The Ultimate Guide for Identifying and Sourcing Watch Parts.
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 29 ก.ย. 2024
- In watch repair, identifying movements and sourcing the parts is one frustrating task if you don't know where to start. In this video I am going to show you how I do it.
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I am a big fan of Amazon, and many of my links to products/gear are links to those products on Amazon. I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and related sites.
1st Seven Watchmaking Tools► Budget Screwdrivers watchrepairtut... (Amazon)
► Bergeon Screwdrivers watchrepairtut... (Amazon)
► Dumont Anti-Magnetic Tweezers Style 3c watchrepairtut... (Amazon)
► Dumont Style 1AM Brass Tweezers watchrepairtut... (Amazon)
► Screwdriver Sharpening Holder watchrepairtut... (Amazon)
► Sharpening Stone watchrepairtut... (Amazon)
► Eye Loupe watchrepairtut... (Amazon)
► Parts Holder watchrepairtut... (Amazon)
► Movement Holder watchrepairtut... (Amazon)
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All THE TOOLS & SUPPLIES I USE: watchrepairtut...
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These are all the resources I mentioned in the video.
Pocket Watch DataBase
pocketwatchdat...
Rafft.de Movement DataBase
www.ranfft.de/c...
Mikrolisk Trade name DataBase
www.mikrolisk.d...
Import Codes
docs.google.co...
BestFit Catalog
mccawcompany.c...
Cousins Material Supplier
www.cousinsuk....
Seiko Tech Sheets
seikoserviceus...
American Watchmaker Clockmaker Institute
www.awci.com/
Marco Parts Catalog
www.jewelerssu...
Jules Borel
www.julesborel....
Boley DataBase
boley.de/en
GS Supplies Crystal Catalog
digitaledition....
Sternkreuz Crystal Catalog
www.sternkreuz....
Tip Top Crystals
www.tiptopcrys...
Balance Staffs
www.balancesta...
Cas-Ker
jewelerssuppli...
Otto Frei
www.ofrei.com/
Perrin Watch Parts
perrinwatchpar...
Daves Watch Parts
www.daveswatch...
Alex, you are a godsend to all watch service hobbyists/aspiring watchmakers.
You are my new best friend😄
My brother, now deceased, was a certified master watchmaker and every time he came back home to Kansas City for holidays and such, he always spent a day hanging out with the folks at Jules Borel - first to source a bunch of supplies, then to hang out at a local bar for drinks & stories. This began in the late '70s so over the years they became pretty good friends. When he passed, it never occurred to me to call Borel's to ask them if they wanted to buy his shop, which would have helped his wife a lot and been a great home for that stuff. If I had known at the time what I just now learned from you, I would have one less regret in life.
They used to be located in the big downtown of KC, MO, but recently moved to a new location about two minutes from where I live right now. Been wanting to drop by there and just see what's shakin' these days. Your video added extra inspiration to do so soon.
Thanks for the video - good information in general. And for me, a particular flash of nostalgia.
Thanks for making my day brother. Great story
Bless you for actually sharing and providing information which would have taken years to acquire. Great series you're a national born educator.
Thank you. That's my goal.
What an AWESOME video! It has taken me several years to aquire the information you've posted here, along with other suppliers I had no idea existed. AWESOME, AWESOME, AWESOME. Thank you!
Edward,
I knew when I made this video that it was going to be an important video for people who are brand new. I am glad to hear that some of the guys who have been around for awhile could find some value as well.
Where were you 20 years ago? This info is is a real gem thank you!!!
I was hoping to hear from you Amanda.
I probably could have been more detailed but 23 minutes is pushing it.
I do agree you are godsend. I go one further step further you are The Socrates of our times for anyone has questions of any watchmaking. Keep safe we needs you around and God Bless
Thank you my friend. Let me know if I can help you with anything.
Alex Hamilton, what a name for a watchmaker,. You'd might as well be Lord Elgin to us. What awesome content. This video was great, a source of information that is incredibly lacking on the Internet. You'd think there have been videos like this already made, but noooooo.... Thank you for your passion and sharing knowledge to hobbyists and aspiring watchmakers. God bless.
That’s why I started this channel. Thank you my friend.
Great, great video! Very helpful. Unfortunately I think Ranfft seems to have gone offline!
It can still be found. Someone has copied his database.
Alex. Another incredibly great video my friend. Outstanding info and tips. Thanks so much for the time and great effort to help novices out here.
Hey Hey Graham,
There may a couple tips in there for you.
Microscopes next.
@@watchrepairtutorials excellent. I just got myself one actually but am very curious to hear what you have to say. I’m actually using your links now to try and track down a date ring for an Omega 1250 movement. Omega parts are proving to be a pain to track down since they stopped selling to hobbiests.
Wow, best 25 minutes of information on parts sourcing i have get. Thank you ;)
Glad you liked it.
Stick around. There’s lots more coming
Dave's has been great for me - the Elgins I bought were just movements so I needed bench keys. Dave's the man! This was also a great video Alex!
Dave’s a pretty special guy that’s for sure.
Alex thank you so much for your Vids I figured it out based on watching your videos and fixed it myself.
thank you again, FYI its a Ronda 763 E Movement and all I had was a loose Battery arm. Thank you again for all your videos
Nice work George! Glad I could help brother.👍
Thank you for your videos, and especially for articulating so well!
I am French, and thanks to you, I am learning English :)
I don't know if you can add subtitles. With your clear and correct language, it would help many people to learn English.
Hello my friend. You are correct about the subtitles. The other subtitles generated by TH-cam are not very accurate, which creates a problem. I am trying to find a way to get the subtitles and upload them in correct proper punctuated English news. I have published a few videos that have subtitles but I had to go in and hand, correct everything which takes a very long time. I am working on it my friend. Stay tuned.
@@watchrepairtutorials Thank you very much for your work. I love American pocket watches and in the 1900s you were 50 years ahead!
@@Tchunone You are very astute my friend. It was the visit to the American Centennial Exhibition by Jacques David, the father of modern Swiss watchmaking, that changed the direction of Swiss Watchmaking forever. Afterwards he toured 3 American factories and was blown away by the machinery that was being used. He went back to Switzerland and pushed for them to change or Swiss watchmaking would die.
When American factories shifted all production to the war effort in the 40’s, the Swiss picked up the consumer market and never looked back. That was the end of American production watchmaking.
My favorite are railroad and military watches produced by Hamilton. The quality and accuracy rivels some of the best watches made today.
@@watchrepairtutorials That does not surprise me. Even France was way ahead of the Swiss! But they did a good remake of history, and aggressive marketing.
Indeed, I saw that Hamilton produced some of the best calibers in an industrial way. This will be my next purchase. I am just starting out and I have a 1914 Elgin 16s15j and a 1919 Waltham 12s17j. They are in very good condition and are currently at my watchmaker for maintenance.
I also look a lot at the price / quality ratio, because I have to systematically add maintenance. I can't imagine running a watch without an overhaul...
Raill grade watches are amazing, but quite expensive. It would be kind of you to make a video to warn against abuse on the grade rails, because the quantities for sale offered as such are not. Dial, indexes, time change security, factory adjustment positions..
Thanks again for your videos, and keep these fighters alive ;)
Another fantastic video by Alex, this was packed with very useful info, of which I will be bookmarking and making regularly use of, thank you
Thanks JP
This is a great resource. Thank you.
Yes sir Mr. Russel.
Thanks for stopping by.
Wow! This is great a source of information. Thanks!
Thanks John,
I hope this helps a little bit.
Excellent stuff! thank you for sharing your knowledge.
Excellent as always.
Thank you! Cheers Paul
What an absolute gold mine of information. I am fairly new to watchmaking, and only have a a handful of finished services & restorations under my belt at this point, but have spent the past several months trying to put together my own list of resources. Boy I sure wish I had this info when I started. I probably only had 60% of the websites you mentioned in my own list. THANK YOU for putting this together. I’ve got a really cool old brass dialed Hamilton pocket watch that I’m going to be starting on soon and I have a feeling Dave’s Watch Parts will definitely come in handy.
I wish I could ‘like’ this video more than once. That took a lot of time and effort to put together, and is very much appreciated.
Dave is great and is knowledgeable as hell and will definitely help you out.
How much money do I have to invest for tools? Machinery huge fan. I really am addicted to your channel. I want to learn to repair watches I am an older gentleman though
That's a very open-ended question because it really depends on what you wanna do. Newer watches or vintage.
As an example to get started you might have to spend a 2-3 hundred dollars. This would allow you to buy a new movement to learn on, take it apart do a very basic cleaning and lubrication and put it back together.
If you decided to move on from that point, you can buy watches that work and just need to be serviced. Now you'll need to start purchasing the proper lubricants, a timegrapher, tools to open cases, a crystal press maybe an ultrasonic machine, measuring tools,, some better cleaning products and miscellaneous shop supplies so you can add another 8 to $1000 for basic products.
Then if you want to Start learning repair the 3 big tools microscopes, staking sets and jewel presses which can run you anywhere from 1000 to $1500.
So it really just depends on how far you want to dive into horology.
Спасибо друг!
пожалуйста. Вы говорите по-английски или переводили?
Does the Patreon have a chat or discord server were we could all communicate? I would love to see that.
Hey Luke,
This is something that I am actually working on.
A Discord account can be set up on Patreon for chat. I am just looking at all the options including a possible live stream as well as some other options.
What do you think.
@@watchrepairtutorials That sounds great. I'd love to see that. Sign me up.
What can i say 10/10🙏
Did you learn anything?
✨✨ Get Your Copy of my eBook, The Secrets for Adjusting Watch Rates ✨✨
➡➡PDF DOWNLOAD watchrepairtutorials.com/ebook/ ⬅⬅
➡➡Available on Kindle & Soft Cover @ geni.us/4x8C (Amazon)
✨✨Watchmaking Courses and Training ✨✨
➡➡ watchrepairtutorials.com/watchmaker-course/ ⬅⬅
This wins my award for most useful video of the year! What a wealth of information! Thanks for sharing all of this with us.
That’s awesome Tom,
When I was looking at the list of the first 20 videos, I knew this was a subject that there was a real lack of information about. Thanks for being here.
Alex
Thank You to my Patreon Supporters for making it possible to keep advertising out of my videos.
John Boyarsky
Paul Schumacker
Ray Everett
Bill Doog
Joe Chambers
Marcel Gustafson
These are all the resources I mentioned in the video.
Pocket Watch DataBase
pocketwatchdatabase.com
Rafft.de Movement DataBase
www.ranfft.de/cgi-bin/bidfun.cgi?10&ranfft
Mikrolisk Trade name DataBase
www.mikrolisk.de/show.php?site=280
Import Codes
docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1hdSTloo8iQ81e8wX0KwsZ67T3mAuT0tV/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=107571832612620710306&rtpof=true&sd=true
BestFit Catalog
mccawcompany.com/product/bestfit-encyclopedia-books-111-111a-digital-download-pdf-version/
Cousins Material Supplier
www.cousinsuk.com/
Seiko Tech Sheets
seikoserviceusa.com/uploads/datasheets/
American Watchmaker Clockmaker Institute
www.awci.com/
Marco Parts Catalog
www.jewelerssupplies.com/marco-catalogue-no-52-details.html
Jules Borel
www.julesborel.com/
Boley DataBase
boley.de/en
Alex’s Master List of Suppliers
docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/10zuxU8WoDGbtkUsl-7D6Y0Kheb015KZC/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=107571832612620710306&rtpof=true&sd=true
GS Supplies Crystal Catalog
digitaledition.qwinc.com/publication/?i=666158
Sternkreuz Crystal Catalog
www.sternkreuz.de/accordion/assets/Sternkreuz_Gesamtkatalog%20G22.pdf
Tip Top Crystals
www.tiptopcrystals.com/
Balance Staffs
www.balancestaffs.com
Cas-Ker
jewelerssupplies.com/
Otto Frei
www.ofrei.com/
Perrin Watch Parts
perrinwatchparts.com/en-us
Daves Watch Parts
www.daveswatchparts.com/
Pin this comment please so its at the top. So much useful information! Thank you sir!
@@davidvandusen6556 I guess I forgot to do that. Thank you sir.
Hi Alex,
I'm sure you spent alot of time to cram all that priceless information into this video and thank you sincerely for that.
You know Alex, you stand in your own limelight, coz you are there sincerely to assist us trainee watchmakers and experienced alike. For the love of of this trade, you are prepared to share all your hard earned secrets and that is truly unbelievable.
I hope that this video disseminates and benefits all out there in the hope that watchmaking can be an enjoyable and rewarding pastime that it once was.
Thank you,
Regards
Ridhwaan
Ridhwaan,
Thank You so much for the kind words.
I have seen people struggling to find out some of the basic information that watchmakers learn over time.
Sometimes we forget that we all had to start somewhere.
Very few have the luxury to attend a watchmaking school for 2 years and when you are working without an instructor or mentor, it takes so much longer to learn.
I want to be that mentor to you my friend.😉
This is like drinking from a firehose of information and I love it. Thanks for putting it all together.
This sort of information would be great to share from every industry where hobby and amateur work happens.
Thanks buddy. Hope it helps
Alex, thanks for all you share. Learning by your experience is most helpful. Good Fortunes, Great Successes and Many Blessings 🫡🤝
I appreciate that! Thank you
I’ve been trying to locate an inner date wheel for an Omega 1260 for a while now. Crazy expensive for a piece of plastic. Any tips?
Buy cheaper watches. 😉 No, not really. Omega parts when available are going to be expensive.
Hey there, I'm glad I found your video. I'm working on an estate sale for an 86-year-old woman whos husband died.. her husband had thousands of tools for watch repair and people keep trying to take advantage of her and I'm trying not to but I don't know really what I'm dealing with in terms of selling these tools. They're all vintage or antique and they're all high quality name brands. I'm going to send you a message if I can figure out how just in case you want some or know of anyone who wants some of these tools.
Hi Alex,
Looking for a mainspring for a Movado 40s / 50s Caledomatic wristwatch with a C225M movement.
I'm helping my watch repair friend. The mainspring isn't broken, post repair, the balance has low amplitude that might be helped by a new spring.
He wants to avoid handling it without having a replacement - I haven't had any luck searching on the movement name (I find it, but can't find any movement diagrams / parts lists and none of your links sell springs.
Any thoughts on locating a mainspring with just the movement number?
Thanks!
Pete
That’s why I made this video.
How to Size Any Watch Mainspring to a Barrel
th-cam.com/video/BEfB8ZWoeII/w-d-xo.html
Cousins UK say they are purely business to business, and say that if you tick the T&Cs you have stated that you'll only be using the products as part of your business trade. Now, that is in the FAQ for "can you sell to an individual", or something like that, but I do get the feeling that there sort of a bit of a nod and a wink involved in that. I've not actualy bought anything yet, but they let me register, and like, the buy button is right there :D
Yeah, I wasn't aware of anything like that on their website, but I do know plenty of nonprofessionals buy from them.
absolutely critical and hard to discover information, THANKS! a bunch.
Glad it was helpful!
On the one hand it's annoying how hard some of these parts are to find. On the other... we're working on watches that have been out of production for 100 years or more. It's amazing that we can find any parts at all. That being said, I would have like to know how to decipher the part numbers on Dr. Ranfft's website. How am I supposed to know what a U320 balance staff is?
Those are more than likely product codes from a suppliers catalogue. You’re much better off using a website like Jules Borel’s database.
Alex question I'm trying to replace a swole o clock. The company will not share the details of the movment . Only that it's a Ronda but I can't find and details markings. It's a quartz - digi- analog with 2 stack batteries. Any advise the company want some me to by a new watch. I watch your vids and would like to replace the movment myself.
The first thing you need to do is try to identify the movement number. So that’s just going to require searching for the watch that you have and trying to determine the movement number.
You can also go to Perrin Watch Parts dot com and see if you can identify in their watch movement catalog.
Hi Alix,Ar the Mainsprings Winder made in Chiana OK,And which one should I order for Pocket Watches.
I have for wrist watch the J.P.Schilling&Son Mainspring Winder.
I have never heard anyone who liked them.
One problem even with Bergeon winders for pocketwatches is the winding arbor is usually not big enough.
I would look for a video rage set of watchcraft mainspring for pocketwatches.
Thanks for all the great videos,tips,tricks and gold nuggets...where would you find Hampden parts information...doesn't seem to be much out there on the interweb.
I would check with daveswatchparts.com
Hehe, I already see this video linked on at least one forum. Well done and thank you uncle, this was clearly a lot of work!
What’s up my bearded brother!
Which one?
Uncle Alex
Great video Alix, again, thank you. Now looking forward to microscopes😉. Keep up the good work.
It’s coming up next
I hope you don't mind, but have a replica Patek Phillippe watch I've have for a long time, could I find the information on this type of movement.
More than likely, it’s a Chinese movement so that’s where I would start. It’s possible that there are some markings under the balance wheel to help identify it.
This is astounding! Never seen a more useful video! For us hobbyists, you’re like Prometheus giving humans the secret to fire! Thanks so much!
I hope this helps you. Sourcing parts can be a pain in the a**. 😉
great video alex, i have a missing lyre type spring on my mst 414 roamer, could you advise the best way to identify shock
springs? ect , ps keep these briliant vids going
If you just search for shock spring styles, you’ll get some PDFs that come up that show the different types. Incobloc types are readily available. Other styles are very hit or miss as far as availability. You just have to check the suppliers websites.
yay! Another good episode. Information IS king, and the fact that you share it so willingly. Thank you King Alex!
Hey buddy,
How are you ? Isn’t that the problem with information in general, people want to guard it like sharing it will somehow hurt them.
You can just call me Uncle Alex. 😊
Then sometimes you have one that no matter what you do you can't ID the movement. Case in point I pick up a Langendorf open face pocket watch that only has what I would say a serial number on it that so far has turns up nothing and I did check that pocket watch database and Ranfft, Ranfft listed 40 Lanendof watches and none of them look anything like what I have.
Ranfft is a large database but they definitely don’t have everything.
There is a 3 volume catalog I’ve been on the hunt for by A.F. Jobin called “La classification horlogère des calibres de montres et des fournitures d'horlogerie Suisse. I’ve heard there are digital copies as the printed ones are pretty expensive, even if you can find it.
Thanks Alex, fantastic video, the amount of information is mind boggling. Thanks for helping us all get started in watch making!
Alex, thanks again, I'm still looking at the wealth of information here!
Looked through comments but can't find your list of popular parts vendors.
If you look in my pinned comment at the top, and reply’s it’s in there.
How important is the gold short screw on the electrical module next to the battery? Is it important or can any be used? Thanks
Could be there for a reason it’s hard to say for sure, but you’re not gonna find any parts for quartz movements, unless you by donor movement
Is there a place where I can find the specific dimensions of each part? I have been trying to model a seiko 7S26A movement and this video has been unbelievably helpful to find the parts in the movement, but I can't seem to find the blueprints for those parts, or even pictures of the parts from multiple angles (which is all I technically need)
love the channel btw
so if I understand you correctly, you are looking for the manufactures dimensions of each part that they make in the watch?
You can stop searching because you won't find that.
you could, if you wanted, measure many of the dimensions of an individual part but things like teeth and pinion leaves you would need access to cutters to be able to match up to get exact dimensions .
@@watchrepairtutorials Thanks a lot! You just saved me from a wild goose chase
Whew! How many hours is this info. going to save me? Thank you 🙏🏽
A lot
I'm surprised the number of subscribers isn't an order of magnitude bigger. These videos are gems and like someone else commented - a godsend to all of us hobbyists. Thank you sir!
Thanks a bunch brother. I don’t do entertainment videos so my base viewer is somebody who’s trying to learn watch repair. There’s also a large segment of people who don’t want to take the time to learn and just want to jump in without doing any homework at all which is also fine.
Alex, where can I buy CASIO EF-508 EDIFICE 4360 case cover seal (O-Ring)? I cannot find the exact dimensions of the O-Ring for this particular model. I live in Canada. Thank you in advance!
Try PacParts.com
@@watchrepairtutorials ...they don't have this Casio model on the list at all, but thanks Alex a lot for the answer anyway.
Quick question about parts acquisition and just building up a watch collection in general. I've taken down, serviced and re-assembled a few new movements and I feel like I'm ready to move up. There are a bunch of seko resellers from India that sell watches that "run". Their mostly cobbled together with whatever parts are available resulting in a Frankenstein watch that ticks but doesn't keep great time. They're cheap though so my plan was to get like 20 of them and see if I can disassemble them, catalogue the parts and then cross reference that list to see if I can un-scramble them into working watches. Is this plan at all viable or is it just a pipe dream?
I am a fan of a lot of Seiko movement which you see in a lot of the watches from India as well as mods the Philippines.
All of these movements 7002’s and 7s26’s are fun little movements to work on because they have so much potential when done right.
I’ll be doing a lot of videos with movements like this where I will service them and then make corrections to the escapement to bring them into acceptable Delta’s so they will be reliable little runners.
Amazing thank you!!
Alex I am a beginner and i am starting with vintage mechanical watches. I can't afford a full set of Bergeron winders is a #6 winder a good start? Thanks for all you help.
Well it depends entirely on what you work on. Japanese movements need the blue or left hand spindle and Swiss and American movements need the red or right hand spindle.
I usually recommend 8.6 mm to 10.8 mm which cover a lot of basic size watches.
Here is a link that shows what's available.
www.esslinger.com/bergeon-mainspring-winder-1/
@@watchrepairtutorials Thank you, exactly what I wanted to know.
Thanks for the great information. Much appreciated.
Quick question if I may. I recently serviced a 15 year old, moderately priced, but reasonably good quality fake Rolex for a friend, and for the life of me, I could not find ANY identifying information, marks or numbers on the movement, much less a caliber number. (This was obviously not a Swiss movement.) Is this possible, or did I just miss something that was there and just didn't see it? Thanks.
It’s definitely possible there was no markings. Most likely a Chinese movement which are hit or miss as far as marking go
@@watchrepairtutorials Many thanks and much appreciated. Kind of what I figured but wasn't sure.
Thanks again Alex for a fantastic reference video.
It can be near impossible to find any info on some watches.
This certainly aims us in the right direction and saves hour in the process.
Really appreciating you videos and all the effort that goes into making them.
Thanks again Phil,
It’s a pleasure doing these based on the response from people like you.
I’m loving it.
Does anybody know any good EU alternatives to CousinsUK?
Did you look at the list of suppliers I provided.
You look a lot like the big Lebowski. I’ll call you the dude!!!!
The Dude abides.
Thank you for this wealth of information. I would have spent weeks googling around and not have found half of these great sites. This is one channel that wins my sub hands down.
Glad to hear it. We are a small but mighty channel.
Thanks AA
I need a replacement band for a bulova and can’t find it anywhere
is it an integrated bracelet ?
Thank you! this was very helpful .
You're welcome! I hope it helps
You are an indispensable treasure for your willingness to inform and the quality of information you possess ! I sincerely appreciate you. Many thanks 🍻
Hey man thanks.
There’s a lot more coming so I hope to see you again.
Sir, is there any other way to identify the movement? The main plate doesnt say anything relevant, no marks or numbers...only lettering is on the balance...and the case has no marks
Yes, I talk about using the Bestfit catalog in the video
@@watchrepairtutorials thank you
Another great video thanks Alex
Glad you enjoyed it brother.
Thank you for sharing this Alex, I have a couple good quality pocket watches that need a balance staff and an impulse jewel and had no idea that this information was available on pocket watch database
Balance staffs can be tricky sometimes as there may be several pivots sizes available.
Make sure you measure your existing balance jewel hole.
Impulse jewels can just be measured and ordered by size.
@@watchrepairtutorials luckily I just found a balance jewel in a parts movement that fit perfect
@@shanejones7331 that's awesome. Sometimes the watch gods are looking over us.😉
@@watchrepairtutorials that certainly would be the case this time around
Good man. Love your vids bro 👍👍👍
I appreciate you brother.
Can you help me find the movement for the LeGant QS 17 jewel day date watch. It belongs to my 81 yr old father in law and I would like to get it running again. I need a crown and winding pinoin. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!
What’s the movement?
@watchrepairtutorials I have disassembled it and can't seem to find any markings on it to identify the movement.
@@watchrepairtutorials have you ever heard of a ut32 movement?
@@TheWhitburger I have heard and seen the UTxx movements. I don’t know much about them other than parts are pretty much impossible to find.
If you need parts you will need to find a donor movement to get it.
@watchrepairtutorials that's what I was afraid of. I have been searching eBay for potential movements that could have the part needed. Thank you for your response, and I have learned a great deal from your tutorial videos.
Holy cow. You could put this video behind a pay wall and make money with the info it contains. What a gold mine. Thanks, Alex.
A gold mine indeed. Many hobbyists have limited resources for both materiel and knowledge. Knowledge is gold to the hungry minds that just want to fix watches for friends and family. My first watch service was hoppes gun oil, 10w30, and automotive grease. Still running lol
Edit: and a sewing needle for an oiler.
I hope it helps you John
I made my hairspring tools out of sewing needles
@@watchrepairtutorials Now THAT is an adventure in patience.
Hi there new to the industry, what do the general public about watches fixed up with after market parts? Does it put value down?
Well, I would say that there’s two things to consider. First, almost every watch, loses value from retail with the exception of a few select brands. Second, it depends on the part certain parts like main springs, case tubes, it doesn’t really matter. Crystals usually don’t matter unless the factory ones have a mark on them.
Third, the tolerances and finish for certain parts like balance wheels and hairsprings are far tighter in certain movements than they will be in aftermarket parts.
So it just depends on the movement and maker.
copy that thank you!! so is it safe to say spring bars, tubes, and aftermarket crowns or stem don't matter? Thanks for taking the time to answer my question and for educating us @@watchrepairtutorials
@@mikodizon8322 again on some highly collectible pieces the crown, especially if it’s marked should be original if possible but that’s not always going to happen.
Original case parts could be a little hard to find on vintage watches .
@@watchrepairtutorials I see, thank you sir!! :-)
Phenomenal video. Thanks for the info.
Thanks man
Thanks Mr.Alex, for all the due sources of watch parts...
Subscribed!!
Awesome man, welcome
Can you suggest book for learn about mechanic of automatic watch
History based or repair ?
Repair based
@@karanmodh2383 I don't know of anything specifically that goes into detail about automatic works other than the Theory of Horology, but its not really a repair book, its more of a text book for watchmaking school.
I would suggest the "Bulova School of Watchmaking". Its old but still very relevant to watchmaking today.
Thank you so much!!
You're very welcome!
Thank you so much!
You're welcome Kelevra.
I purchased on Ebay a Citizen 1960 - 1970 Automatic - complication , Date & Day . Its Running but day and date has a problem. My project - restoration. This is going to be my first ever real watch restoration and my tools consist of a $30 assorted tools , also on Ebay and desk loup . People like yourself have inspired me to have a go although the dream has been around for a long time.
This channel was built for people just like you Gabriel. Good luck
yeah and I just got your newsletter with a master list, and learned of a few that I didn't know about, one just a few miles from me that has a "will-call" desk. thanks!
Glad I could help. What company was it?
The best video for sourcing parts. Thank you for sharing years of experience. This is a video to be revisited several times. Take care!
Glad it was helpful!
Thank you Alex for sharing a lifetime of knowledge and experience with us. This is going to be a go to video whenever I need information on ordering parts. Looking forward to the microscope video
Thanks brother.
You talk a lot. Thank you, thank you, thank you. You have flattened my learning curve considerably. Don’t stop.
Thank you I’ll take that as a compliment.😊
That was epic
I hope you mean in a good way
Great video Alix, again, thank you
TY so much for your videos and great information. I live in Norway and have just started my journey into watches. I love Waltham, Elgin and Hamilton pocket watches.
Hey man,
Glad you can join us.
I think you may be my first Norwegian, so it’s awesome you joined us.
I just told someone else I am a huge Hamilton fan but love Elgin and Waltham as well.
Stay tuned brother, I am going to be doing some servicing on some of these in the near future.
As another commenter has mentioned, "like drinking from a firehose of information" is right! Thank you so much for sharing this information and all that you share here and on reddit! Out of curiosity, and maybe this is just my perspective, have you received any pushback from the professional watchmaking community for sharing what feels like "trade secrets"? Thanks again, you've had a great impact on my watchmaking journey.
Howdy Tim,
Well, I don't think any trained watchmakers watch what I do here. but no, I have not heard anything negative.
OMG Alex, I’m only 1/3rd way through this vid, and the amount of info you are cramming in, just fantastic! Ta buddy. Need to find a moment to finish the video!
Sorry Boyd. 😄
I’m trying to get to the good the repair videos and didn’t want to split it up.
Thanks Alex! I agree. Your videos get better and better.
I found that exact ETA 2892-2 technical sheet, and it was a goddamn godsend. Since I lost an unknown part and didn't take enough pictures, I had no idea what was missing or how to put it back together. Thought this was a funny coincidence since I found it today and also watched this video today
Its was fate.
Thank you!
You’re very welcome Bruno. I hope you found some useful information for sourcing watch parts that you can use.
Alex, this is pure brilliance! I’m now a Patreon patron. Looking forward to chatting!
Welcome aboard! Hope to here from you.
Thank you!
Thanks buddy.
Wow what a wealth of information in your video. Thank you so much for sharing. I already learned so many new things from you. Thank you again! And I just joined you on Patreon.
Thanks, unfortunately the Ranfft website I spoke of is down. The owner passed away.
That was a huge resource
I can’t begin to tell you how much I appreciate your videos. When I am looking on watc parts sites, I see they have different assortments of various things like screws, etc. Do you recommend having any of these on hand? If so, which ones? Thanks again!
Yes, near the end of the video I talk about that very subject specifically.
Very useful, thank you very much for your trouble in making this video and providing links. Currently Cousins is not sending anything overseas using ordinary postage because of problems with the post office, so is only using courier services. This can make a small inexpensive part become very expensive. The situation has been like this for half a year. Best wishes.
I just had an order that took two months to get.
OMG I've only changed a batterie and never touch a watch and this was so interesting. Blew my mind
Thanks Kenny, information is key.
Thanks for the professional answer.
thank you so much for the information , feels like other watch repair videos are keeping this information form the followers, if it's about money there is plenty to go around. again thank you for always being true.
Glad to help Frank
This video is a gold mine of info for newbies....Which I am....thank you.
Glad it was helpful!
Utterly amazing video. Thankyou.
Thank you Mr Freeman. Glad to help
YOU my friend are a legend! Thanks so much for these vids Alex 😊.
Thanks Timbo,
Glad to have you.
Alex
Thank you so much for putting this together! I now have a much wider list of companies to check for parts and tools.
Glad it was helpful!