Reply To: Keep movement clean

[david pierce]

Garyk706,
Have you ever spilled oil on your garage floor and threw a handfull of crushed absorbing rock (kitty litter) on the spill. The crushed rock absorbes the oil and dries up the spill. Dust does the same thing to the movement surfaces in a watch. I have taken many watches apart that would not work, and upon inspection with a microscope found the oil to be dried up. These are tiny parts lubricated with a small amount of oil so it does not take a lot of dust to change the viscosity of the oil and gum up the works. This can be especially problematic for a watch because they operate with such little power when compared to a clock. If you are working on a movement on your bench, any type of glass cover will help keep most of the room dust off of the movement when you are not working on it. I bought some desert glasses from Walmart for $2.00 each and they work fine.
david