a cutting mat or one of the Bergeon mats. It is actually a green desk writing mat. Was really cheap and will do exactly what I want, I think. I also have to get the sparkies back that put our new stove in to put some power points on the walls behind the benches. Hopefully this is all going to go well. I'm excited about it. It'll beat having to live out in the garage doing it. The other thing I have to do is cut a circle or square of plastic to go over the bouncing watch or clock part black hole in the middle of the floor. I would pretty much guarantee that anything that sproings off the bench would end up going straight down that drain. I think I have been on this forum about 4 years and still yet to really strike a blow. That's a bit sad isn't it. Signed up to Mark's watch course and have yet to buy the movement for working on. Have most of the tools I think I will need so now all just a matter of will. I have to make a crank handle for my Joe Collins spring winder as well and some spring retaining tubes as I can't find where I can buy them. I will be salvaging (here I go again) the aluminium tubing from my old hang glider which I have to scrap as I can't fly anymore and it is too old to sell. All the aluminium tubing is aircraft grade so I am hoping it will be suitable for the winder. I have also been making a bushing tool and I have just worked out that it will work well with my Dremel stand. So another thing that I can turn into a working tool. Don't know if you guys have ever seen the ad about the guy that buys himself a new 4WD and the son says "We're going to need a bigger boat." So Liz is looking at all the stuff we have to get rid of and says "We're going to need a bigger bin." Really difficult to work out how big a Dempster bin we need. Sigh.

That can be tricky. Sometimes I hold the movement from the edges in left hand and with right hand I push the release with tweezers and simultaneously pull the stem out with right hand pinky or something.

Hope you mum keeps on mending. I was adamant that I was going to get myself going after my stroke. I was only 52. I still have a lot of life left to live. Some people give up. Some people don't let it beat them. Your mum sounds like one of the winners.

So leave off the seconds. Stand the movement on its edge, its the dial edge that rests on the pad ( either rubber or cork , something that wont slip ). Use a finger of your left hand to hold the movement upright, right hand presses the release and flicks out the stem. I do it this way so i can see what I'm under a microscope. But you could hold the movement between two fingers of your left hand, its the right that has to manipulate the stem out by pushing the release and flicking out the stem with right ring finger nail. Sounds more complicated than it actually is. I guess you could fix a push pin to something solid, then all you need to do is push the release against the pin, leaving your right hand completely free to pull the stem out.

I think what peter means oh is once he has fitted the hands and checked for alignment if them and that they dont foul, how does he then hold the movement to remove the stem in order to case up. The dial cannot be laid on a cushion or in a movement holder as the hands will get damaged. This can be quite tricky for a beginner, what i do is to stand the movement on edge on a rubber pad so it doesn't slip. Hold the top edge with one finger then my dominant hand uses 3 fingers to press the stem release and flick out the stem. See below peter, leave off the second hand as this is the longest and gets caught the most, then fit it once the stem is out. Alternatively place the movement in one of the cup style holders, i imagine this is what they are designed for. They only touch the very edge of the dial.

Tbh thats how i would do it. Being a joiner and setting up a few workshops in my time. I would have full worktops all the way around instead of seperate benches, but still a station for each process. Dedicated disassembly/assembly (clean area ) cleaning, repair , polishing and lathework.

Thanks Michael, shes a real soldier, it would take a tank to knock her off her feet. Shes surprised even me and i knew she was a tough cookie. Good for you Michael, you keep at it. I've been reading your posts re. your watchroom they're inspiring and it doesn't matter how long it takes you to get there its about the journey. Rome wasn't built in a day, our watchcaves are our solitudes, our own little empires where we can shut ourselves away from the crap that goes on around us in the world. I look forward to seeing you progress, I have my own ideas how i like to do things. But in answer to your questions on that thread, just let your workspace evolve around you and how you work. You wont figure it out straight away but you will know when to change it and when to leave it alone. But most of all just enjoy it.

Off topic, but that just brought back an old memory! My mother once told me about a minor incident as a child (born 1917, so 1920s, at a guess). She used to use "Fish glue" for a hobby - an apparently smelly glue that had to be heated to be usable - and to heat it gently, she had to stand the tin in the kettle. One day someone filled the kettle without seeing the glue tin.. The tea tasted of fish for some time afterwards!

Finally figured out why my hands are so god damn steady. My mum 87 years old , 4 weeks after her stroke and has a macular hole in both eyes, she wiped the floor with me and my lad at a kids stacking chairs toy game. Here she in rehab placing the last chair into position, bloody ' Supergreatgreatgran' i hope I'm half as fit at her age

New Great wheel arrived, rebuilt the watch and managed not to break anything. Had a minor issue with a screw I'd found to use to secure the date corrector wheel - it was fouling the escape wheel. Changed for a shorter one and it seems all good. Running pretty well I think - not yet adjusted it, will let it run for 24 hours first.

I'll be honest that benchtop all the way around was something I really wanted to do. At the moment, it is not a possibility due to some upcoming expenditure that Liz and I have to go through. I already had these benches, so that will have to do for now. I'll work the rest out somehow. Hey, it took me 4 years to get to this. What's another couple of months?

A bit wonky? Like the tower of Pisa being plumb?

Has it been properly cleaned? If so, yes, it looks a bit funny.

If I'm replacing the crystal, I like to leave it off until after setting the hands so I can use the case as a holder.

I only watched the start, but he's out on magnification by a factor of 10. It's 7X to 45X, not 450X

It's one of those tools like screwdrivers and tweezers, where it's worth spending more for the quality. And it gets used all the time. At about £20, the 4040 is not expensive for Bergeon. When putting a watch in dial down, you have to be careful not to catch a sweep second hand, but once secured, life is easy - two hands available to work on the stem.

@Michael1962 a suggestion Michael, if I had the space I would think about planning it kinda like a kitchen on the principal of a working triangle, though for this application maybe a square. A kitchen after all is a workshop for making food. I would like to have a workbench, cleaning/polishing bench, testing bench and a machining bench. Tom

I use a normal movement holder (Bergeon 4040). I've never had any problems or marked the dial. The top lip is about 1mm, so as long as you use that, there should be no problem. I don't think I've seen a second hand come that close to the edge of a dial.

Yes I understand that. What I’m asking is, after the hands have been fitted, it’s been checked that the hands do not touch etc. then I need to remove the stem to fit the movement in the case. I have the push type, I need to turn it upside down and push the setting lever post and pull the stem out. But of course the dial and hands are in place and I have a glossy dial with lume dots and I do not want to cause any damage while it’s upside down pushing on the post of the setting lever.

You have answered your own question. You just push the setting lever nipple in or if its the screw in type unscrew it a little. You should always remove any hands and the dial before putting it in your movement holder.

As Richard said, this is a really old school trick for joinery. Cut i strip of paper, might need to be watch paper around 1 " x 1/2" lay it over a staking block then press the stud screw into and through the edge of the paper upto the head of the screw. You probably wont even need to pull the paper away the head will pull itself through.

So great to see and hear- your mum looks great! …my mil had a stroke last summer in the golf course parking lot. I’m flying out tomorrow to visit and play golf. she’s ornery because she can’t get off the tee but I hear she makes up for it on the greens since she’s been putting since a week after her stroke …

Very best wishes to you and your family, as a carer myself I know how difficult things can be.

Tah-dah. A mini blow torch to harden it, then quench it and just a lighter held under a brass mainspring barrel that the part sits in to temper, Its important to wipe off any grease from fingerprints with ipa, you might be able to see i missed a bit at the top of the arm. Its a very satisfying process. I now just need to deal with the more difficult repairs, anybody any good at replacing rubbed in jewels ?

Punch a hole in some thin card, push the screw through. Start the screw and rip the card off

Definitely worthwhile, if you are working with old watches - just be sure it's an actual Geiger counter, not one of the vast range of scam/fake "Radiation detectors" on ebay & amazon etc. that detect RF or static electricity... In the mean time, I'd put the dial and hands in zip bags & wipe down the work area with a damp cloth to pick up any dust, then discard the cloth. The emitted radiation from radium lume is not normally harmful - but inhaling or ingesting a single particle of the material can cause serious long term harm, so do take care with it.

@Hawaiikook808 I have got to the point now if I see something interesting on eBay I check cousinsuk etc. for new prices as a lot of stuff is often posted for more than new for some strange reason. Tom

Sometimes you can see a burn mark on the dial from hands that have stayed in one place for decades, which is a clincher, but I don't really see that here. An inexpensive detector could let you know for sure, but considering the dial/hand style and the darkened condition of the dots on the dial in the absence of any clear water damage, I'd give 90% likelihood that there is radium there. Tritium is usually marked out on the dial, and although it moves to yellow and tan as it ages, it doesn't get as "toasty" as those dial spots based on what I've seen.

Thanks, that's useful to know. Will save some expense. "school in the 1900s" ! I didn't know you were so ancient @nickelsilver