Watch Repair Clock Repair

Geneva Stop Work

The Geneva Stop Work known also as Maltese cross was a major contributor to timekeeping accuracy in both Watches and Clocks. The stop-work mechanism when used with older high carbon steel springs effectively ‘clipped’ or disengaged the end portions of a mainspring where extreme torque variation occurs leaving the middle much more constant torque flat portion of the mainspring to power the gear train.
This simple easy to manufacture design made the Geneva Stop Work an inexpensive, commonly encountered improvement on both watches and clocks.

I tried to show as much as possible using animation so I hope this is helpful for anyone wanting to know more about how the Geneva Stop work works and how to go about setting mainspring pre-tension.

Enjoy!

This video covers:

• Geneva stop work purpose
• Theory on why ‘clipping’ the torque off of the ends of the mainspring is important
• Ratios
• Setting up mainspring pre-tension

Check out the Hermle Chime Clock course (above) if you haven’t already done so by clicking the link at the top of this page.

Learn Clock & Watch Repair my online courses at Online Clock & Watch Repair Courses

Need great clock repair or restoration work done or clock parts fabrication then visit William at his website at BornAgainClocks.com

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Hauser Pivot Polisher

Great video by William Porter showing his refurbished Hauser pivot polisher. This watch and clock pivot polisher was most likely used in a clock or watch making factory back in the 1940’s. Capable of burnishing pivots from .2mm to 6mm makes it an ideal machine for burnishing pocketwatch and clock pivots. Although this machine isn’t necessary for normal repair work it’s certainly a handy machine to have around. Manually operated, the Hauser 241 pivot polisher was a popular machine.

William did a beautiful job restoring this machine (I saw the machine when he first acquired it) and fortunately for us decided to demonstrate it’s purpose and how it’s used.

Visit Lathes.co.uk for in-depth info about this Hauser Pivot Polisher.
In the video he covers:

• It’s purpose
• How he got it up and running
• How the machine is setup to polish a pivot
• Actual polishing of a pivot

Need great clock repair or restoration work done or clock parts fabrication then visit William at his website at BornAgainClocks.com

Also check out the Hermle Chime Clock course (above) if you haven’t already done so by clicking the link at the top of this page.

Get info packed Clock and Watch Repair reports in your mailbox. Just opt-in using the Blue Box on the right side of this page. Your email Will NOT be given to anyone and you can opt-out anytime you wish.

Scroll down the page to see more of William Porters excellent videos!

Triple Chime Hammer Tail Repair

Here’s another helpful video by William covering an interesting triple chime hammer tail repair technique using a simple grinding fixture he built to fit on any watchmakers lathe.
In the video he covers:

• Explanation of problems resulting from worn chime hammer tails
• How to build a simple but valuable fixture to hold the hammer tail in place for accurate grinding of active surfaces
• How to do the actual grinding and polishing
• How to make adjustments for equal hammer drop

Need great clock repair or restoration work done or clock parts fabrication then visit William at his website at BornAgainClocks.com

Also check out the Hermle Chime Clock course if you haven’t already done so by clicking the link at the top of this page.

Get info packed Clock and Watch Repair reports in your mailbox. Just opt-in using the Blue Box on the right side of this page. Your email Will NOT be given to anyone and you can opt-out anytime you wish.

Scroll down the page to see more of William Porters excellent videos!

Video animation by Bob Tascione

Incabloc Shock Absorber System

Prior to the arrival of floating jewel shock absorbers such as the Incabloc Shock absorbing system shown in the above animation most balance hole and cap jewels were press fit into settings. These settings were then inserted into the plate and balance cock and held rigidly in place with screws so that no movement or buffer was present between staff pivot and hole or cap jewel. A significant impact delivered to a watch case would send a wave of energy through the movement passing into the sensitive escapement. Lacking any capability for the jewels to ‘give’ a little a strong enough jolt could easily damage one or both of the delicate balance staff pivots as well as the balance jewels.
The transition from the somewhat protected pocket watch to the exposed, much more vulnerable Wrist Watch caused concern for watch manufacturers leading to a large number of clever anti shock designs. Some companies developed their own proprietary designs which they used regularly. Most of these devices are now obsolete giving way to a group of popular systems.

Today only a handful from this group of anti-shock systems are being used with Incabloc and KIF leading the way.
These floating jewel bearing devices function by allowing the balance to move a little if a sudden shock takes place. The balance jewels sit in a precisely machined bushing which in turn sets loosely in the bearing block. The bushing accepts first the hole jewel and then the cap jewel which is kept at a fixed distance from the face of the hole jewel by means of a ledge machined in the upper portion of the bushing – see diagram. When at rest the bushing and jewels are held in position by the tension of a lyre shaped anti-shock spring which is fitted above them. When a shock occurs the bushing can move in any direction and if its limit of travel is reached the dimensions between balance staff and block – labeled ‘Setting’ in the above diagram – are such that impact between the staff and block occur on the shank of the staff rather than the delicate pivot and the jewel transferring the remainder of the impact energy into the stronger much larger shank sections of the staff – labeled “Shock or Impact Surfaces” in the above diagram. After this action the bushing with its jewels is immediately returned to its original position by the spring as shown in the animation above.

If you liked my video please jump over to youtube and like, comment and/or subscribe to my channel at Incabloc shock absorber system animation.

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Interested in learning Watch Repair & Clock Repair ? Tascione Online Clock & Watch Courses at Tascione.com

Making Clock Pinion and Wheel Cutters Part 5

In his 5th article – Making Clock Pinion and Wheel Cutters Part 5 – William Porter continues his video tutorial covering that all important topic of how to fabricate our own cycloidal clock pinion and wheel cutters by:

• Polishing the cutter blank using silicon carbide abrasives on his Schaublin 70 lathe.
• Sets up his Atlas horizontal mill and shows his calculations for offsetting a cutter to end up with a 7 degree radial clearance rake.
• He then cuts the clearance rake.
• Once again he shows how to further offset the cutter for the final removal of material from the back edge of the cutter teeth and makes the final cut.

This is an excellent, most helpful must see video for anyone with an interest in making clock pinion and wheel cutters.

His next video takes us into heat treating the clock pinion cutter and using it to cut a pinion.

If you enjoyed this video please go to Williams YouTube channel at Fabricating multi tooth cycloidal cutters for clocks, Part 5 “polishing & cutting the cutter teeth” and post a comment, like and Subscribe to his rapidly growing YouTube channel.

You can read more about ‘Making Clock Pinion and Wheel Cutters’ and other topics at Clock Repair Forum and then click on Paul and Williams forum called ‘The Clockmakers Forum – Designing, Building and Parts Fabrication’

If you are ever in need of clock repair or restoration work and or clock parts fabrication then visit William Porters website at BornAgainClocks.com

Get info packed Clock and Watch Repair reports in your mailbox. Just opt-in using the Blue Box on the right side of this page. Your email Will NOT be given to anyone and you can opt-out anytime you wish.

In case you missed them here are parts 1 through 4

1. Making Clock Gear Cutters part 1
2. Making Clock Gear Cutters part 2
3. Making Clock Wheel Cutters part 3
4. Clock Gear Cutter part 4

Making a Lever Spring for a Waterbury Clock

In this video William shows us his technique for making a lever spring for a Waterbury Clock. These springs are often broken or completely missing and are needed for proper functioning of lifting and locking levers used on almost all American made striking clocks from the 19th century.

Shown here is:

• Tools he made to wind a coiled spring and how he made them.
• Types and strengths of wire to use for making a lever spring.
• How to coil the spring to the correct length and diameter.
• How to ‘thread’ the spring onto a lever.
• How to fasten the spring to lever arms or pillar post.

As always William’s delivered a useful and informative video.

If you are in need of any clock repair or restoration work or clock parts fabrication you can visit William Porters website at Williams Website

If you enjoyed this video please go to Williams YouTube channel at Making a lever spring for a Waterbury Clock and help him by LIKING, Commenting and Subsribing to his channel to receive a message whenever he puts a new informative video up; which he’s been doing every few days.

Read more about Making a Lever Spring for a Waterbury Clock and other topics at Clock Repair Forum and then click on Paul and Williams forum called ‘The Clockmakers Forum – Designing, Building and Parts Fabrication’

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Clock Gear Cutter part 4

In his first three videos William Porter explained the theory involved in designing a cycloid clock gear cutter as well as showing us the tools he made that will be needed to make a final clock wheel cutter. In this video part 4 he takes us right into the set up process and then quickly machines the correct radius and flank profile for his clock gear cutter. Talking with William he explained that the actual fabricating of a clock wheel cutter from beginning to completion is much quicker and easier than it appears in the videos and once you have made a couple of them they can be machined, polished and heat treated within a couple of hours. Not bad at all considering the price of a new cutter when purchased.

Read more about this series on making a cycloid clock gear cutter at  the Clock Repair Tips Forum and then click on ‘The Clockmakers Forum – Designing, Building and Parts Fabrication’ or see the links below to access them here.  Also if you are in need of any clock repair or restoration work or clock parts fabrication you can visit William Porters website at Williams Website

If you enjoyed this video please go to Williams YouTube channel at Fabricating multi tooth cycloidal cutters for clocks, Part 4 “Forming the cutter profile” and give him a thumbs up and maybe post a comment and definitely Subscribe to his channel as he has been putting a new video up every few days and they are all very informative.

In case you missed the other videos here they are:

• Making Clock Gear Cutters part 1
• Making Clock Gear Cutters part 2
• Making Clock Wheel Cutters part 3
• Making Clock Pinion and Wheel Cutters Part 5

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Making Clock Wheel Cutters part 3

In the third video of the multi-video series on making clock wheel cutters William Porter continues his demonstration on making clock wheel cutters for cutting cycloidal clock pinions and clock wheels.
This video covers:

• Explanation of the radial flank angle of a cycloid tooth.
• How to arrive at this angle.
• Description of his home made tool holding sine bar.
• Why the sine bar is used rather than the lathe compound tool holder.
• Set-up of the sine bar on the lathe using gauge blocks (Jo blocks) for machining the exact radial flank angle on the gear cutting tool.

This is the final and necessary “set-up” video leading into the fourth video where William begins machining the cutter. Don’t worry if you didn’t grasp everything that was covered in the previous videos as all of this technical stuff will become clear in the the upcoming fourth machining video.

If you enjoyed this video please go to Williams YouTube channel at Making Clock Wheel Cutters Part 3 and give him a thumbs up and post a comment and definitely Subscribe to his channel as he has been putting a new video up every few days and they are all very informative.

Read more about ‘Making Clock Wheel Cutters’ and other topics at Clock Repair Forum and then click on Paul and Williams forum called ‘The Clockmakers Forum – Designing, Building and Parts Fabrication’ Also if you are in need of any clock repair or restoration work or clock parts fabrication you can visit William Porters website at Williams Website

• Making Clock Gear Cutters part 1
• Making Clock Gear Cutters part 2
• Clock Gear Cutter part 4
• Making Clock Pinion and Wheel Cutters Part 5

Get free info packed Clock and Watch Repair reports in your mailbox. Just opt-in using the Blue Box on the right side of this page. Your email Will NOT be given to anyone and you can opt-out anytime you wish.

Making Clock Gear Cutters part 1

In this very informative first video of a multi video series William Porter touches on some simple cycloid tooth form theory as well as some homemade tooling he constructed for making clock gear cutters.

This first video covers:

• Several books to learn about horological gear cutter theory and clock gear cutter theory.
• Making cutter blanks from W1 tool steel
• Making a mandrel to hold the completed gear cutters for cutting clock wheels.
• Various lathe setups for making needed tooling.
• Explains different types of multi tooth clock gear cutters and clock pinion cutters.

Making clock gear cutters part 1 is a is a great introduction into the fascinating field of horological gear cutting.

If you enjoyed this video please go to Williams YouTube channel at Fabricating multi tooth cycloidal cutters for clocks. Part 1 and give him a thumbs up and maybe post a comment and definitely Subscribe to his channel as he has been putting a new video up every few days and they are all very informative.

Read more about ‘Making Multi tooth Horological gear cutters’ and other topics at Clock Repair Tips Forum and then click on Paul and Williams forum called ‘The Clockmakers Forum – Designing, Building and Parts Fabrication’ Also if you are in need of any clock repair or restoration work or clock parts fabrication you can visit William Porters website at Williams Website

• Making Clock Gear Cutters part 2
• Making Clock Wheel Cutters part 3
• Clock Gear Cutter part 4
• Making Clock Pinion and Wheel Cutters Part 5
  Get free info packed Clock and Watch Repair reports in your mailbox. Just opt-in using the Blue Box on the right side of this page. Your email Will NOT be given to anyone and you can opt-out anytime you wish.

Making Clock Gear Cutters part 2

In this second video of the multi video series on making clock gear cutters William Porter takes us further into the interesting field of fabricating cycloidal clock gear cutters. These cutters can be quite expensive when purchased from supply houses so learning how to make our own can be a big money saver. Also the techniques and tooling such as the radius grinding jig that is shown in the video can be used in other horological machining. If you haven’t already seen “Making Clock Gear Cutters part 1” you can read it now by clicking Here.

This second video covers:

• Williams homemade radius grinding jig and how it works.
• How the radius grinding jig is setup on the lathe.
• Actual grinding of the form tool used for machining the multi tooth cycloidal clock gear cutter blank.
• How to adjust the camera angle to make your stomach appear larger. Just messing with you William! Watch the video and read Williams captions and you’ll understand.

Another very helpful video by William. If you enjoyed this video please go to Williams YouTube channel at Fabricating multi tooth cycloidal cutters for clocks Part 2 and give him a big thumbs up, post a comment and please Subscribe to his channel as his new channel has new, interesting clock repair and clock making content going up every few days.

Read more about ‘Making Multi tooth Horological gear cutters’ and other topics at Clock Repair Tips Forum and then click on Paul and Williams forum called ‘The Clockmakers Forum – Designing, Building and Parts Fabrication’ Also if you are in need of any clock repair or restoration work or clock parts fabrication you can visit William Porters website at Williams Website.

• Making Clock Gear Cutters part 1
• Making Clock Wheel Cutters part 3
• Clock Gear Cutter part 4
• Making Clock Pinion and Wheel Cutters Part 5
  Get free info packed Clock and Watch Repair reports in your mailbox. Just opt-in using the Blue Box on the right side of this page. Your email Will NOT be given to anyone and you can opt-out anytime you wish.