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  • #48727
    garyk706
    Participant

      Will a light blowing on air , say every few months, onto a movement keep it clean by blowing off dust etc ?

      #54413
      willofiam
      Moderator

        Hey garyk706, it is possible that may help but the way I am thinking is; if the areas that have dust that can be blown off then areas that hold the oil will also have dust that cant be blown off, so it could be possible that blowing the dust off certain areas may cause it to get into other unwanted areas, It seems to me sometime in the past there was a similar question on the forum, I faintly remember the idea of keeping the dust out by using some kind of vacuum might be better than blowing the dust. just some of my own thoughts, maybe there are better ideas out there, have a good day, William

        #54414
        arutha
        Participant

          With dust in the atmosphere everywhere except under certain laboratory conditions you will not keep the dust out of anything. If you are talking about a watch movement then a well fitted case that is waterproof will do a very good job of keeping dust out as well as water, in fact the only way it can enter the mech is through the hand adjuster which to some degree (the setting lever has to pass through a small rubber “o”ring when it is pulled out and pushed in),will allow dead skin cells in to the movement each time you have to adjust the hands. If you are talking about the movement of a clock then each time the clock is wound, new air with new dust particles will be admitted through the winding arbor holes when the clock is wound and also around the front glass bezel as most are not water tight when closed and through any doors to the case.
          In both cases, the motion of the mechanism i.e metal against metal even with lubricant will create minute metal particles which help to contaminate the oil in any watch or clock. Blowing the movement with air as William has already stated will more than likely just move around any dust particles which are already there, there wouldn’t be much advantage in doing this, keeping the movement in some form of sealed container would be of more benefit.
          Hope that helps?

          #54415
          david pierce
          Participant

            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

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