Motivation

[chris mabbott]

I’ve recently made a deal with self, it kinda goes like this ….

I solemnly swear that I will not work on any new watches until I complete my outstanding backlog…

Pretty simple huh, but when I recently went to put yet another, waiting for parts, movement, into my “to complete” cupboard I had no room!
So I’ve been guilty of the sin of never finishing the old while vigorously pursuing the new.. Even though I’ve had the required parts for …. Years 😳

What added to the full cupboard syndrome guilt trip was the wording of an ad during a casual search on the various auction sites,, I saw one of the usual loads of crap bulk watch stuff sales but the sellers description made me think…. it went like this….

“A bulk lot from a house clearance sale, the previous owner was a hobbyist who has tons of movements, all in pieces, apparently he never finished anything he started”

Sounds very familiar, So, I’ve started my revival and it took me three days to determine what was wrong with what item as my record keeping back then was not a good as it is now, in fact for most, I didn’t even have a detailed photographic reference 😮

The points to this are….

1. I can see now how my cleaning techniques have greatly improved to what they were 5, 3, 2 yrs ago, what was acceptable then I now deem as poor.

2. I can see how my skill level and confidence have improved.

3. You notice how this hobby can discretely empty your coffers 😆

3. OH NO I’m a hoarder!!!

So I’m now highly motivated to get these up and running because of my desire to work on those incoming from my favorite client….. ME

[david pierce]

Chris,
I think it was Dewey Clark who said “a watchmaker gets his shop the way he wants it just in time for his widow to sell it”.
david

[bernie weishapl]

Dewey was right on David. I have about 25 or 30 clocks plus about 20 watches that belong to me that need attention but just keep adding to the pile. Like you Chris I always say when my clock/watch repair slows down I will get to some of them and get them completed. Problem is everytime I think I will get to them a deluge of clocks come thru the door. I still go to garage sales, auctions, etc and still buy more. My wife told me the other day I need to get these clocks and watches fixed then get them tagged so if something happens to me she or son won’t have to worry about getting things sold. So slowly but surely I have started working on a clock or watch of mine in between repairs for customers. I am also making a inventory of my shop tools both in the woodworking shop and clock shop so she or son has some idea of what things are worth.

So Chris you aren’t the only one with a dilemma.

[chris mabbott]

😆 😆 that’s a good one David and it’s apparently sooo true 😥

Bernie I wonder why that is, that we just keep building the pile higher?

The funny thing is… I’ve been looking for a hard to find movement that was produced in a low number, 180 on one run, I’ve been looking for it for about 8 months… I start to go through my backlog and VIOLA I have one in pieces from about 3 yrs ago 😆 the great news is that I also had the parts needed to repair it.
It’s an Illinois with a really strange winding/setting mechanism.. Maybe it was a prototype, possibly to stop tinkering by none qualified repairers, as this was an issue back then? I don’t know but it’s a pain to service and work on as the setup is semi permanent.

[david pierce]

Bernie,
By the way the screwdrivers in the picture you posted look like good tools. I hope they work as good as they look in your picture. If you get an extra $30.00 burning a hole in your pocket try out a set of STELLA tweezers from RED ROOSTER UK. I bought a set and like them. I also bought some tweezers called VIOLA (INOX) which turned out to be excellent high precision tools. A couple of years ago I bought a set from FINDING KING called MOON that were unusable out of the box. I spent hours grinding the tips in with a sharpening stone to make them work properly. The only tweezers I have found so far that have no lower cost counterpart are the DUMONT #5s.
david

[tmac1956]

All:

Speaking of tagging things, how many of you have taken pictures (and provided a value) of your shop contents for insurance purposes – or so the widow will know what to ask for selling your stuff on eBay?

Hmmm…
Tom

[arutha]

@tmac1956 wrote:

All:

Speaking of tagging things, how many of you have taken pictures (and provided a value) of your shop contents for insurance purposes – or so the widow will know what to ask for selling your stuff on eBay?

Hmmm…
Tom

That is on my “To Do” list! 😳

Chris, I too have a mountain of clocks from my early days, it seems i wanted to buy and fix every clock on the planet. I was also in the same situation as you, I have things in plastic tubs requiring unlearnt skills/parts and the other day after taking yet another watch to pieces(and finding the canon pinion missing )I went to get one of my tubs and there were none left. I then looked around the workshop and noted at least 12, yes 12 plastic tubs with unfinished projects in them. Time to get stuck into my backlog too!
Paul.

[chris mabbott]

C’mon then Paul my lad, lets have ya moving or do I have to come over to jolly ole and motivate ya 😆 Actually I’ll be on the island this week, for a week. How’s the weather?

Anyway, when we’re finally reunited with the energy stream, we won’t really care if someone sells our stuff and publicly claims that it belonged to a do-nowt 😆

[bernie weishapl]

David I do like the screwdrivers. They are about as good as the bergeon blades I got I think. I like the revolving stand. I just bought a set of stella tweezers for about $22.50 but not from the UK. Anyway will see when they get here. The tweezers I got from Finding King are fair and probably will do for like clock work. Will see how long they last. 😆

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