How To Clean Watch Parts (At Home as a hobbyist)
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 29 ก.ย. 2024
- In this video I show my technique and products I use to clean watch parts as partof my service regime. It is very important to clean parts before rebuilding a movement otherwise it will most likely not perform well.
This is how I do it and I get very good results though using a 3 wash cycle using different products to clean with.
I have done separate videos on products you can use and a review on my ultrasonic cleaner. Links below.
Ultrasonic Cleaner • Digital Ultrasonic Cle...
Products used for cleaning watch parts.
• Products For Cleaning ...
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@@juaquimgustavo4712 A) Micheal is not selling anything, these are affiliate links so that if people viewing his channel would like to help him out a little bit he gets a referral commission from the sale. He's upfront about this multiple times in both his videos & on his link page)
B) this is something that loads of TH-camrs, bloggers & professionals do every day. Not all of them are so transparent.
C) the links aren't to crap, they may not all be pro standards, but they are perfectly serviceable & accessable items aimed towards the hobbyist market.
Knowledge and a lot of patience. Greetings from Greece
πατριωτη ασχολεισαι;φτιαχνεις κ συ ρολογια για χομπυ?
Nobody sells Essence of Renata in the U.S. so we're basically either using Naphtha (lighter fluid) or some sort of L&R cleaning solution like L&R 111 (ammoniated) or L&R 566 (non-ammoniated). On a side note, I think for your cleaning process you could do the Renata wash first, then do a straight water rinse in a jar or plastic tub in the ultrasonic, then straight into the IPA rinse. Since IPA absorbs water you wouldn't need to dry the parts before putting them into the IPA, just shake them off, and since the drying time after using Renata is so quick, this method would cut down on your cleaning time a lot. That's basically how I do mine but with Naphtha instead of Renata. You could do soap and water between the Renata and the IPA for some extra cleaning but I would still do a straight water rinse before the IPA either way.
Using heat to dry steel after cleaning it with water can cause flash rusting.
You also run the risk of leaving behind deposits that are water soluble, but will not dissolve in the subsequent non-water cleaning liquids you use afterwards.
A better (and quicker) way is to blow as much water off as possible with compressed air (or an air duster) and then dunk the parts straight into an alcohol bath.
The water will wash away into the alcohol, and the alcohol will evaporate off the parts very quickly.
The alcohol can be used quite a number of times before it loses its effectiveness as long as you keep it tightly sealed.
Obviously keep this preliminary alcohol bath separate from the final alcohol bath.
Thanks from Canada, Mike. Especially the bit about cleaning the pallet fork and balance. My Seiko 5 thanks you.
Your welcome
Great video. Seeing it before and after was a wonderful idea.
Rafael Alves thank you. I’m glad you liked it. I think it’s important to show before and after so people have an understanding of just how dirty a watch can get despite the perception of a watch being sealed and waterproof.
Very informative, thanks. I've ordered a couple of hmt watches from India to kick off my watch restoring hobby.
The specialist oil is very expensive. Can you recommend a general purpose watch oil, and perhaps a grease for the keyless.
Many thanks
Moebius 8000 and Molykote Dx for a grease in keyless. both very cheap.
Thank you for the tutorial, very helpful.
Thank you kindly.
Hi Michael, thanks for this, my second watch over the years! I’m still using an ultrasonic but using Elma WF Pro cleaning and Suprol rinsing products that have no water in them (or very little). You are now using an Elma watchmakers type cleaning machine (lucky man!). So my questions: do you think I’m ok using this method for all my watch movement parts, especially the balance and the pallet fork? Also, do you think there are any other movement parts that are in danger of breaking in an ultrasonic (plastic jewels, very thin parts etc)? I’ve seen some other videos on TH-cam where if you put tinfoil in it will create holes, break up and almost disintegrate. Not that watch movement parts are that thin. Any advice would be most welcome. Keep up the great work!
Great video! I've had a few service people scoff at repairing my Russian mechanical watches and Fossils (I like the latter's watch faces a lot). I don't buy watches to dispose of them when they stop working in a few years, so I'm going to try to learn how to clean, oil, and repair them myself.
Good for you. I don’t like any form of watch snobbery. If you like it , buy it and wear it.
Any watch is worth trying to fix even if it’s just to learn from
The hair gets there fast 👍👌
Hi, do you have clean the balance wheel in the first step with water and soap ?
Thankyou for video
Man I have the exact same little tub with green lid for cleaning watch parts. What are the odds ?
Great video Michael.
I use basically the same process to clean watch parts expect that I don't dry the parts after the water-detergent wash. I just put the parts on the watchmaker's paper for a few minutes, just to remove the excess liquid, and then I wash them with liquid lighter fluid and then the 99.9 IPA. Question: Why do you dry the parts fully between the water-detergent wash the liquid lighter fluid wash?
Thanks,
Frank
why liquid lighter fluid ?
@@hsvr Because it was much easier to find back then and it works great.
@@franklima1269 oh I see. Can the 99.9 IPA not damage the components? And after washing with lighter fluid do you not need to remove the lighter fluid?
@@franklima1269 you’ve got a video on your account on how to clean. Can you make a English version and more in depth from start to finish?
@@hsvr The 99.9 IPA is safe for metal components except for those with the jewels glued on it, example: the pallets forks. Of course I don't use in dials or anything that has ink imprints.
BTW, wash with lighter fluid first and then I wash with alcohol to remove the lighter fluid.
Thank you for sharing
Excellent vedio thanks
Great info!!
Great video 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
Hi,........I have a automatic watch which has a finger print on the rota, it is new. So what would you say is the best way to clean it off........I was thinking of using cotton wall buds and a bit of methylated spirit , will that be OK ?
Quick question: Where do you put the larger parts like the mainspring/main plate when using the little jars for the Renata/Lighter fluid? Having a hard time fitting then into the little jars, but don’t want to use a big container and waste a bunch of the solvent. How do you work around this?
Using your system now btw, very practical, thanks for sharing it.
Hi Marshall thank you for your comment. All main plates fit into the jars I use so perhaps the ones you have a smaller?
I am only using small jars to limit the using the liquid as it can be quite expensive and a little goes a long way. So you need to find a slightly larger jar unfortunately.
As for mainspring I clean those by hand and on the the barrel , lid and arbour go in for cleaning . You really don’t want to be bending a MS to fit into anything for risk of an accidental kink to the spring.
To clean an MS I use some watchmakers paper and fold it a few times to make it smaller. I dip the middle of the fold in Renata and then pass the Ms through carefully so you are in effect squeezing / cleaning wash side as it passes through your fingers. I will try to show this on another video when I next do a disassembly video.
See if you can make a spinner basket for the cleaning you may get better results
When you do two part videos, please put a link to the follow-on video. I’ve watched “1/2” of a lot of your videos because I don’t know where the companion video is.
R E my apologies . I always thought the links at the end of the videos pointed to the next one in the series as I do this as part of the upload. Clearly I must have missed some..
You can always look at the playlists on the channel main page as that will show you all videos for each series
R E so far I have changed all this 6309 giveaway series end links on each video . I will go through all the others in the next few days. Thanks again for letting me know.
Great video, thanks a lot! One thing; I've had jewels falling off the palet fork in a water + special ultrasonic cleaner detergent. Would you argue that you should not use those detergents for watch cleaning because they might contain some sort off dissolvent? Or do you think I did something else wrong?
Possibly. The jewels are just held on with shellac. This can dissolve and is also why using alcohol on those parts is not recommended.
Perhaps your machine is also very powerful.
@@MyRetroWatches thanks! luckily that was only a tryout watch. I used your procedure the other day on a nicer watch and the result is great! The watch wasn't running, and now it is! Thanks!!
Thank you for your video. It's really helpful. I'm clicking through your link and buying some things. One question: Renata is not available in the US. Any idea of a substitute?
yes sadly renata seems to be a UK product. you can try Bergeon one dip but you will pay a fortune for it. I have heard that dry cleaning fluid is 99% the same as bergeon one dip at a fraction of the cost. Just remember to wear a mask as the fumes are toxic.
I think I would be disappointed to find hair like objects
on parts I had just cleaned in an ultrasonic tank.
Anyway - good video.
Hi there you still fixing clocks
Hello is there anyone here who would be prepared to clean the inside of a Seiko watch that I purchased in the early 1970s?It ls an automatic and recently stopped working. Thank you.
Hi im looking at buying a ultrasonic cleaner but it says dont use flammable liquid the make is a DK
albin Chilinski if your cleaning fluid is in jars like I use then it’s fine as you have a lid on so there is no way it’s going to combust .
Always use water in the main tank
That’s great thank you
I'm not sure that "FAIRY" will sell here in the States... well, may in some quarters. It will get me kicked off FB, though. :(
Great video Mike, thanks for the tip about NOT using IPA on the balance and pallet fork :-)
Thanks appreciate your comment Vince. Looking forward to your video!
@@juaquimgustavo4712 Let's not gatekeep a 2nd hand industry.
That was great Mike! And you've demonstrated how useful the microscope is and how handy the rodico is for removing hairs etc! Well done 👍
You can give a final rinse with distilled water, which doesn't leave water marks. Then use alcohol or other solvent. Very encouraging video.
Zafar Iqbal thank you. I find the Renata which is a solvent and an excellent cleaner does leave a white mark , not always but sometimes.
I now actually have a proper watch cleaning machine which I will do a video on at some point.
Thank you sir.
I have read to NOT use alcohol for the pallet fork. The pallet jewels are held in place by something like lacquer if I recall , which dissolves in alcohol.
I found a great low budget parts dryer... wait for it.. a food dehydrator form the local second hand store. Low heat a plenty of air flow. Dries parts quickly. Love your videos.
coffee can, with a blow dryer thru the side and a food grade stainless steel sieve. Works like a charm
I use that for case parts. My watch cleaner (ultrasonic) has a forced air dryer built in. I'm seeing alot of videos of people cleaning watches with spinner only watch cleaners without ultrasonic. Guys, that is 1930's technology.....lets step up and at least get into the 1970's.....My father had a L&R Ultrasonic watch cleaner in the late 60's.....
Great video again Michael. Showing the before and after has been an awesome idea to see the results, and that microscope is just fantastic!!
Agustin Aguilar thanks for your comment. I will be reviewing the microscope soon in a video
Any thought of using brake cleaner instead of naphtha/lighter fluid?
Was thinking about using PCB cleaner too
Maybe Loctite cleaner, too.
Well i am just starting out and collecting tools ready for a few months time.
Great video, i am a bit stuck with cleaning, i cant bring myself to put metal in water. So i think i will start out cleaning manually in ipa with a brush part by part the old way and renatta for the balance and palette.
If i get a ultrasonic cleaner i think i might use it for the strap and case maybe.
Cant afford a professional cleaning machine.
What magnification did you use when switching to the dirty parts pictures?
Super useful! I have been looking at getting into watch servicing and repair so this is extremely helpful for me to understand how I should go about cleaning the parts! thanks :)
Cleaning with water is still not without its risks of rust. I’d now recommend more waterless cleaning or at least a solvent / alcohol step. Rust is your enemy
I was about to ask: how do I prevent my parts from rusting after ultrasonic cleaning? In other words: how do you get ALL the water out?
Mike - A suggestion for a future video might be what makes a good project watch. What do you look for when buying used vintage watches? I know it can be challenging to balance price, mechanics, and cosmetics on these watches. Thanks for your content.
Supercruze not a bad idea. For me it’s quite simple , stainless case so I can restore. Ease of parts availability/ donors . It’s what I do a considerable amount of Seikos . I love the 70s Seikos fortunately .
I will put this on my list of ideas for videos (I do have one!)
Thanks for your comment and support for the channel
Your video is fabulous and has given me a new and healthy perspective on what the jeweler will have to do to clean my watch! Thank you!
If you use denatured alcohol it won't affect the shellac
hello, I didnt know that so thank you. I now actually have a watch cleaning machine so my cleaning process is different now. Thank you for commenting.
What is it about denatured alcohol?
@@markfloyd5331 hell if I know. I know Rolex uses this method and Richemont has been trying it too.
Yes, it will. Denaturated alcohol is just alcohol made non-drinkable. If it is a short dip you can get away with it, but it's not good.
@@hardmatixwill273 in my experience it doesn't affect shellac. Also as mentioned, this is the method Rolex has used for years.
This is available in 1080p 60 FPS as all my videos are.
You can scale up resolution on the TH-cam settings on screen
MB! It stated out in 720p... but the option for higher or lower res is in the option icon. Cheers, RS
Wow just changed it and it's so much clearer.
“If its good for pots and pans its good for watches. “
Me: 😐
Great video, learned a lot. One question still remains: how to clean the dial? I imagine that is too delicate for the cleaning solution?
Update: just found your video on that. will watch now.
Isn't the ultrasonics hard on shellacked parts?
Mike, what about Ethanol? I use it to swish the parts after I rinse them off in water. I use the air bulb on the balance complete and the pallet fork after a very quick swishing.
I use acetone on anything that is just Jewels and metal, it is very effective and I believe less likely to promote corrosion than iso.
Thank you for this really helpfull video!! Do you have to wash the detergent off the parts with water after the first cycle before drying? Thank you!
I no longer use any water in the process in part because I now have a watch cleaning machine.
You have to be mindful of water as it will rust parts easily if not dried fast.
I never rinsed after the detergent because it would then have a further two washes, alcohol and the renata
Great video, with good descriptions of the stages. I have a cheap ultrasonic with no heat or timer. Where did you purchase your machine from, I may upgrade.
Andrea Stevenson Hello and thank you for your comment. I got my cleaner from eBay as there are many sellers there and on Amazon. I think this model has been superseded by a newer version . They also come in many sizes by volume in litres. Product is Chinese. Here is a link to one seller I just found here in UK as an example.
rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F112937773390
On my second wash I use Isopropyl alcohol
I would like to see some caution or warning concerning using flammable liquids in ultra sonic cleaners. This is not without risk and anyone considering doing this should at least look this up and decide for themselves if they feel safe doing it.
UnivegaSuperSport thank you as your raise a very good point. I will amend the description when I have chance.
I feel there is little risk of fire as they are also submerged in water with the lids on , its more about inhaling the toxic fumes that is more a concern.
From what I understand, it's the fumes created from heating the liquid that can be ignited by the electronics in the unit. your method of fully sealing the jar probably prevents the fumes from escaping. @@MyRetroWatches
If you have areas of a watch plate that has surface rust or really bad dirt build up use a pencil type fiberglass brush. They take off alot of the surface crud without damaging the plates. Then some compressed air (filtered of course) to blow off the debri before you put it in the basked to clean it.
Thought I should let you know that the watchmakers essence is an expensive way to buy lighter fluid
Make sure to use SWAN BRAND lighter fluid in future to save money !
Other brands often leave a film
vintage watch repair channel I used to use lighter fluid but it did leave a white residue . The Renata is excellent stuff and worth the cost in my opinion. I now have a watch cleaning machine so I only use Renata on stubborn hard oil areas.
Thanks for your advise all the same .
Fine video and thank you for this information.I look forward to your microscope video.
Thank you
I dont understand how the ultrasonic machine works when you use your own tub in there? Doesn’t the water have to make contact with the water inside the ultrasonic cleaner?
It’s a good point. The sonic still seems to get through the glass plus you would not want to fill an electrical item with highly flammable liquid and then heat it too.
This works for me although I now have a proper watch cleaning machine now.
great videos! Chrome-plated brass cases and nickel-plated bridges and plates? I've been noticing my chromed cases do not like the ultrasonic very much, the chrome comes off and I'm left with a very worn-through plating. Any tips?
karlis ok thanks. Sorry no tips I don’t touch chrome plated cases other than soap water and then Autosol to brighten it a little
Thank you so much for your informative content. I've been restoring digital watches as a hobby and building diy watches. I've acquired a free vintage mechanical watch and armed with what I'm learning from you I think I'm ready to take the plunge
what is the name of the cleaning fluid
I would recommend against putting watch parts in the ultrasonic. This is a very aggressive machine and it might shake your jewels loose or even straight out damaging the brittle material. Of the finer parts. Better to clean them by hand in lighterfluid.
Other than that a great video, as always I was able to learn a few new things, thanks!
Nope not a cheap one like this and all those tests you see people doing with tin foil is pointless. You can’t compare stainless steel to tin foil there is no way an ultrasonic can harm stainless or brass for that matter.
This video is years old and I now use a proper watch cleaning machine but do all my hairsprings in the ultrasonic and plates if they are really dirty as the cleaning machine does not always get everything.
Look at any ultrasonic machine like Elma . The pan is steel, the baskets are steel. Ultrasonic is a vibration in water and nothing more. It essentially shakes dirt off the object.
I’ve never once had an issue and never expect to.
@@MyRetroWatches I have been watching this video since i have the exact same problem. I'm doing this for fun and next to several other hobbies, so there is no way i'm ready to spend a couple 1000 euro on a watchcleaning machine (yet?), but doing it all by hand takes way to much time.
One of my other hobbies is metal detecting, and here i do notice that the ultrasonic is too agressive on the finer items that i find. maybe it has something to do with these items being more brittle after being exposed to the elements for that long, or maybe my ultrasonic is just too strong (Emag emmi-12 HC). Whatever the real cause, i'm very careful about what i'm putting into this machine.
I'm currently working on a cheap watch that was gifted to me, maybe I will try a few parts and observe the differences. maybe inside a glass container it also weakens the ultrasonic a bit and make it less agressive. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Thanks Michael,
Just strip an old seiko 5 ladies watch for practice. Yes, a ladies watch for a start.
Wish me luck…
I see here and there a lot of "fancy" cleaning machines ....then I wonder: is it so difficult to clean watch parts???? I mean is there a problem
to spary them all (or deep them all for a while) with something like WD-40 and or some degreaser spray???? would be a "sin" to do so????
fancy chemicals and machines is the only 'recomended'/ accepted way-method to do it????? . . .
just like you and on my own defence I need to say I'm just a hobbyist or a under construction watchmaket at 10 light years away ..jjjjjj
Hi, great video. Just one question. For the alcohol wash do you also use the jam jar in the UltraSonic cleaner trick? Thanks
Kevin Stenson thanks. Yes. You probably don’t have to but I would just as another last cycle. Remember no pallet fork or balance in the alcohol
My Seiko selfwind watch stops running when about to change the date and day for the next day and usually at 10.30 PM or 01.05 AM.What is the reason?How to fix it?Please let me know.
Great video Mike , i use same procedure though not exactly the same. Have to get one of those micro's!. Thank you. Adrian 🍀🍀
You can also use petrol and a soft toothbrush to clean the skelton and sometime gears also.
Rodico is great for picking up those little hairs, and any other minute airborne bits of dust that land on the parts after cleaning.
After washing in the soapy water, I recommend first rinsing the parts in deionised water to remove any soap residue before drying. If you keep the parts inside the brass cage during rinsing and drying, you can dry them with a hair dryer, which is much quicker than drying on a radiator. Quick is good: it reduces the risk of rusting.
A good substitute for Essence of Renata is petroleum ether (also known as benzine, and most definitely not benzene, which is different). Petroleum ether is, like Essence of Renata, an aliphatic hydrocarbon mix. You can buy it in a range of boiling points. 40-60C is a good choice if you want it to be very volatile and quick drying. I've also got some 100-120, which also works well and takes much longer to evaporate. The important point is that petroleum ether is perfectly safe with shellac, unlike the alcohols, as Mike says.
If, after all your efforts, there is still some stubborn residue of decades-old oil on the jewels, rub the residue with a piece of sharpened pegwood to break it up, and then rinse in pet. ether or IPA once more.
@@juaquimgustavo4712 It's the original video that recommends water, not me. My point was that if you do use water, rinsing afterwards with deionised water and then blow drying is well worth doing.
The trouble is, ultrasonic cleaners don't seem to work very well with non-aqueous cleaning solutions. Personally I wash parts individually by hand in petroleum ether. However, ultrasonic cleaning in water is brilliant for cases and bracelets.
@@juaquimgustavo4712 What's the difference? If it washes *without* cleaning, surely it's a waste of time!! And anyway, I'm sure you meant "ultrasonic".
So what's really going on here? Are you just trying to look smarter than me, so you feel better about yourself? If so, you're welcome! :-)
@@juaquimgustavo4712 Goodness me, this is hard work. I'll say it once more for you; *I don't use water on watch parts* myself, I use petroleum ether.
Petroleum ether doesn't destroy watch parts. FYI, I've been servicing watches and clocks for over 40 years now. I've written training material for a major horological organisation on how to service watches. How about you?
So now it's your turn: what's the difference between washing and cleaning when it comes to ultrasonics?
@@stevethackery9853 Hi Steve. I am from Denmark, and I am not quite sure what petroleum is. In Denmark we have petroleum and purified petrol, and the last is very flammable and like petrol used in cars. Is it possible to clarify?
Very informative video! What microscope are you using?
aguiloco thank you . I use a AMscope 306
This one to be precise
amzn.to/2CqPJqT
Hell Mike, very good Video.
One Question about the third Wash Part with 99% Alcohol, is this the same Process as the Renata?
Alcohol in this small Glas and then into the Sonic for 20 min?
Yes. Only don’t wash a balance or pallet fork in alcohol as it could soften the shellac that holds the jewels in place
Is it just oil/grease/dirt that stops watches? I have a whole box full of watches that maybe just dirty?what is what you charge to get the watch cleaned as they ore watches in 50/60/70 of the last century ?
For watch with tritium dial, how to clean up the tritium dial safely? How do I open the watch case without potentially inhaling those tritium particle? Thank you!
Great Video, Michael.
I watched it twice since I am now the proud owner of an ultrasonic cleaner, and like you I am a hobbyist rather than a professional. Some of the bits I need clarification on:
a.) I'm gathering that the current in the UK versus our 110 here in the States has no bearing on performance?
b.) The detergent was only cut with water because detergent needs hydration to truly activate....or was it just too thick?
c.) I know about not using alcohol on the pallet forks but had not heard about the hairspring and balance. Have you any experience with cleaning the dial in the ultrasonic?
d.) Did I hear you say that the Renata was OK for the balance and pallet forks? I had heard that petroleum distillates are not recommended just as alcohol is to be avoided. Did I misunderstand?
e.) I'd like to hold onto your contact on Amazon for tools and parts. I found the My Retro Watches but wasn't able to find tools and parts. Help?
BTW: Since we are a coffee drinking household I use new coffee paper cone filters for drying parts and then use the used cone for filtering gross bits out of the reuseable fluid. Doesn't seem to get paper into the fluid and it makes solvents go a bit farther. FWIW.
Best Wishes,
Bruce
Fairy good stuff mate 👍
V1 Aviation haha great one! Thanks
Iam just starting on disassembling old pocket watches and putting them together again.
This is for practice only. Later I hope will be abel to take them apart clean them and put them back to walking order.
For this your Videos are quite helpfull.
Excuse my englisch as I have not written in englisch.
For a long time
No problem, i always buy watches that are dischwasher safe..
that's the 1,3l ultra sonic cleaner right?
No 2.0Lr the 1.3 does not have the internal basket
@@MyRetroWatches ah ok thanks
:)
IPA can be used but nor for longer then 20 sec or so I was told
Just only seeing this now. Great stuff Michael
Are you sure about dishwasher and water mix? I have a (thank god cheap and common) russian Molnija. I put the small parts in the same copper basket you used. I put the larger parts and the basket in a sealed plastic container, filled with warm distilled water with a little dishwasher liquid in it. I filled the ultrasonic cleaner with warm water (it cannot heat), put the plastic container in it, and ran a 50W washing for 20 minutes. When I removed the parts from the "soapy" water I found some parts turned black on some spots. I washed all the parts separately in clean distilled water, put them on watchmakers paper, an placed them on direct sunshine. After 10 minutes, it is a total disaster! :( Many parts has rust spot on it. The middle of the pallet fork turned into black, the escapement wheel has rusty spots on it, the cannon pinion is rusted on all of its surface, and so on. The watch is a total garbage now. :( I cannot imagine what I did wrong... As I read along the comments, many of you are also using water and dishwasher for the first step...
Peter Fajt I am sorry to read of your disaster and feel bad for you. I can only assume that the parts in your watch must have parts made from different metal. To rust so quickly is very unusual but I presume they rusted on the face down bits rather than the ones exposed to sun.
Water is controversial due to this potential problem. I use water and soap for very dirty movements . I now have a proper watch cleaning machine using waterless fluids but I still sometimes have to use soap and water as the first process.
A lot of parts can be plated rather than solid stainless. If the plating is very thin then this can come off with detergent if the mix is very strong .
The rust can only be minor surface so if you have any alcohol or such then wash the parts in those
Ive never dried in direct sunlight , I just put in a warm place and turn the parts. Even damp you can still dip them in alcohol for a minute and remove then they will dry quicker .
I am sorry this as not worked for you sir.
Yes I did! Used IPA on a pallet fork and yes it made the stones come loose. It wasn't the only harsh lesson I learnt. Lets hope I have got wiser. Now I do use w/up liquid but stronger than your solution. I have also found that the one with lime cleans brass parts rather well. I have tried ammoniated fluids which are no better and it worries me that it is probably corrosive. I like the microscope. Is there a link for it? How much? I am still stuck for replacing broken shafts. Any tricks on that? Thanks for the video. Nicely paced.
Thanks, I now use my watch cleaning machine for all cleaning work and occasionally the ultrasonic for stubborn stuff. I also use ammoniated waterless cleaning fluid L&R and its brilliant but stinky.
Microscopes there are links on my tool page www.myretrowatches.co.uk/tool-sale-links/
Love this video! Two questions:
1. Do you still wash the balance and pallet fork in lighter fluid, or stop after the first detergent wash?
2) do you wash bridges/main plates in IPA if they have jewels on them?
@ 7:49 he mentions he usually only washes the balance in renata (lighter fluid) skipping the water step - I assume same woudl be for pallet fork
Very useful video, thanks man.
What microscope do you recommend for watchmaking?
I looked up the Ultrasonic cleaner you have and it is currently unavailable. I looked for something similar but I am so apprehensive to buy any of them. People are complaining from various issues. Mostly dying after a few hours of operation. How many hours have you run on your machine and would you still recommend it?
Nick A. Hello Nick thank you for commenting. One of my links must be dead so I will get onto it and find another with stock. I have had this for over a year now and I have never had a problem. I don’t run it for hours at a time only short periods of around 20 minutes. 2-3 20 min cycles depending on how dirty the parts are and at what stage I am at. I had two cheaper ones before this made of plastic and they failed within months . I find this one more well built. I guess like anything there can be bad ones made , abusive owners etc. You can get I think 5-10 LTR versions of these which are more suitable for larger items like car parts.
I know quite a few guys who have the same one in my FB group and they all talk positive of it . Don’t forget you will always read complaints more than positive reviews. I like this product but have never left a review on Amazon etc for it.
If you are concerned then it’s best to save for a better one but they then start going into their 100s price wise.
I will sort my links out tonight ! Thanks
Thanks great video and the balance looks excellent after the wash looks brand new, looking forward to seeing a video on your microscope as I am just getting into this hobby and loving all the tips your giving.
zippo lighter fluid and a paint brush
Hi, thanks for doing these videos. I have a question or two for you....... could I use odourless mineral spirits as the solvent? Is IPA, isopropyl alcohol? Oooops three questions, could I use a hairdryer on low fan speed to dry parts. I have ordered one dip and mobius oils and greases but for cleaning I would like to use what I have at home including the jewellery ultrasonic cleaner that has only been used a few times lol. Thanks for your time. Jeni Locke a nurse from down under, hoping to service and repair some watches. One more question can I use toothpicks to de grunge parts before cleaning?
Jeni Locke that’s allot of questions!
Mineral spirits I have no experience with . If it leaves no residue and evaporates fast then it’s worth a try. Ipa is alcohol 99%
Hairdryer, in theory but parts are so light you run the risk of blowing them all away!! Keep the parts contained. You also don’t really want to be blowing dust and lint around as it can undo all the cleaning you have just done.
I started out with a cheap jewellery ultrasonic. It was okay. Blew up after a while . I did a review on it (before it blew up) and a review of its replacement . Take a look at my playlist on my channel homepage .
Many people use wooden toothpicks .
Good luck and thanks for watching
What microscope do you recommend for watchmaking?
Can I use Naphta for the solvent?
kind of. a lot of people do bu you have to just be careful with balance and pallet fork as prolonged submerging of those parts can soften the shellac that holds the jewels in place.
@@MyRetroWatches got it, thanks
A quick question (or two) Michael, if you don’t mind. You recommend 50 degrees C for the wash, what about the flash points of the solvents? Also, could you do two washes in Renata if you don’t want to use water?
I now use a cleaning machine but with the ultrasonic I kept the lids on the jars. 50c is not that hot so don’t think it would catch fire.
I find Renata brilliant stuff so in theory you could skip the water and just use the Renata. Just means you will use more.
Wonderful video containing super videography and very useful tips, many thanks
Glad you enjoyed it!
which microscope model is it??
Michael - Can you explain a bit more about how you clean the balance and palette fork. Are these okay to put in liquid lighter fuel. I know alcohol is a strict no no. What about using an ammonia based jewelry cleaner on these two parts?
I clean both items in my ultrasonic. Lighter fuel is fine but you perhaps in time want to invest in some non water based cleaner like Essence of Renata or Bergeon One dip. These do a good job of degreasing hairsprings and pallets.
Basically ipa alcohol is a no no as this can over time melt the shellac holding the jewels in place .
I actually purchased some One Dip for my current 6106 service and used it on the balance assembly sans jewels and pallet fork. Worked fantastic. Thanks for the response Mike.
Another suggestion, If you have the money I would highly recommend Bergeon automatic watch oilers. Get the Green, Red and Black one.. One is for general oiling, one is for escapements and one for oiling balance jewels. Saves a ton of time and you always get the correct amount of oil.
I have the 1A black one for shock jewels which I do use on occasion but really cant get on with it. I never can get it to work right, even bought a new needle which are not cheap but it either under oils or completely over oils....
@@MyRetroWatches It takes a bit to get used to but I had no problem adjusting it to get the right amount of oil.
Can you use lighting fluid or surgical spirits to clean balance wheel and hairspring
Lighter fuel is well used by hobbyists (naphtha ) I would not use surgical spirit. I did right at the start and it did a poor job and would not dry quickly. Thanks for watching.
great video iam now looking out for a second hand microscope for my 76 year old eyesight
I can recommend any of the ones on my tool page (amazon links) the AM scopes for the price are excellent. Depending on your eye issues you will find almost everything works. remember you are magnifying everything which make things a lot easier to see. I only have one good eye and that now needs reading glasses and every year gets worse however under the scope its fine. Part of the problem recording video under the scope is that I like to use one of the eye pieces rather than the camera screen, this then usually makes the camera blurry as I am adjusting for my own eyes rather than my audience .
myretrowatches.com/tool-sale-links/
Excellent tutorial.
Great video. Thanks
Will the screws fit in those baskets or fall out the holes?
Screws will fit. I rarely wash screws unless the heads are dirty.