Tip and tricks here.

[Neverenoughwatches]

I'm sure i started a thread for this about two years ago, no eyed deer where that went to ( ok so its a goat, what ya gonna do ? Shoot me ? ) . I'll try again. A new place where we can post wacky ideas that work ( i have lots, they dont always work, but then neither do i if i can help it ). Heres one - so i dont get the typical ultrasonic cleaning thing which goes something like this, parts in a mini mesh basket in a lift out basket in a glass jar in the US. ( see picture 1, yes i have pants on today so lets not get too excited ) This seems like an awful lot of barriers for the cavitations to penetrate before they reach the actual part, 3 in fact. We can eliminate two of these very easily, like so by putting the parts directly into a small tin that will float. A tin with a lid is great , i have a few that i use that float very well in fact. An alternative is one of those tea lights after the candle has burned out. Dome the bottom of the foil to create a keel to stop it tipping over, the watch part also settles in the bottom to give it more stabilty. I use a small US occasionally, next to where I'm working if things just need a quick rinse, gives you a good example of how i do things sometimes, part goes in the foil tub placed in the water then i drip a little cleaner into it. Works a treat though the US could do to be upgraded. For plates and bridges you can also hang them off copper wire draped over the side of a glass jar or tin. A little tip or trick can often save stress when tryin to get our heads around something, like parts that are just not cleaning well enough, that has just a very simple answer to it. More ideas people please, teamwork makes the dream work an all that

Another quick one folks, this time for drying parts. I feel this needs to be quick to stop that white ring staining that often happens when the part is removed from an IPA rinse, commonly seen around the jewel holes. This involves 2 pieces of apparatus besides the dryer. 1 x wire egg cup and 1 x half of one of those spring loaded 2 part tea strainers. The wire egg cup allows the warm air to pass through the mesh basket. This basket is suitable for plates, bridges and a few other parts that have enough mass not to blow away , although as you can see my dryer is speed controlled .Obviously if you are drying small parts leave them in the mini mesh baskets that have lids and use a bigger basket holder. Hairdryer is fitted to a small microphone stand.

[Neverenoughwatches]

Add a little bobbin to your pegwood, makes it a bit easier to pick up when you've set it down, file a flat on it to stop it rolling off your bench. Anything will do, this is an identification collar from one of those cheap carbide drills. 

[Waggy]

Think I may have previously posted this before, but pegwood = orangewood:

Raided my wife's makeup desk.... much cheapness on Amazon!

 

Edited June 25, 2024 by Waggy

[Neverenoughwatches]

29 minutes ago, Waggy said:

Think I may have previously posted this before, but peg-wood = orangewood:

Raided my wife's makeup desk.... much cheapness on Amazon!

 

A lifetime of pegwood Scott, whats the timber like, my first lot of pegwood from cousins was really bitty, dipped in cleaner it was a little better. I do prefer bamboo its harder and breaks up less, there where whispers that its silica content can scratch but i havent experienced that to date , i always soak the wood in cleaner ( paraffin now ) when pegging anyway so that it softens it. My favourite probe at the moment is a burger bun stick , its really thin, instead of holding a bridge down by pushing from above with the tip ( the usual technique ) , i use the side of it, the stick has some flex in it so its difficult to press too hard and risk popping a pivot , it also cant slip holding it that way, coffee stirrer sticks have that same flexibility to them. Not so keen on the delrin or plastic type probes. 

[Waggy]

5 minutes ago, Neverenoughwatches said:

I do prefer bamboo its harder and breaks up less

I use bamboo also for cleaning the goo from the main plate/case/bracelet etc. and reserve the pegwood for jewel pegging. I hoover up un-used chopsticks from restaurants, as quite often they are made of bamboo.

[Neverenoughwatches]

Another little idea , for a movement cushion this time. Always made my own cushions but i like this one it has built in features. The pot is from cousins , add lead circles for weight , light cushions move far too easy for my liking, a foam mat cushion, yoga mats and those click together floor mats are about the right density punch out the center. The lid acts as a dust protector when you want a coffee break, saves on those glass movement covers.

[Waggy]

I use one of these coin cases to store rogue dials and hands that come from donor watches etc:

[Neverenoughwatches]

14 hours ago, Waggy said:

I use one of these coin cases to store rogue dials and hands that come from donor watches etc:

I saw those  great idea scott,  i like the meds gel caps for storing small stuff although the big ones have good volume for wheels etc, extremely cheap 1000 for around 15 quid, enough to last most of us a lifetime and they've been used for decades so a proven storage idea. These with a lid on as well if you want to pop a member something in the post and not be damaged.

[Waggy]

Another idea stolen from Mrs W. 

The pointed cotton buds allow better cleaning in the nooks and crannies of the main-plate and mainspring barrels etc than the normal rounded ones do. The holder makes it neat and tidy on the desk, and the squishy top dispensers work for IPA and acetone, however naphtha seems to light and it drains from the tube/plunger mechanism before it gets to the outlet.

If this watch thing doesn't work out I can switch to a nail salon

Note 1 AED = 22p = $0.27

And I use these for small jobs like removing rust from screws or small parts with evaporust, or dissolving out a broken stem with alum etc.

Best part is that they are free (Mrs W's eyes roll each time I scavenge the used ones from the hotel dining table) and seal much better than anything else I have bought on Amazon, and the metal lids do not react (swell) with chemicals like naphtha etc.

On a roll here.....

I got this a while ago too for finding cracked jewels, beats trying to balance the main-plate on top of a torch/phone and focus your scope at the same time. Just put this on the desk top, turn your room/scope lights off, place your main-plate on it and turn it on (powered by USB cable). You then have hands free experience to focus/zoom your scope and poke the plate around to search fro those cracks.

There are smaller cheaper version out there (this one is +/- A4), but this was on half price when i got it so couldn't resist a bargain!

I also confirmed that these generic Mr Clean magic erasers (Melamine Sponges) are the same as the Bergeon 'pith wood' alternatives

 

OK this is my last one for today....

This is what I mix my lume powder with when doing watch hands, find it much easier and convenient than the resin and thinner that you find in lume kits. just mix it directly with the powder and apply.

Edited June 27, 2024 by Waggy

[Neverenoughwatches]

1 hour ago, Waggy said:

Another idea stolen from Mrs W. 

The pointed cotton buds allow better cleaning in the nooks and crannies of the main-plate and mainspring barrels etc than the normal rounded ones do. The holder makes it neat and tidy on the desk, and the squishy top dispensers work for IPA and acetone, however naphtha seems to light and it drains from the tube/plunger mechanism before it gets to the outlet.

If this watch thing doesn't work out I can switch to a nail salon

Note 1 AED = 22p = $0.27

And I use these for small jobs like removing rust from screws or small parts with evaporust, or dissolving out a broken stem with alum etc.

Best part is that they are free (Mrs W's eyes roll each time I scavenge the used ones from the hotel dining table) and seal much better than anything else I have bought on Amazon, and the metal lids do not react (swell) with chemicals like naphtha etc.

On a roll here.....

I got this a while ago too for finding cracked jewels, beats trying to balance the main-plate on top of a torch/phone and focus your scope at the same time. Just put this on the desk top, turn your room/scope lights off, place your main-plate on it and turn it on (powered by USB cable). You then have hands free experience to focus/zoom your scope and poke the plate around to search fro those cracks.

There are smaller cheaper version out there (this one is +/- A4), but this was on half price when i got it so couldn't resist a bargain!

I also confirmed that these generic Mr Clean magic erasers (Melamine Sponges) are the same as the Bergeon 'pith wood' alternatives

 

Some really good ideas Scott ,I'm ahead of the game on 3 of em, the magic erasers clean up hands and raised hour markers like nothing on the planet,and the glass matchstick/pointy cotton bud holder looks incredibly cool and swarve on my bench but i particularly like your light board one.  So now I'm going cheapy cheap here ( I'm far too competitive for my own good ie. trying to outbench a guy bigger than me and half my age resulted in a one year repair partial rotator cuff tear ) . Origami boxes , i wont get into how to make them becauses there is more than one way and a youtube vid can show it quicker and better than i can explain it,  so just planting a seed here if you have some nice vintage tools that came without a box ,thicker paper makes for a tougher box. And 3 movement cushions with lids, a coffee jar top, a trinket jar and shaving cream tub. Oh and a donor movement case from cousins.

 

[Knebo]

On 6/24/2024 at 10:47 PM, Neverenoughwatches said:

Add a little bobbin to your pegwood, makes it a bit easier to pick up when you've set it down, file a flat on it to stop it rolling off your bench. Anything will do, this is an identification collar from one of those cheap carbide drills. 

This one cracks me up 

I never had issues picking up pegwood, but I still think it's a genius solution

 

 

[VWatchie]

@Neverenoughwatches

This has already turned out to be a very valuable thread which I also believe could save us a lot of money. Thanks for starting it! 

[spectre6000]

On 6/26/2024 at 2:31 AM, Waggy said:

I use one of these coin cases to store rogue dials and hands that come from donor watches etc:

Are these good for things other than dials? Are they thick enough inside for feet? Photos of your setup with these would probably be informative. Thanks!

I use those aluminum tins with glass lids from Cousins as organizers while I'm cleaning movements. As I tear it down, I put the various "systems" each in their own little tin. Wash them one or a few at a time, and then put them back in the tins. Then assemble from the tins by system. Keeping the parts in there keeps the parts clean, and keeps me organized. Especially useful with a curious 4yo and a -3 day old en route. I can't remember the last time I was able to sit down long enough to tackle an entire movement in a sitting without some sort of major interruption!

[Neverenoughwatches]

4 hours ago, Knebo said:

This one cracks me up 

I never had issues picking up pegwood, but I still think it's a genius solution

 

 

Haha, did i mention if you file a flat on the bobbin it stops it rolling ............. yep i did that . I dont alway use pegwood, sometimes bamboo sometimes less than that a 2mm toothpick. Us old chaps have chubby fingers so its not so easy to pick up thin rods, now let me see you pick up a needle laid flat

2 hours ago, VWatchie said:

@Neverenoughwatches

This has already turned out to be a very valuable thread which I also believe could save us a lot of money. Thanks for starting it! 

Haha no problem, i started one 2 years ago so theres another version  of it kicking around somewhere . There seems to be more takers this time, we probably have a better class of members now

1 hour ago, spectre6000 said:

Are these good for things other than dials? Are they thick enough inside for feet? Photos of your setup with these would probably be informative. Thanks!

I use those aluminum tins with glass lids from Cousins as organizers while I'm cleaning movements. As I tear it down, I put the various "systems" each in their own little tin. Wash them one or a few at a time, and then put them back in the tins. Then assemble from the tins by system. Keeping the parts in there keeps the parts clean, and keeps me organized. Especially useful with a curious 4yo and a -3 day old en route. I can't remember the last time I was able to sit down long enough to tackle an entire movement in a sitting without some sort of major interruption!

They look ok to me, i checked them out ages ago and thought about buying them. How about an icecube tray lots of compartments they just need some kind of lid.

1 hour ago, spectre6000 said:

 

 

Heres another one for yus, who uses a felt tip for marking up anything in a movement,  balance wheel for visually checking amplitude . Who thinks a felt tip is too thick and doesn't leave a thin accurate mark to work to. Dip an oiler into the end of ball point pen to grap a smidge of ink. The ink is also perfect for touching up those numbers and letters on day and date rings. 

Edited June 28, 2024 by Neverenoughwatches

[rjenkinsgb]

On 6/27/2024 at 6:50 AM, Waggy said:

I also confirmed that these generic Mr Clean magic erasers (Melamine Sponges) are the same as the Bergeon 'pith wood' alternatives

£8.90 for ten? That's expensive!!

I use these:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B08CDFDP6B/

 

[Waggy]

17 hours ago, spectre6000 said:

Are these good for things other than dials? Are they thick enough inside for feet?

I usually store the dial, date and day rings and any hands to keep the set together, I think they are too thin for much else. Some dial feet are too long for the holders I have so you can't close the lid, but I would say that about 80-90% fit just fine. There are larger ones and I am thinking about getting a set of those for those dials that do not fit in the ones I have, it's on my list of things to do.

8 minutes ago, rjenkinsgb said:

£8.90 for ten? That's expensive!!

Not £8.90, 8.90 AED - that's UAE Dihrums so about £1.92 for 10

[rjenkinsgb]

I have quite a few of these little compartment boxes, that Chinese electronic component kits, screw kits etc. are supplied in. They mostly have some or all dividers movable, so the compartment sizes can be adjusted to suit the items you are storing:

(The original components are only ever used for prototypes & test rigs, as the quality is often dubious - but good value for that purpose, and often cheaper than the boxes alone, if you try to buy those!)

 

7 minutes ago, Waggy said:

Not £8.90, 8.90 AED - that's UAE Dihrums so about £1.92 for 10

OK! Not bad, the currency prefix was too small to read...

[Neverenoughwatches]

Broaching out a sweep seconds hole when you only have cutters and not smoothing broaches small enough to fit, run the cutter through some fine wet and dry to make it a less aggressive cut

[Neverenoughwatches]

A little sanding item tip for a fiver.  Great for fine shaping tweezers and part making, tougher and less messy than wet and dry. Dental plastic diamond lap strips.  double side tape to a coffee stirrer, this is how us Yorkshiremen roll . And for those of you overseas this is how we speak in yorkshire , actually i dont I'm rather porrshh

https://youtu.be/Xu5R1o2DgJw?si=ps3JBAS_u3sz6R7v

[rjenkinsgb]

Something I discovered by chance a few days ago - the individual layers from the cheap plastic "stacking" parts trays will also work as an extra layer in a normal dust cover, which could be useful if working on a complex watch where there are more sections you want to categorise that divisions in the normal dust cover tray.

The stacking ones I have are around 87mm diameter, or 89mm over the lip of the clear lid that comes with the stack; mine are from ebay but probably the same as these:

https://www.hswalsh.com/product/round-stackable-trays-with-lid-economy-hb3134

(The stuff in the green tray is not related to the movement at the side - I just grabbed that one for the photo).

 

[Neverenoughwatches]

On 6/29/2024 at 8:00 AM, rjenkinsgb said:

£8.90 for ten? That's expensive!!

I use these:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B08CDFDP6B/

 

Good call Rob, i think i paid a couple of quid fot just 4 in a pound type shop . Wonder what is in them , snipped tiny bits off them in the past to shine up gold llated hands, problem is they break up really easily and are awkward to hold tiny pieces. 

[JohnL]

I'm pretty sure this is common. The pill boxes with a box for every day. I used the ones for morning and evening with a nice matt finish on the main body. I put disassembled watches bought for parts in them with the make model and perhaps serial number of the watch in pencil on the side of the box. A shop local to me sells them for 1.50 euro. Image taken from Amazon where they're £3.50, or more

[Neverenoughwatches]

13 hours ago, rjenkinsgb said:

Something I discovered by chance a few days ago - the individual layers from the cheap plastic "stacking" parts trays will also work as an extra layer in a normal dust cover, which could be useful if working on a complex watch where there are more sections you want to categorise that divisions in the normal dust cover tray.

The stacking ones I have are around 87mm diameter, or 89mm over the lip of the clear lid that comes with the stack; mine are from ebay but probably the same as these:

https://www.hswalsh.com/product/round-stackable-trays-with-lid-economy-hb3134

(The stuff in the green tray is not related to the movement at the side - I just grabbed that one for the photo).

 

Another good one rob, is 2 the max that will fit inside the cover ?

Just now, JohnL said:

I'm pretty sure this is common. The pill boxes with a box for every day. I used the ones for morning and evening with a nice matt finish on the main body. I put disassembled watches bought for parts in them with the make model and perhaps serial number of the watch in pencil on the side of the box. A shop local to me sells them for 1.50 euro. Image taken from Amazon where they're £3.50, or more

Haha i use these for putting hands in.

I used to also strip parts and save them like this,  probablyan ocd organising thing that we all possess, now i just put the whole movement in a small zip lock bag, the parts are safer stored within the movement and their identity is never lost that way. You can claw back some ocd habit by aphabetically labeled Chinese takeaway containers full of those baggies.

[rehajm]

4 hours ago, Neverenoughwatches said:

The pill boxes with a box for every day

I’d end up swallowing the am cannon pinion…

[Neverenoughwatches]

6 minutes ago, rehajm said:

I’d end up swallowing the am cannon pinion…

Great if you are lacking iron in your system lol.