Help for ordering parts Bulova 10BUC

[Paul63]

Hello all, my name is Paul and I’m new to the forum. I’m gonna take on my first project, my father’s Bulova from 1951. It is missing the crown, and the winding stem parts. I’m confused on which ones to order. When I search the parts needed I find listings that say “male winding stem post”, “female winding stem”  “split winding stem” and simply “winding stem”. 
So, am I looking for two separate parts, as in “male and female” or does it come as one part?

Also I need the crown. Should the crown be threaded on the inside, and does the winding stem I order need threads? here is a pic of my watch.

From what I can tell from the Bulova site, this is a Sea King B. Thanks in advance,

Paul

[RichardHarris123]

Hello and welcome from Leeds, England. 

Have you opened the back, the green indicates water damage.  It's also missing the bezel. 

[Paul63]

Thanks Richard for the welcome. I have the bezel. I had just removed the crystal and bezel and spacer.

[RichardHarris123]

Have you removed the movement? 

[Paul63]

Yes I have removed the movement. Seems to look fairly serviceable, that is, no apparent water damage

[nevenbekriev]

Hi Paul,

We need to see the case.

If there is case back that opens, then You need one single stem. If it is a 'front loader' case that has no back that opens, then stem of two parts is needed. The crown should fit the case tube and the size and shape of the crown should be suitable for the case. The crown is regular type, not 'screw down' The thread of the crown hole must be the same as the stem thread.

[GPrideaux]

Welcome!

The stem is partly determined by the movement and partly by the case. If the case does not have a removable back then it may be a front loader needing a split stem. I have no experience with them; I only know they exist and come in two pieces, a movement portion and a crown portion.

Otherwise you'll generally need a single stem.

There may be different variants of a single stem to fit different crowns. I'm not sure.

Now a word of unsolicited advice: don't make your father's 1951 watch the first one you work on. My father's watch was the second mechanical watch I worked on, and I lost a part and broke a part. Fortunately it was only about 20 years old and parts were available and relatively inexpensive. Yours is over 70 years old and if parts will be harder to get. If you care about the watch, work on half a dozen or so that you don't care about first. Maybe buy another 10BUC movement on ebay and practice disassembling, cleaning, reassembling and lubricating it a couple of times. You'll make all kinds of mistakes that will teach you valuable lessons that you will want to learn before you do anything with your father's watch.

Also, if there's any lume left on the hands, it's likely to be radioactive. Take precautions not to ingest or inhale it.

[Paul63]

Thanks Richard for the welcome. I have the bezel. I had just removed the crystal and bezel and spacer.

[AndyGSi]

I expect it's a screw down back ring as below which means you won't need to be bothering with split stems.

You should be able to get an idea of what size crown you need by the indent on the case.

[Paul63]

Ah! Thanks guys! It is indeed a front loader as the back does not come off. It makes sense that I would need the split stem!

Also, thanks for the unsolicited advice also. No,  will not make this my first job. I have some other beaters that will get that honor. 

[RichardHarris123]

Do we know the caliber so we can find the correct stem? The stem comes threaded, you need a crown to fit, correct tap size. It must also fit over the pendant tube. 

Where are you located? 

[GuyMontag]

Bulova had split stem kits, the 23 and 23A, which occasionally show up on ebay.  The Sea King 'B' has a female stem and male post, you can see the female stem and what the crown looks like on this example. 

It looks like the 10BUC has 3 different lengths for both the female stem and male post, so unless you know the length you need it would be a gamble to purchase them without knowing the correct length. If you are going to wait a bit before servicing I would suggest entering an ebay alert for bulova 10buc parts, and wait until you see another Sea King 'B' comes up. I see these not infrequently on ebay. When you do I'd message the seller and ask if the stem shows any rust. Unfortunately, with these split stem watches, the sellers often times don't know how to remove the movement so they frequently don't have photos of the condition of the movement.  You may even be able to get one with a dial that is in better condition and has a crown. If you don't find one with a crown and you have the stem you can measure it for the tap size and then you can find a crown to fit.

 

Edited February 18 by GuyMontag

[RichardHarris123]

8 minutes ago, GuyMontag said:

Bulova had split stem kits, the 23 and 23A, which occasionally show up on ebay.  The Sea King 'B' has a female stem and male post, you can see the female stem and what the crown looks like on this example. 

It looks like the 10BUC has 3 different lengths for both the female stem and male post, so unless you know the length you need it would be a gamble to purchase them without knowing the correct length. If you are going to wait a bit before servicing I would suggest entering an ebay alert for bulova 10buc parts, and wait until you see another Sea King 'B' comes up. I see these not infrequently on ebay. When you do I'd message the seller and ask if the stem shows any rust. Unfortunately, with these split stem watches, the sellers often times don't know how to remove the movement so they frequently don't have photos of the condition of the movement.  You may even be able to get one with a dial that is in better condition and has a crown. If you don't find one with a crown and you have the stem you can measure it for the tap size and then you can find a crown to fit.

 

Does the female part sit flush with the movement, if so it could be measured, the male part could then be extrapolated. 

[GuyMontag]

No, the stem extends into the pendant tube.

[AndyGSi]

You can get the 10BUC female stem from Cousins and then just a generic male stem.

Or there are listing on eBay for both Male & Female Bulova Stems if you know the length, or get the longest male and cut it down.

Edit

Is there a case number inside?

Edited February 18 by AndyGSi

[Paul63]

Well I have ordered a set of male and female stems, plus I found an identical movement, with case on eBay, which is on the way. I’ll keep everyone updated once it arrives. Thanks for all the responses!