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And after the toothpick polishing, I just have to give it a dip and a buff, but it’s lovely to see these parts shine again..
I’ll update as I progress, time for bed… Hope this will prove useful and/or enjoyable to someone, even though it is the basics..
Hey guys, Tom, I found out that napa sells brake cleaner in gallons. David, if you decide to man up, please dont put that speedo back on 😆 Chris, I have the same preference in pocket watches, the big heavy clunky ones, Excellent post, I like the way you are doing it, you have given me some ideas, thank you
William@david pierce wrote:
Chris,
Zippo lighter fluid is Naptha. I buy it by the gallon from a home improvement store over here called HOME DEPOT. When I mentioned that I used it to clean watch parts on the NAWCC forum it started a barage of nasty comments. One guy flashed his ROLEX credentials in my face and told me I “needed to man up and use L&R cleaner”. My thought when I saw the comment was ROLEX does not have a jerk filter when they issue their credentials. I have been using it in an ultrasonic cleaner and have been pleased with the way it works. I recently purchased a conventional L&R old time propeller/jar machine but it hasn’t come in yet. I somehow feel vindicated to see someone else using Naptha to clean watch parts.
davidDavid, I got the same response on NAWCC when I “admitted” to using naptha on a guys post, who was also using it, but I still use it anyway because it works well 😆
I also read in the old timers books that they used naptha, cyanide and a veritable array of dangerous and nasty chemicals that…worked. I’m not saying that it’s right, but individuals are allowed to make their own choices based on their experience and needs.
I suppose I can understand how those working professionally in the watch repair trade would frown at such “garden shed” methods, after all, soaking a 12,000+ euro rolex in zippo, kinda sounds bad 😆 But a nice relaxing day at the L&R spa, soaking in specially formulated solutions that will moisturize and rejuvenate your prize… that sounds acceptable and eases the stress of being without your watch for a few days.I actually really, really like the cleaning part, I get great pleasure and satisfaction from hand cleaning and polishing, I found that the ultra-sonic took that away, so that is one of the reasons I stopped using it for watches.
I’ll spend hours, days, just on the cleaning part, and whereas it isn’t economical, the joy is priceless and I feel that this is what counts more than anything, for me.I’m happy that I could inspire some new ideas, thank you for sharing that, makes my fun feel more useful
Chris
Nope, it wasn’t formagasket Randy, although that word brings back memories of having my fingers covered with that black gunk back in the late 70s when I last used it, not to forget its cousin permatex, same stuff only green haha
This was much cleaner and I’m damned if I can remember the brand. I’ll have to contact the boyz at the plant and get the name.
Fist the hair goes then the memory
Chris
Guys:
Because I am so broke from buying tools and machines
, I’m just using the seven jar method described in the Chicago School fo Watchmaking, lesson #10. I clean everything that way with the exception of the dial, the mainspring (which I replace), the hairspring (I use One Dip), and shellaced-in jewels (I run them through everything but the alcohol).I found the green soap here:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000R8K9B0/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_S_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=U0YONHI6WD7C&coliid=I2ZQCJ1ZI5XMG6I like David’s Naptha/Ultrasonic method and plan to eventually go that way unless he finds the L&R machine to be superior. Until then, I’ll just keep slogging along the old fashioned way.
Later,
Tom
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