DO NOT try to polish a CAP JEWEL with PEGWOOD…

[maitai11]

…Like I did.

I’ll post a pic if anyone wants to see some really, really bad watchmaking work…

Tim?

[chris mabbott]

@maitai11 wrote:

I’ll post a pic if anyone wants to see some really, really bad watchmaking work…
Tim?

Of course that would be nice, visual ed 101 my brother, always, read, always, a photo reveals a thousand sins :ugeek:

Lets see what you’ve been up to before you damn ours and my friend, the humble pegwood 😆

[arutha]

If that cap jewel was already cracked and you pushed a bit with the pegwood it would fall apart. If you just managed to push it out of the setting then it is a lesson learned!
A photo would be good and then we can help you get it sorted
Paul.

[tmac1956]

Tim:

If you don’t have a microscope, this might be a good time to consider getting one. I’ve learned (through problems similar like this) to examine the jewels under serious magnification first – right after the disassembly process. I usually peg the jewels as the very last part of the cleaning process, but only to remove any particulate matter that might have survived the manual and ultrasonic cleaning processes that I use. I finish by using my blower to get rid of any wood remnants.

Thanks,
Tom

[maitai11]

Tom?

Can you and “Auntie Hat,” er, “Aunt Hattie” help me find a great 2nd hand, or cheap first hand microscope? Tom, what would be your first choice, knowing what you know and what you think could be good for me. Some binocular ones? Any favorites?

Would be wonderful help, Tom, thanks in advance.

Tim and Aunt Jemima

[chris mabbott]

Tim, what power loupe are you using?

As Tom mentions, microscopes are handy for inspection, especially for small wristwatch stuff.
I have a 0-30 mag which I never really use, because it’s just for inspection as there isn’t enough room for my liking between the lens and table.
So I use a 15-20 loupe.

It’s also a matter of touch and feel, sounds like you may have simply used too much force.
Also, if it was broken anyway, you did yourself a favor by finding it as it had to be changed.

If you lay a jewel/setting on a white surface, then use your loupe, you see even the smallest fracture with a 10x loupe, and I say that with being blind in one eye and not being able to see out the other LOL

Try not to become discouraged, we all do mad stuff, the kind that makes you shake your head with tongue out, making a flubblelubble noise 😆

[bernie weishapl]

I am with Chris. I use a 10x loupe and lay the jewel on a white piece of paper. Works like a charm. If it broke on ya I am guessing it was cracked anyway and better to find it now than put it in and find it only to have to disassemble again to fix it.

[tmac1956]

@maitai11 wrote:

Tom?

Can you and “Auntie Hat,” er, “Aunt Hattie” help me find a great 2nd hand, or cheap first hand microscope? Tom, what would be your first choice, knowing what you know and what you think could be good for me. Some binocular ones? Any favorites?

Would be wonderful help, Tom, thanks in advance.

Tim and Aunt Jemima

Tim:

Here’s the one that I bought. It’s an AmScope 20x-40x. This one is around $123.00
http://www.sears.com/amscope-se304-p-sharp-stereo-microscope-20-x/p-SPM7538247303

I spent and additional $35.00 to get the USB digital camera; it’s not really needed but it is nice.
http://www.amazon.com/AmScope-MD35A-Microscope-Imager-Digital/dp/B00AMOEFPA/ref=sr_1_1?s=industrial&ie=UTF8&qid=1427305475&sr=1-1&keywords=amscope+usb+camera

The thing I really like about this tool is that you have the ability to light from the top or from underneath. I’d found that the back lighting feature makes cracks and imperfections in a jewel jump right out at you with incredible clarity.

As Chris mentioned, the down side is that the focal length for this unit is not long enough to get under it to use many tools – in the vertical plane that is. The microscopes used for repair work are somewhat different and usually much more expensive. As was stated earlier, this unit is more suited for inspection rather than repair work.

Ultimately, my vision is practically useless in one eye and I have a cataract in the other, so the scope really helps me – probably more than those with full vision.

I hope this helps!
Tom

[maitai11]

OOOOOoooooooohhhhhhhh; Tom –

Thank you for that. I just purchased that exact model from William for a great price!

But it’s that CAMERA that I’m looking to get. I think I will What a great idea.

Thanks Chris, and Bernie. What I learned (HARD lesson) was that if I use a loupe, lighting, and a lightly applied sharpened piece-a-pegwood (tip o’ the hat, Bob ,) then I have no trouble at all…now, that is. Before? I’m pretty sure I just plowed right through a good jewel Now I gotta buy a new one. Or two. I’m going to inspect all of my balance jewels for this Sterling. And the pivots. It was sticking pretty badly when I first got it out. I never had that problem, ever, before. The pivot literally would not come out.

So, this little microscope I’ve acquired will come in handy, especially with that backlighting

Best,

Tim

[chris mabbott]

Next up…… Jacob Tool

[maitai11]

Chris, quit instigating. You know how easy it is for me to get sucked into tooling.

[Author]

Posts