Reply To: Hair spring , stud,and a wedge

[david pierce]

Watchdog,
As far as the timing problem with the goes, someone probably turned the MEAN TIME SCREWS in thinking they were loose. These screws should look different than the other (balance) screws and will affect the timing of the watch by about 2 to 4 seconds per hour per 1/2 turn. If they have been tampered with they will have to be balanced back in using a poising tool. The other problems you have now have some good news and a lot of bad news. The good news is most watchmakers do not like to work on ladies watches because the parts are so tiny that a microscope is almost a requirement to work on them. This also means that there are bags and bags of broken ladies watches that can be had for a very small amount of money. Uncle larry’s Watch Shop can send you a bag of them for about $10.00. There are also a few really good books on watch repair that are available on Ebay such as: THE WATCH REPAIRER’S MANUAL, PRACTICAL WATCH REPAIR, WATCH REPAIR FOR BEGINNERS, WATCH REPAIR. These should be purchased and studied. The bad news is you did not take some broken cheap ladies watches apart first, to see what you are going to be up against with a customers watch. Getting the spring back into the stud and repinning it is a tough challange; even with a microscope. The spring length was initially set with a SPRING VIBRATING TOOL and was probably the correct length before removal. If you can get it back into the stud and get the pin back in, try and get it back to its original position. Also check the spring for any debris, pits or rust (preferably with a microscope) as these will affect the timing. Ladies watches have parts that are so small I feel that ordinary watch repair tools are not up to the task of working on them. I know that this statement is going to draw a barage of GOTCHA statements but that is my opinion. If you do not already have a digital watch timing machine you will need to get one. This will give you the beat and amplitude before taking the watch apart. If you can get your hands on a cheap throw away watch practice removing the outer hairspring and puting it back before returning to the cusomers watch.
david