The fact that a 70 year old macanical pice that is worn on the wrist and still be within a minute and a half after a week. To me that's amazing. It's not like it's just sitting there the watch is being waved around banged into slamed down.... and still able to complete the Necessary function It is impressive. I love the macanical wonder of watches.
Hello Garet, thanks for watching and I'm 100% with you! A mechanical watch that runs to about 10 seconds off per day is in fact running at a ~99.99% accuracy rate, which isn't really all that bad for a tiny machine driven by a spring... We never think about it that way, but when you add that the little machine providing that performance is 70 years old, it's really quite mind blowing. And that's why mechanical watches are so fascinating to watch nerds like us 😎
You were saying people don't use watches for telling the time anymore but used phones ect when I wake up even before my feet touch the floor I am reaching for my watch there would be more chance of leaving the house without my pants than leaving without my watch, its a must have for me
That's very nice to hear, Stephen! Might I assume you're also not a spring chicken? The newer generations are less and less used to wearing watches from an early age, it seems.
A beautiful service on a very nice watch. I was trying to get to make myself a bit drowsy, but the humour of the simile riff and how many jobs you lost, made me have to stifle my laugh to not wake my wife. I love your videos and work to emulate your technique when I do my simple service work.
Excellent discussion re watch repair as opposed to the other excellent history lessons you give us. You are obviously very, very talented. I'm going to buy a watch from you when I see one that catches my eye. I've watched many hours or your channel and I am convinced that you are the best in heritage/vintage watches. As a 72 y/o man I really like these old watches. Thanks.
Another great video and workmanship on a great looking Omega. Love the 'vintage' pieces more and more...yet like this one, many are so still functioning well when taken care of. Thanks for the journey...Kudos
Great fun as usual. I also have shaky hands, especially oiling the winding stem. I really appreciate and enjoy your videos. Please keep them coming. I am learning so much.
What a great job with good explanations of all the various parts of the restoration/rebuild. So far away from my initial forays into horological videos.. where a slimey , muddy watch was plucked from a paddy field and within 12.3 minutes was almost as good as new, AMAZING!!!😎🤓👍🏻😂😂.. thanks again 🙏🏻
I love the Omega watches... the vintage ones from the 50's and 60's. The movement color, copper alloy? They are stunning! I saved your website to my bookmarks and hope to one day find a nice vintage Omega one day I can buy hopefully with permission from the wife... or maybe I'll just risk the beating and buy it anyway. 😀😎
The key to working with shaky hands is creative adaptability… I’ve had an intention tremor my whole life, and while it also ruled me out of professions like brain surgery (no great loss!) it hasn’t stopped me from performing fine work under microscopes or fixing tiny broken components around the house. Like you say, it’s about understanding what causes the shaking & using whatever works to mitigate it… I use tools & tricks from dentistry to automotive to building construction to help hold both myself & what I’m working on as steady as I need. Needless to say, watchmaking has introduced me to a whole new world of funky specialised tools to feed my tool-collecting obsession!
That’s interesting, your comment about vintage watches and accuracy. I have a 1962 550 Seamaster Deville I bought serviced and it keeps time such that it might be off by a minute after a few months of not setting it (I wear it everyday; it’s an 18k gold one I love very much)
Hi Jacob, thanks for watching and for your comment! Watches from that era were made to last in a very different way from today. They will often show a bit of wear, but they are still capable of very good performance indeed. Great to hear about your SMDV being a good example of that 😁
*_Jokes?_* *Did somebody say jokes?* Two hunting shotguns come into the pub. The barkeep asks what they'll have. Firearm #1: We'll have two shots. Barkeep: Your buddy looks glum, what's up? Firearm #2: I just got fired. ===================== *_Great video. The Omega copper plated movement is most attractive._*
I had no idea about the 'hardness' or quality of steel now being used by all the big manufacturers. It makes absolute sense and fits in with their 'perpetual income' business model. Furthermore, many of the earlier designs, such as this one, dance all over 90% of the more modern offerings. Great work, pal.
Thanks, Analogue ! Yes, the business model has radically changed and the effort being put into making a watch even more so. Pivots of older watches were burnished, meaning they were hardened and highly polished in the same operation. That takes time and effort by skilled people. Nowadays they chemically harden the pivots instead, which works perfectly fine for a few years, and then any friction cuts through it like butter. It's like an egg, the outside is quite hard but as soon as there is wear, it goes right through to the soft mass underneath.
I have seen a few vintage watches with special engravings etc... those I love. They have a certain energy, powerful memories attached to them. Would love to find one that was a wedding gift from the wife from a bygone generation.
I have a watch with an ETA 2892 A2 movement. I gained about 30s/day which I thought was excessive. I took it to a watch guy who said that it was probably magnetized. The first thing he did was to demagnetize it. He adjusted it to +- 3s/day. Is magniization a common problem and is it a good diagnosis if the watch is fast? PS love your videos and esp the comentary.
Hi, thanks so much for your comment! Yes, it's a pretty common problem that's really taken off the last couple of decades. There are so many strong magnetic fields around us nowadays and they can all impact the watch. A magnetized watch doesn't necessarily run very fast, it can actually also run slowly, depending on how magnetized it is and which parts are magnetized. What probably happened to yours was that the hairspring was magnetized, causing the coils to stick to each other and thereby racing up the speed. That happens a lot, unfortunately.
I'm glad you mentioned your tweezers. What brand are they? Thanks for the servicing video. Your camera angles are excellent! I saw you mentioned the tweezers brand and supplier, Below. Thanks. FWIW, I do some fairly close order soldering of electronics. My hand shake seems to be influenced by blood pressure, along with continuous medication with it's absorption schedule.
Hi Westend, thanks for watching! My tweezers are made by a company called Regine Horology and I buy them through Beco-technic.com. I looked for a long time to find them :) My hands were always shaky, even when I was a pretty high level athlete in my youth. So its congenital more than due to blood pressure, I think. It's not a big issue most of the time, but I do notice it is worse some days than others, maybe due to blood sugar levels as another viewer suggested.
My brother who made a lot of money in very expensive valves for the North Sea oil rigs, retired early and indulged himself in vintage racing machinery. One car he bought was a Bugatti sports car of the 1920's, on the engine turned dashboard which was full of British and French gauges, one exception was a 1960-70's Russian clock that had graced a nuclear bomber of the period. In answering my question ...why..? He showed me the original clock, a bulkhead mounted Breguet, a beautiful piece. I asked him why not use it all the time. His answer was telling, even thought Bugatti's engine was pretty smooth, it's suspension was not and the clock cost a lot in repairs before he latched onto something a lot more robust, i.e. the 'Ruskitimex'. The Brequet being mounted only for shows, then back into a padded box!. By the way why has the day ring printed with English/English days? Nice watch, though.
Hi Paul, thanks for watching and cool story! I can understand why they prefer a running Ruskitimex in place of a broken Breguet 😄 The weekday disc is constructed so that it moves twice when the date changes, and this would allow the manufacturer and the watchmaker to choose language if the disc has a second language in addition to English. In Seiko's for instance there's basically always English and Kanji. For this watch there is only one language, but instead of leaving the second language spot empty they put a double English in there. My guess would be that this is to look it more aesthetically pleasing as it changes over and also to minimize the risk of a watchmaker putting the disc back in the wrong spot so that a blank would be displayed.
Another great video! I watch these and continue down the learning path. This leads to more and better tools. I'm also really getting to like the curved #7 tweezers. I wish I could find them in brass. I have tried contacting Regine in Switzerland, with no response. Their 7A-BRA are on their website, but I can't figure out how to order them. Any thoughts?
On Handshaking: I am closer to 80 than to 60. Do my hands shake? Yes and No. At times (low BG, tired,...) There is a pronounced shake. At others, nothing visible (as always). If my hand shake, I find this procedure to help a lot: A. Relax, forcefully if necessary B. Stare at the hands and get control over the hands C. Force the hands to stop shaking, relax and yet be strong. D. Do not Dismiss the power of prayer (PC Note: call it meditation, whatever) In addition:. Get from Amazon a one pound lump of silly putty. Use about ⅓ to ½ portion. Keep it in a tin can, an old butter container. While watching videos, reading, music, etc. kneed the portion above. Basically squeeze it until it comes out between your fingers. After some minutes, switch to pinching and folding. Do this at least 10 minutes a day, 3 minutes at a time, or 30 seconds after you get really tired. You will be amazed. Silly Putty Notes: A. Do not use over fabric. Any amount left on carpet, bedsheets, clothing, etc. will soak through and will never come out. B. The harder (or quicker) you push on silly putty, the harder it will behave. As you vary your pressure, it will adjust it's resistance. Extremes; make a ball. Leave on a hard table, overnight. It will form a puddle and most dirt will float as if on oil. OTOH drop the ball on a hard floor and it will bounce like a PU ball. Experiment, but it is an amazing therapy tool for hands.
Love your comments during the video. I'm curious, with your years of experience, how long do you estimate it would take you from start to finish to do a general cleaning on a 5 yr old mechanical Bulova?
Thanks a lot! The 613 is a solid movement, part of the 550 family, which might be the most successful movement family ever. I prefer the automatics in the family, but the hand-wounds are very high quality also.
I’m curious about one of your techniques. What do you use to polish wheel pivots? Fo you use any silicon base compound? Would Normal pith Wood work or could pith + diamantine also be an option? And by the way God Påske!
Hei Henrique, god påske til deg også! I'm not actually polishing the pivots and I should be careful not saying I do, I just clean them. I use a compound called Eve Sticks, which are indeed silicon carbide based. I bought mine at CousinsUK, but you can find them here for instance: www.gesswein.com/p-3481-eve-poly-polishers-rods.aspx I know a lot of people use pith also. Actually polishing the pivots is most of the time not necessary and you also need to be very cautious with that since the diameter needs to remain as it is to fit with the pivot hole.
May I ask why you take out the Inca-blocs before cleaning? Isn't it likely that the balance gets damaged more easily when cleaning without them? I would suggest cleaning the Incablocs and balance tips afterwards in One dip before olining and remounting them. Or am I totally wrong? Please explain! Thanks! Kind regards and thanks for your video's, Bob
Hi Bob, thanks for watching and for your question! You can do it both ways, it does not really make a big difference in terms of damage potential. There's no real difference in the potential for the balance to get damaged as long as it is secured to the mainplate while cleaning it and you potentially save a bit of work by removing them first and cleaning them together with the rest of the parts. But doing it the way you describe is perfectly fine also.
Apologies if you've discussed this: on this watch the mainplate and bridges have that nice gold/copper sheen. Are they plated stainless steel? if so, plated with what? Surely the parts aren't brass or they would dull, right? Thanks... love your videos...
Hi Ralf, thanks for watching and for your question! Most parts in a watch are typically made of brass, which is quite strong but at the same time easy to machine and work with. It is then plated exactly to ensure it looks nice, and Omega used to plate them with this copper color. Nowadays movements are most commonly Rhodium plated, but you also find gold plated movements.
Hello Cristobal, thanks for watching and for your question! The paper is lint-free watch paper from a company called Newall Watch Materials. I'm not sure if they are still in business but I found this link: www.watchpartssupply.com/anti-tarnish-watch-tissue-p-4505.html?zenid=EJBu1VxUP1hcvYplzbO1b2 Otherwise you can also use similar paper from other suppliers.
I want you to save my Cosmic 2000 !! Seriously, I can’t find anyone that will take it on. (Runs for a couple of hours, nothing apparently broken. I have a second donor movement to.) it’s never been opened, and when it runs its 1”/ day.
Shaking like me after my 4th cup of coffee. Beautiful work. I don't wear watches...but I would wear a watch movement in a see through case like jewelry...I wonder if that's a thing 🤔
There are, for instance these: www.lifestyleasia.com/bk/style/watches/6-transparent-watches/ But most of them are extremely expensive, and seeing a quartz movement through plastic isn't really that exciting...
What is the clear ended tool you are using instead of Pegswood to hold components down with? I'd like to get hold of one but I can't find one anywhere, only Bergeon's' plastic ones which are really mobile phone spudger at 10 times the price, not that I'm having a dig!
Hello Lezourez, thanks for watching and for your question! The one I use I got from Boley.de, but I think you need a corporate account to buy it there. Check eBay perhaps for something similar?
A question, or few if you please.. First: this omega 752 interior. Is this an example of Rose-Gold plating of the inner-housing, juxtaposed to the Yellow-Gold case plating??? Second: is it possible to re-plate the inner housing without removing the Jewels themselves?? Third: I see this watch hands are Luminous. Did you re-lum them???
Hello DitzyDoo, when you say the interior, do you mean the movement? It is copper plated but the color indeed looks a bit like rose gold, as rose gold is gold mixed with copper. For the second question, I believe you mean the movement? If you want to replate the movement you would need to replate the various part separately and indeed remove the jewels. And yes, the watch hands are luminous, with the original lume.
I recently had my own, admittedly longtime unserviced, 52-year old Omega cal.565 serviced by an independent watchmaker, and quite a lot of parts were replaced:) In your videos you never seem to replace anything. Is that because you don't, or because you don't mention it?
Hello Bob, the condition of the watch is the main criteria for whether you need to replace parts or not. Thus if your watch had a lot of wear, parts need to be replaced. In general though, watch movements made before the quartz crisis were of a much higher quality than today's are. They used the best materials and a lot of manual work in polishing pivots, which see most of the wear, and worn pivots are thus the most common reason for replacing parts. If a watch has been running with the same lubrication for a long time, dust and debris will gather in the lubrication and turn it into an abrasive. That will lead to wear and thus part replacement. It's also a question of the training of the watchmaker. A watchmaker who was trained by Omega for instance would be inclined to change parts showing even miniscule wear, as the business model of these brands today do not allow for using the best materials nor manual effort in polishing pivots. It's all done by machines and the pivots are chemically hardened, which leaves a very hard and even but also very thin polished surface and soft metal underneath. When the surface is worn through, the rest of the pivot will be worn beyond repair very fast. This whole process can take less than five years for new watches from expensive brands, thus they train their staff to replace anything that shows any kind of wear. It doesn't make sense for vintage watches, though. You'll typically see less wear on a 50 year old watch that has been well maintained than in a 5 year old one, for the reasons above. I do replace parts on a regular basis but only if it is really needed. I'm not aiming to make a watch as new and I know most vintage watch enthusiasts are comfortable with a watch running to within 10-12 seconds off per day. It's a bit like buying an old Jaguar; it might have been a fast car when it was new but no one buying one now is expecting it to be all that fast and are more focused on the experience and feeling of having one. Not sure if that really answered your question, but without knowing your watch it's the best I can do :)
Hi Bob just as a matter of interest I recently had my 51 year old Omega Geneve cal.565 serviced by an independent watchmaker here in Johannesburg he replaced the mainspring cleaned and serviced the movement and now the watch runs at approximately +1 second a day.
Hi John, thanks for watching and for your question! My tweezers are from Regine Horology and I buy them through Beco-technic.com. I also searched for a long time to find them :)
Thank you for a video and "shaking jokes". Too bad you did not became a neurosurgeon. Could you please show more details, for example parts cleaning etc.?
I love your video , but regarding quality of workmanship with swiss movements and there parts I don't agree because I have a landeron 187 that could be a niece caliber , but it is from 1968 when I bought it , first the screws are for some not hardened ,and all not polished , secondly one chrono setting lever had broke off its end at the pusher , because not in front of , and can't resist because not in same plane...and fell into the barrel , so it's issue since 1973 when I decided to have a nice quartz japan quality watch , sad ,I put it away , and now reviving it , and it is almost running , but lot of work with bad conception of the chrono mechanism , and not youre know how , on my last lane to rivive it , still have to change the lower incabloc that is not good either , floating like a cork on water , why , I ,don't know , but it was a cheap chrono at the time , one month of my salarie........regarding twisers I grind and polish myself to what I want , and always either anti magnetic steel and bronze...also regarding screw drivers , have had big disappointement with cheap ones , bergeon tips for these was cheap and quality is really great nothing to compare with chinese , even after good sharpening , the steel is no good and plated !! leaves particules that may kill the mecanisme....regarding shaking , you miss sugar in the blood , or the wife is around asking about latest stupid you you bought from cousins...keep kool , and do next day ! and last thing , regarding twisers tweezers , I put a small rubber bracelet around to have just a small pinch to hold the parts and have non sliding nice feeling of the tool , very good for rubis so that they don't jump to heaven because of excess pinch , hope this helps readers like you !!
Thanks for watching, John ! It is a bit of a self fulfilling prophecy for old watches that are still in good shape today: if they were not of good quality they wouldn't exist anymore. But Landeron movements indeed have issues with the quality of the screws and the screw holes in the plates, perhaps a result of the massive numbers they produced at the time. In general the old saying buy cheap, buy twice is very valid, although it might be more than twice.. 😉
I don't think so, unless they made some unique watches at some point. There are some very specfic requirements for the Geneva seal, including that the watch is made in Geneva, which Omegas are not.
A comment with regard to old vs new mainsprings from a non watch maker , so maybe I should aplogise first. ( Profession: A mechanical design engineer ) I had quite a few comments in the course of work about springs that had "gone soft " Was there evidence for this ? None which were properly proven. A well designed spring should not show relaxation as the material yield stress would not normally be exceeded during normal operation. I expect this to be true for watch main springs , or otherwise they would be entering the realm of low cycle fatigue, also an unwanted phenomenon for a watch spring. In literature at that time one could not find any reference to a change in Young's modulus of steel during the course of time or operation. Discussion with our company metallurgist, who was very knowledgeable, also gave the comment that he had never seen anything about a reduced Young's modulus which would indicate a softening of the spring. A new spring would obviously need to be of exactly the same dimensions as the old so as not to overstress the movement components . So this was an interesting point in your commentary (as much else besides) Best regards, as before.........
Hello Frits, thanks for your comment as always! You're absolutely right in that modern mainsprings will not be bent past their limit of elasticity during normal usage, but every time they are handled, they might be. For older mainsprings made of carbon steel there are further dangers such as rust, which would have an impact on the elasticity of the affected area. This rust can be so small it's not even visible but the spring might still break.
@@VintageWatchServices This is what I like in your approach.......there are so many considerations that need to be taken into account for a really thorough overall evaluation , and watchmaking strikes me as a subject of so many years of development that the answers are also determined by that heritage. Cool!
and a p.s. of course ........sorry to hear that your Walter Mitty 2.0 career faded and that you have now been sentenced to identifying small screws for a living ....
Oh, I'm pretty sure my wife works disagree... But my hands shake more some days than others, not sure why. Could indeed be low blood sugar or too much coke zero 🤔
@@VintageWatchServices Having blood sugar surges could be the culprit but if it is, the solution is more involved then taking sugar hits. After all, sugar is the devils flour. And diet soft drinks are also the work of the devil. ;-) Try fizzy water like Perrier instead.
Possibly the best video yet, you're going to spoil us with this wealth of programing. So much information and professional tips like the "tweezer talk" . I have some questions about screwdriver sharpening but I'll save that for another day. Recently I took the back off one of my Vostoks to regulate it down a bit and was surprised how shakey I was when trying to make tiny movements. Made me reconsider a future in watchmaking :-( . I think our tiny mechanical friends may be better off if I just watch videos and leave the work to professionals. Thanks for another great video.
I have a Benrus CE13 watch with an ETA 900 movement. There are signs of rust, but how much I don’t know. Would you take on as a project. If so I can send you the watch and you can give me a quotation
Hello Mario, thanks for watching and for your comment! I recently put up a poll asking if I should service a subscriber watch, and there seems to be overwhelming support for doing so. I'll need to choose some interesting projects for that, so if you think yours is a good option I'd be happy to take a look at it. You can send me a mail at info@vintagewatchservices.eu with some pictures and info. The work on the watch would be for free as it would be part of building the channel, but you would need to cover any material costs and also shipping. Sounds fair?
Yes, it would be. I never had an issue with it, but there's always a first... Thus I have started using soft tipped tweezers or rodico when taking the hands off.
I remember a few years ago, Pepsi came out with Crystal Pepsi and there was a diet, decaffeinated version... it had no color, no sugar, no caffeine... basically water!
Hi John, thanks for watching! I suppose you mean for shaky hands? I've always had shaky hands and it's just a biological thing, I think. My blood pressure is fine (apart from when my wife is around).
.. Y don't know what kind of vintage brands you are talking about but barely all mine vintage watches are in the cosc norms.. (OK I do regulate them very finely but before all they are some Mouvements that where basically all ultra precise even in past) so when I hear you telling those things about vintage watches I disagree. (my watches go from 1945 to today all periods included..)
Thanks for your comment! I'm not entirely sure what you're referring to, but nowadays it's pretty much a fact that wristwatches are fashion accessories rather than a device for showing accurate time 😉
@@jamespourtoy The technology for timekeeping in mechanical watches has been surpassed decades ago, that's what I'm saying. Sure you have mechanical watches that can keep time to a second or two per day, but quartz watches are infinitely more accurate, and I'm typing this on an even more accurate timekeeper... So yes, mechanical watches aren't really for timekeeping anymore :) They are however still absolutely fascinating and invoke a passion quartz or smartwatches never will.
The fact that a 70 year old macanical pice that is worn on the wrist and still be within a minute and a half after a week. To me that's amazing. It's not like it's just sitting there the watch is being waved around banged into slamed down.... and still able to complete the Necessary function It is impressive. I love the macanical wonder of watches.
Hello Garet, thanks for watching and I'm 100% with you! A mechanical watch that runs to about 10 seconds off per day is in fact running at a ~99.99% accuracy rate, which isn't really all that bad for a tiny machine driven by a spring...
We never think about it that way, but when you add that the little machine providing that performance is 70 years old, it's really quite mind blowing. And that's why mechanical watches are so fascinating to watch nerds like us 😎
I love the stories & lessons you chat about. History is great. Keep it up, don't change the format. Thank you!
Glad you enjoy it!
You were saying people don't use watches for telling the time anymore but used phones ect when I wake up even before my feet touch the floor I am reaching for my watch there would be more chance of leaving the house without my pants than leaving without my watch, its a must have for me
That's very nice to hear, Stephen! Might I assume you're also not a spring chicken? The newer generations are less and less used to wearing watches from an early age, it seems.
A beautiful service on a very nice watch. I was trying to get to make myself a bit drowsy, but the humour of the simile riff and how many jobs you lost, made me have to stifle my laugh to not wake my wife. I love your videos and work to emulate your technique when I do my simple service work.
Thanks Clay! Better be careful not to wake the sleeping bear :)
Excellent discussion re watch repair as opposed to the other excellent history lessons you give us. You are obviously very, very talented. I'm going to buy a watch from you when I see one that catches my eye. I've watched many hours or your channel and I am convinced that you are the best in heritage/vintage watches. As a 72 y/o man I really like these old watches. Thanks.
That's very nice to hear, thanks so much :)
I was happy that will be a new video, at the JLC story - something wrong - and again another joy!
More to come!
What a beautiful movement and thanks for another amazing video. In Liverpool we say "ta-ra". See ya la!
Ta-ra!
Another great video and workmanship on a great looking Omega. Love the 'vintage' pieces more and more...yet like this one, many are so still functioning well when taken care of. Thanks for the journey...Kudos
Great fun as usual. I also have shaky hands, especially oiling the winding stem. I really appreciate and enjoy your videos. Please keep them coming. I am learning so much.
Thanks! More coming, so stay tuned :) 👍
What a great job with good explanations of all the various parts of the restoration/rebuild. So far away from my initial forays into horological videos.. where a slimey , muddy watch was plucked from a paddy field and within 12.3 minutes was almost as good as new, AMAZING!!!😎🤓👍🏻😂😂.. thanks again 🙏🏻
Think I've seen that one 😁
@@VintageWatchServices 😂😂👍🏻👍🏻
love old omega watches, very good job! the best channel about watchmaking! no stupid jokes and you show a lot of detail.
Best regards
Much appreciated, Karol! More to come 😉
I love the Omega watches... the vintage ones from the 50's and 60's. The movement color, copper alloy? They are stunning! I saved your website to my bookmarks and hope to one day find a nice vintage Omega one day I can buy hopefully with permission from the wife... or maybe I'll just risk the beating and buy it anyway. 😀😎
😂 Happy wife, happy life! Let me know if you see any watches you're interested in.
The key to working with shaky hands is creative adaptability… I’ve had an intention tremor my whole life, and while it also ruled me out of professions like brain surgery (no great loss!) it hasn’t stopped me from performing fine work under microscopes or fixing tiny broken components around the house. Like you say, it’s about understanding what causes the shaking & using whatever works to mitigate it… I use tools & tricks from dentistry to automotive to building construction to help hold both myself & what I’m working on as steady as I need. Needless to say, watchmaking has introduced me to a whole new world of funky specialised tools to feed my tool-collecting obsession!
All watchmakers are tool junkies! 😁
Thanks for sharing another fantastic video! I always learn new things and techniques with each one. Thanks again!!!
Thanks so much, that's great to hear :)
Ive seen the future and the hand shake improves at least on the videos, nice job, nice watch
Thanks George! 😂
2:00 I designed my own tweezers and 3D-printed them with a resin printer. I use them when I need to be extra careful from scratching things.
That's very cool!
That’s interesting, your comment about vintage watches and accuracy. I have a 1962 550 Seamaster Deville I bought serviced and it keeps time such that it might be off by a minute after a few months of not setting it (I wear it everyday; it’s an 18k gold one I love very much)
Hi Jacob, thanks for watching and for your comment! Watches from that era were made to last in a very different way from today. They will often show a bit of wear, but they are still capable of very good performance indeed. Great to hear about your SMDV being a good example of that 😁
Thank you for teaching us the finer points of watch repair✨ 😌👍🏻 Most don’t.🤔
Thanks so much, that's very nice to read :)
Hi all, note that this is a re-upload of the previous videos of the same watch, compiled into one video with improved sound.
I thought it was familiar, that's OK. I also love your intro!
Superb video. My new favorite channel, despite the jokes!
Despite the jokes? But they're my favorite part! 😁
@@VintageWatchServices they're great really. ;⁰)
*_Jokes?_* *Did somebody say jokes?*
Two hunting shotguns come into the pub. The barkeep asks what they'll have.
Firearm #1: We'll have two shots.
Barkeep: Your buddy looks glum, what's up?
Firearm #2: I just got fired.
=====================
*_Great video. The Omega copper plated movement is most attractive._*
@@joeskeptical4762 Oh my.😝
I had no idea about the 'hardness' or quality of steel now being used by all the big manufacturers.
It makes absolute sense and fits in with their 'perpetual income' business model.
Furthermore, many of the earlier designs, such as this one, dance all over 90% of the more modern offerings.
Great work, pal.
Thanks, Analogue ! Yes, the business model has radically changed and the effort being put into making a watch even more so. Pivots of older watches were burnished, meaning they were hardened and highly polished in the same operation. That takes time and effort by skilled people. Nowadays they chemically harden the pivots instead, which works perfectly fine for a few years, and then any friction cuts through it like butter. It's like an egg, the outside is quite hard but as soon as there is wear, it goes right through to the soft mass underneath.
Another fine job.
Thanks Francis!
I have seen a few vintage watches with special engravings etc... those I love. They have a certain energy, powerful memories attached to them. Would love to find one that was a wedding gift from the wife from a bygone generation.
👍
THEON, GREAT JOB, GREAT VIDEO, TELL EVERYBODY HELLO...SEE YOU WHEN...
I have a watch with an ETA 2892 A2 movement. I gained about 30s/day which I thought was excessive. I took it to a watch guy who said that it was probably magnetized. The first thing he did was to demagnetize it. He adjusted it to +- 3s/day. Is magniization a common problem and is it a good diagnosis if the watch is fast? PS love your videos and esp the comentary.
Hi, thanks so much for your comment! Yes, it's a pretty common problem that's really taken off the last couple of decades. There are so many strong magnetic fields around us nowadays and they can all impact the watch.
A magnetized watch doesn't necessarily run very fast, it can actually also run slowly, depending on how magnetized it is and which parts are magnetized. What probably happened to yours was that the hairspring was magnetized, causing the coils to stick to each other and thereby racing up the speed. That happens a lot, unfortunately.
Very good video
Thanks so much!
The hand shake aint so bad, its the glass that magnify's it
It's what's in the glass that makes it stop 😉
"Comment in ALL CAPS if you want" Haha, you are a funny guy!
😄
Why not my cal 611 is 54 years old been serviced three times,goes like a charm.
Well that was a lot of explanations for shaking hands. You’re doing fine. Even better then I would.
Thanks JD! It's not that big a problem, tbh, but might as well make fun of what I can :)
I'm glad you mentioned your tweezers. What brand are they? Thanks for the servicing video. Your camera angles are excellent! I saw you mentioned the tweezers brand and supplier, Below. Thanks. FWIW, I do some fairly close order soldering of electronics. My hand shake seems to be influenced by blood pressure, along with continuous medication with it's absorption schedule.
Hi Westend, thanks for watching! My tweezers are made by a company called Regine Horology and I buy them through Beco-technic.com. I looked for a long time to find them :)
My hands were always shaky, even when I was a pretty high level athlete in my youth. So its congenital more than due to blood pressure, I think. It's not a big issue most of the time, but I do notice it is worse some days than others, maybe due to blood sugar levels as another viewer suggested.
@@VintageWatchServices propranolol works great for essential tremor.
My brother who made a lot of money in very expensive valves for the North Sea oil rigs, retired early and indulged himself in vintage racing machinery. One car he bought was a Bugatti sports car of the 1920's, on the engine turned dashboard which was full of British and French gauges, one exception was a 1960-70's Russian clock that had graced a nuclear bomber of the period. In answering my question ...why..? He showed me the original clock, a bulkhead mounted Breguet, a beautiful piece. I asked him why not use it all the time. His answer was telling, even thought Bugatti's engine was pretty smooth, it's suspension was not and the clock cost a lot in repairs before he latched onto something a lot more robust, i.e. the 'Ruskitimex'. The Brequet being mounted only for shows, then back into a padded box!.
By the way why has the day ring printed with English/English days? Nice watch, though.
Hi Paul, thanks for watching and cool story! I can understand why they prefer a running Ruskitimex in place of a broken Breguet 😄
The weekday disc is constructed so that it moves twice when the date changes, and this would allow the manufacturer and the watchmaker to choose language if the disc has a second language in addition to English. In Seiko's for instance there's basically always English and Kanji. For this watch there is only one language, but instead of leaving the second language spot empty they put a double English in there. My guess would be that this is to look it more aesthetically pleasing as it changes over and also to minimize the risk of a watchmaker putting the disc back in the wrong spot so that a blank would be displayed.
Another great video! I watch these and continue down the learning path. This leads to more and better tools. I'm also really getting to like the curved #7 tweezers. I wish I could find them in brass. I have tried contacting Regine in Switzerland, with no response. Their 7A-BRA are on their website, but I can't figure out how to order them. Any thoughts?
If you mail them at info@regine.ch they should respond. I actually just exchanged mails with them the other day
On Handshaking:
I am closer to 80 than to 60.
Do my hands shake? Yes and No.
At times (low BG, tired,...) There is a pronounced shake. At others, nothing visible (as always).
If my hand shake, I find this procedure to help a lot:
A. Relax, forcefully if necessary
B. Stare at the hands and get control over the hands
C. Force the hands to stop shaking, relax and yet be strong.
D. Do not Dismiss the power of prayer (PC Note: call it meditation, whatever)
In addition:. Get from Amazon a one pound lump of silly putty.
Use about ⅓ to ½ portion. Keep it in a tin can, an old butter container.
While watching videos, reading, music, etc. kneed the portion above. Basically squeeze it until it comes out between your fingers. After some minutes, switch to pinching and folding.
Do this at least 10 minutes a day, 3 minutes at a time, or 30 seconds after you get really tired. You will be amazed.
Silly Putty Notes:
A. Do not use over fabric. Any amount left on carpet, bedsheets, clothing, etc. will soak through and will never come out.
B. The harder (or quicker) you push on silly putty, the harder it will behave.
As you vary your pressure, it will adjust it's resistance. Extremes; make a ball. Leave on a hard table, overnight. It will form a puddle and most dirt will float as if on oil. OTOH drop the ball on a hard floor and it will bounce like a PU ball. Experiment, but it is an amazing therapy tool for hands.
Thanks for watching and for your comment! I'll be sure to try out some of your tips 👍
Was that really a thing popping the crystal with pressurized air from a syringe? 😲 WOW!
Yep
Love your comments during the video. I'm curious, with your years of experience, how long do you estimate it would take you from start to finish to do a general cleaning on a 5 yr old mechanical Bulova?
Hello Robert, thanks for watching! A 5 year old Bulova? If it's not a very complicated watch, the service should not take more than three hours.
Brass tweezers are anti-microbial. Hence many door knobs from the past were brass.
Very good.
Thanks Ben! And yes, I always use plastic under the hand levers 😉
Great videos!!!Love your channel!
Crazy skill and knowledge!Keep it up!
Speakin of movements what do you think about Omega cal.613?
Thanks a lot! The 613 is a solid movement, part of the 550 family, which might be the most successful movement family ever. I prefer the automatics in the family, but the hand-wounds are very high quality also.
I’m curious about one of your techniques. What do you use to polish wheel pivots? Fo you use any silicon base compound? Would Normal pith Wood work or could pith + diamantine also be an option? And by the way God Påske!
Hei Henrique, god påske til deg også! I'm not actually polishing the pivots and I should be careful not saying I do, I just clean them. I use a compound called Eve Sticks, which are indeed silicon carbide based. I bought mine at CousinsUK, but you can find them here for instance: www.gesswein.com/p-3481-eve-poly-polishers-rods.aspx I know a lot of people use pith also.
Actually polishing the pivots is most of the time not necessary and you also need to be very cautious with that since the diameter needs to remain as it is to fit with the pivot hole.
May I ask why you take out the Inca-blocs before cleaning? Isn't it likely that the balance gets damaged more easily when cleaning without them? I would suggest cleaning the Incablocs and balance tips afterwards in One dip before olining and remounting them. Or am I totally wrong? Please explain! Thanks!
Kind regards and thanks for your video's,
Bob
Hi Bob, thanks for watching and for your question! You can do it both ways, it does not really make a big difference in terms of damage potential. There's no real difference in the potential for the balance to get damaged as long as it is secured to the mainplate while cleaning it and you potentially save a bit of work by removing them first and cleaning them together with the rest of the parts. But doing it the way you describe is perfectly fine also.
@@VintageWatchServices Thanks for explaining. I'm on the lookout for a new episode! ;-)
we in the military world refer to hand shake as "arc of motion". Everyone has it to greater or lesser degrees.
👍Thanks, Donny!
Apologies if you've discussed this: on this watch the mainplate and bridges have that nice gold/copper sheen. Are they plated stainless steel? if so, plated with what? Surely the parts aren't brass or they would dull, right? Thanks... love your videos...
Hi Ralf, thanks for watching and for your question! Most parts in a watch are typically made of brass, which is quite strong but at the same time easy to machine and work with. It is then plated exactly to ensure it looks nice, and Omega used to plate them with this copper color. Nowadays movements are most commonly Rhodium plated, but you also find gold plated movements.
Great, informative video! what are the paper pads you work on called? I'd like to get some of these!
Hello Cristobal, thanks for watching and for your question! The paper is lint-free watch paper from a company called Newall Watch Materials. I'm not sure if they are still in business but I found this link: www.watchpartssupply.com/anti-tarnish-watch-tissue-p-4505.html?zenid=EJBu1VxUP1hcvYplzbO1b2
Otherwise you can also use similar paper from other suppliers.
@@VintageWatchServices Thank you very much!
What did Omega use for the plating on the movement parts? Really pretty rose gold color.
Hello Larry, they plated the movement with copper. It looks very nice indeed.
I want you to save my Cosmic 2000 !!
Seriously, I can’t find anyone that will take it on. (Runs for a couple of hours, nothing apparently broken. I have a second donor movement to.) it’s never been opened, and when it runs its 1”/ day.
Hello Larry, can you mail me at stian@vintagewatchservices.eu with some photos and more info?
Shaking like me after my 4th cup of coffee. Beautiful work. I don't wear watches...but I would wear a watch movement in a see through case like jewelry...I wonder if that's a thing 🤔
There are, for instance these: www.lifestyleasia.com/bk/style/watches/6-transparent-watches/
But most of them are extremely expensive, and seeing a quartz movement through plastic isn't really that exciting...
@@VintageWatchServices Cool...but a mechanical movement is so much better than quartz
What is the clear ended tool you are using instead of Pegswood to hold components down with? I'd like to get hold of one but I can't find one anywhere, only Bergeon's' plastic ones which are really mobile phone spudger at 10 times the price, not that I'm having a dig!
Hello Lezourez, thanks for watching and for your question! The one I use I got from Boley.de, but I think you need a corporate account to buy it there. Check eBay perhaps for something similar?
Thanks I take it the same goes for the curved brass tweezers as their as hard to find as rocking horse s@&t in the UK
A question, or few if you please..
First: this omega 752 interior. Is this an example of Rose-Gold plating of the inner-housing, juxtaposed to the Yellow-Gold case plating???
Second: is it possible to re-plate the inner housing without removing the Jewels themselves??
Third: I see this watch hands are Luminous. Did you re-lum them???
Hello DitzyDoo, when you say the interior, do you mean the movement? It is copper plated but the color indeed looks a bit like rose gold, as rose gold is gold mixed with copper. For the second question, I believe you mean the movement? If you want to replate the movement you would need to replate the various part separately and indeed remove the jewels. And yes, the watch hands are luminous, with the original lume.
@@VintageWatchServices thank you, and yes I the unknowing was referring to the movement itself. and now I know. ^~^
I recently had my own, admittedly longtime unserviced, 52-year old Omega cal.565 serviced by an independent watchmaker, and quite a lot of parts were replaced:) In your videos you never seem to replace anything. Is that because you don't, or because you don't mention it?
Hello Bob, the condition of the watch is the main criteria for whether you need to replace parts or not. Thus if your watch had a lot of wear, parts need to be replaced. In general though, watch movements made before the quartz crisis were of a much higher quality than today's are. They used the best materials and a lot of manual work in polishing pivots, which see most of the wear, and worn pivots are thus the most common reason for replacing parts. If a watch has been running with the same lubrication for a long time, dust and debris will gather in the lubrication and turn it into an abrasive. That will lead to wear and thus part replacement.
It's also a question of the training of the watchmaker. A watchmaker who was trained by Omega for instance would be inclined to change parts showing even miniscule wear, as the business model of these brands today do not allow for using the best materials nor manual effort in polishing pivots. It's all done by machines and the pivots are chemically hardened, which leaves a very hard and even but also very thin polished surface and soft metal underneath. When the surface is worn through, the rest of the pivot will be worn beyond repair very fast. This whole process can take less than five years for new watches from expensive brands, thus they train their staff to replace anything that shows any kind of wear. It doesn't make sense for vintage watches, though. You'll typically see less wear on a 50 year old watch that has been well maintained than in a 5 year old one, for the reasons above.
I do replace parts on a regular basis but only if it is really needed. I'm not aiming to make a watch as new and I know most vintage watch enthusiasts are comfortable with a watch running to within 10-12 seconds off per day. It's a bit like buying an old Jaguar; it might have been a fast car when it was new but no one buying one now is expecting it to be all that fast and are more focused on the experience and feeling of having one.
Not sure if that really answered your question, but without knowing your watch it's the best I can do :)
Hi Bob just as a matter of interest I recently had my 51 year old Omega Geneve cal.565 serviced by an independent watchmaker here in Johannesburg he replaced the mainspring cleaned and serviced the movement and now the watch runs at approximately +1 second a day.
Where did you find the curve brass tweezers?, "I have been searching online to no avail", any help would be be most welcome.
Hi John, thanks for watching and for your question! My tweezers are from Regine Horology and I buy them through Beco-technic.com. I also searched for a long time to find them :)
You have to make an account it takes some time
Thank you for a video and "shaking jokes". Too bad you did not became a neurosurgeon.
Could you please show more details, for example parts cleaning etc.?
Hello Maksim, the detail level differs a bit from video to video. Are there any specific parts you would like to see in more detail?
The screaming in the background at 26:48 sounds terrifying. Anyone else notice it?
Yeah, someone messed with the wrong watchmaker 😎
What is the watch mostly made from
Hi Darcy, thanks for watching! Most watch movement parts are made from brass, with the rest from steel.
I love your video , but regarding quality of workmanship with swiss movements and there parts I don't agree because I have a landeron 187 that could be a niece caliber , but it is from 1968 when I bought it , first the screws are for some not hardened ,and all not polished , secondly one chrono setting lever had broke off its end at the pusher , because not in front of , and can't resist because not in same plane...and fell into the barrel , so it's issue since 1973 when I decided to have a nice quartz japan quality watch , sad ,I put it away , and now reviving it , and it is almost running , but lot of work with bad conception of the chrono mechanism , and not youre know how , on my last lane to rivive it , still have to change the lower incabloc that is not good either , floating like a cork on water , why , I ,don't know , but it was a cheap chrono at the time , one month of my salarie........regarding twisers I grind and polish myself to what I want , and always either anti magnetic steel and bronze...also regarding screw drivers , have had big disappointement with cheap ones , bergeon tips for these was cheap and quality is really great nothing to compare with chinese , even after good sharpening , the steel is no good and plated !! leaves particules that may kill the mecanisme....regarding shaking , you miss sugar in the blood , or the wife is around asking about latest stupid you you bought from cousins...keep kool , and do next day ! and last thing , regarding twisers tweezers , I put a small rubber bracelet around to have just a small pinch to hold the parts and have non sliding nice feeling of the tool , very good for rubis so that they don't jump to heaven because of excess pinch , hope this helps readers like you !!
Thanks for watching, John ! It is a bit of a self fulfilling prophecy for old watches that are still in good shape today: if they were not of good quality they wouldn't exist anymore. But Landeron movements indeed have issues with the quality of the screws and the screw holes in the plates, perhaps a result of the massive numbers they produced at the time.
In general the old saying buy cheap, buy twice is very valid, although it might be more than twice.. 😉
Are there any omegas with Geneva symbol?
I don't think so, unless they made some unique watches at some point. There are some very specfic requirements for the Geneva seal, including that the watch is made in Geneva, which Omegas are not.
A comment with regard to old vs new mainsprings from a non watch maker , so maybe I should aplogise first. ( Profession: A mechanical design engineer ) I had quite a few comments in the course of work about springs that had "gone soft " Was there evidence for this ? None which were properly proven. A well designed spring should not show relaxation as the material yield stress would not normally be exceeded during normal operation. I expect this to be true for watch main springs , or otherwise they would be entering the realm of low cycle fatigue, also an unwanted phenomenon for a watch spring. In literature at that time one could not find any reference to a change in Young's modulus of steel during the course of time or operation. Discussion with our company metallurgist, who was very knowledgeable, also gave the comment that he had never seen anything about a reduced Young's modulus which would indicate a softening of the spring. A new spring would obviously need to be of exactly the same dimensions as the old so as not to overstress the movement components . So this was an interesting point in your commentary (as much else besides) Best regards, as before.........
Hello Frits, thanks for your comment as always! You're absolutely right in that modern mainsprings will not be bent past their limit of elasticity during normal usage, but every time they are handled, they might be. For older mainsprings made of carbon steel there are further dangers such as rust, which would have an impact on the elasticity of the affected area. This rust can be so small it's not even visible but the spring might still break.
@@VintageWatchServices This is what I like in your approach.......there are so many considerations that need to be taken into account for a really thorough overall evaluation , and watchmaking strikes me as a subject of so many years of development that the answers are also determined by that heritage. Cool!
and a p.s. of course ........sorry to hear that your Walter Mitty 2.0 career faded and that you have now been sentenced to identifying small screws for a living ....
Awesome video again, you may have low sugar count that’s why you are shaking, drink a sugary drink before you work on watches 👍
Oh, I'm pretty sure my wife works disagree... But my hands shake more some days than others, not sure why. Could indeed be low blood sugar or too much coke zero 🤔
@@VintageWatchServices Having blood sugar surges could be the culprit but if it is, the solution is more involved then taking sugar hits. After all, sugar is the devils flour. And diet soft drinks are also the work of the devil. ;-) Try fizzy water like Perrier instead.
Possibly the best video yet, you're going to spoil us with this wealth of programing. So much information and professional tips like the "tweezer talk" . I have some questions about screwdriver sharpening but I'll save that for another day.
Recently I took the back off one of my Vostoks to regulate it down a bit and was surprised how shakey I was when trying to make tiny movements. Made me reconsider a future in watchmaking :-( . I think our tiny mechanical friends may be better off if I just watch videos and leave the work to professionals.
Thanks for another great video.
I can't use all caps...my wife is watching these videos as well....
😂
I have a Benrus CE13 watch with an ETA 900 movement. There are signs of rust, but how much I don’t know. Would you take on as a project. If so I can send you the watch and you can give me a quotation
Hello Mario, thanks for watching and for your comment! I recently put up a poll asking if I should service a subscriber watch, and there seems to be overwhelming support for doing so. I'll need to choose some interesting projects for that, so if you think yours is a good option I'd be happy to take a look at it. You can send me a mail at info@vintagewatchservices.eu with some pictures and info.
The work on the watch would be for free as it would be part of building the channel, but you would need to cover any material costs and also shipping. Sounds fair?
@@VintageWatchServices sounds very fair. I will send pics and info tomowwow
Wouldn't it be safer to shake the loose hands from the dial instead of picking them up with tweezers?
Yes, it would be. I never had an issue with it, but there's always a first... Thus I have started using soft tipped tweezers or rodico when taking the hands off.
mechanical watches have a soul so I get attached to them. 👍👍👍
Completely agree!
Try decaffeinated ☕️ coffee.😴👍🏻
I remember a few years ago, Pepsi came out with Crystal Pepsi and there was a diet, decaffeinated version... it had no color, no sugar, no caffeine... basically water!
In this case the movement is 5 times better looking than the watch it sits in. If only the case was transparent lol
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder 😉 I'd say the watch looks pretty sharp as well, but these old movements are indeed very beautiful!
I thing am younger here
😁
I’m not sure I appreciate being called an ‘old man’ gentlemen born in the 50’s are going to be in their 60’s -70. I good age for a man I think.
All ages are good for being a man 😉
check your blood pressure
Hi John, thanks for watching! I suppose you mean for shaky hands? I've always had shaky hands and it's just a biological thing, I think. My blood pressure is fine (apart from when my wife is around).
#69 thumbs uP
Thanks Steve!
Shaking like a plate of lutefisk.
🤣 Very true!
.. Y don't know what kind of vintage brands you are talking about but barely all mine vintage watches are in the cosc norms.. (OK I do regulate them very finely but before all they are some Mouvements that where basically all ultra precise even in past) so when I hear you telling those things about vintage watches I disagree. (my watches go from 1945 to today all periods included..)
Thanks for your comment! I'm not entirely sure what you're referring to, but nowadays it's pretty much a fact that wristwatches are fashion accessories rather than a device for showing accurate time 😉
@@VintageWatchServices so you are telling me there is no precise watch on the world? You telling y lie about mines? Don't get it..
@@jamespourtoy The technology for timekeeping in mechanical watches has been surpassed decades ago, that's what I'm saying. Sure you have mechanical watches that can keep time to a second or two per day, but quartz watches are infinitely more accurate, and I'm typing this on an even more accurate timekeeper... So yes, mechanical watches aren't really for timekeeping anymore :) They are however still absolutely fascinating and invoke a passion quartz or smartwatches never will.
You’re silly
Yep, that's part of the package 😉
I know it’s hard to do ....but not very interesting watching your fingers
Yeah... think you'll have to make that little sacrifice in order to see how this kind of work is done 😉