These are watchmaking school level videos for free, for everyone. Thank you for making these, they're undoubtedly bringing my amateur watchmaking to the next level.
I have learned more in just a few months of these videos, than I have from several years of watching other UA-cam watch channels. The details make a huge difference between learning how to do something correctly and just how to roughly get it right if you are lucky.
Hey man, I’m glad to here this format is doing it for you. These videos are never going to get big numbers but for the ones that just want to learn something, they seem to scratch that itch. Lots more coming.
This has to be the best, most in-depth, video on servicing the barrel and mainspring on UA-cam. Well done... I bookmark every video you make so I can come back for future reference.
I have been restoring and servicing mechanical watches for about 3 years now and I have to say I learned some new things here. Thanks so much for sharing your knowledge and tips. Very helpful. I have used a tooth pick in the barrel arbor ports primarily for cleaning purposes but you now give me more reasons to inspect these areas and polish if necessary. Alex, right or wrong, one of the things I do before running the barrel through the watch cleaning solvents is hand clean the barrel and arbor parts in solvent using a small brush to remove the bulk of the dried grease etc. Blow dry. I then take a Q-tip and use a small amount of Wenol orange metal polish and go around the inside of the barrel surfaces of both the lid and lower barrel assembly to remove haze and put a high polish on these surfaces. Clean excess polish out with a clean Q-tip and re-clean in solvent with a brush. Then I run through my cleaning machine for final cleaning. I have been getting good results with this method. Thoughts. Could you also cover lubrication of the mainspring if re-using a spring? Do you run a thin film of lubricate along the mainspring using folded watch paper up to and including the bridle or leave the bridle dry? John S
Your precleaning is on point. There really is no right or wrong way to do it just as long as you do, Right. I touched on mainspring lubrication briefly in the lubrication video, but, yes, I clean it first with the Watch paper, then a thin film with paper and one more to leave a fine film of the grease and that’s it.
I can't send money, so I will NOT SKIP ADDS! I will mute sound and let the adverts play through. I hope you will be compensated by YT like you should be. I really appreciate the information you provide and will support you anyway I can for it. Unfortunately this is the best I can do for now. Six minutes worth of adds watched before this video, make sure you get paid! Aloha
You are amazing! I've been thinking about this "mainspring winder" issue for days. I can't thank you enough for these videos. Huge respect for educating the ""next generation". (a very very beginner from Hungary ...)
Your videos are excellent. I appreciate your work and generosity in sharing these. I've been doing this ten years now and taken several professional classes at AWCI. I cringe at some of the blind-leading-the-blind content I see on the internet. Yours, though, is detailed, very well explained, professional, and correct. A great resource for review or for people new to the field. Thank you!
Another great one again. Winders area still in the future, at the moment buying new springs is making more sense to me. Always appreciate the time and effort you put into these videos. Thanks teacher.
I just discovered your channel and it is incredible! I have immediately subscribed and really hope you I'll continue posting. The knowledge you are sharing is top notch and will be very useful to me as a hobbyist watchmaker. You deserve many many more subs. Thank you!
Thank you sir, I have a 150 specific topics planed starting with the basics and building up from there. I am also going to be doing movement services and showing the adjusting and regulating process. Glad to have you.
Another outstanding lesson. I learned the hard way that those Chinese mainspring winders, even the ones with the steel arbor, don't do the job and are pretty much a waste of money. I bought my first set off of Amazon and so, I had the option to quickly return it for a refund hassle free. Since then, I have been buying RH winders in the size that I need at the time. The problem that I have with buying individual winders is getting one whose barrel is small enough to fit inside the mainspring barrel and at the same time, be large enough to hold all of the wound mainspring. And just as important, the winder needs to have an arbor that is large enough to grab the mainspring and not too big where it may stretch the mainspring out of shape. Bergeon sells individual winders adapted to particular Calibres and they also sell winders by the barrel diameter. So I believe that it is important that the winder's arbor closely matches that of the mainspring arbor of the watch and yet fit into the mainspring barrel and be able to hold all of the mainspring. What are your thoughts on this?
I think you summarized it really well. That’s the main reason I use the WatchCraft set for a lot of pocketwatch springs, because the winding stems seem to be better suited for the larger inner coils.
Why am I just now finding your channel!? Amazing through teaching. Well produced video. Great information and game changing tips. Someone posted your IPA video on a FB forum and now I'm binge watching everything of yours. Keep the great work
Well Brian, it is definitely great to have you. The videos I make I never going to get millions of years I know that that’s not what I do this. The purpose of this channel is to provide home watchmakers information that they don’t get anywhere else. These are topics that don’t have a high search but can save a new watchmaker a lot of time and grief.
Alex, another great and very informative video. The only thing you could have added in the end is how to know which spring we need if the old one is broken or something else. According to what principle and how to buy a new one. Length, width or something else. I don't know if you have made a video so far on how to know which parts we need in a certain hour if we lose or have to replace. Well, if you haven't, here's another idea.
I’ve done several videos pertaining to this subject. Here is one in sourcing watch parts, ua-cam.com/video/viq9-V1sv7M/v-deo.htmlsi=2BpFVCF7d2DerYSA Mainspring sizes for movements are widely available online. If you can’t find a reliable source, here is a video on how to figure out the mainspring size on your own. ua-cam.com/video/BEfB8ZWoeII/v-deo.htmlsi=VYvA90B1PO-e_lh_
@@watchrepairtutorials so I have the Daniels book and the Fried book. I have read them both many times. But the way you explain it just really breaks it down. Of course video form is going to always be better, but just how you are so easily to understand. Also I love the fact that you seem personable and that you talk like me. With cuss words lol.
@@NoBoW73 LOL, well I had to stop the cussing for various reasons. Thanks, I’m working on smoothing out the delivery right now. Talking to a camera is not as easy as you would think. Hope to see you again.
@@watchrepairtutorials oh I didn’t realize you wasn’t cussing anymore. Lol. And trust me I’m not going anywhere I’m doing a deep dive on all your videos now. Keep it up brother.
Thank you very much. I really enjoyed watching your video this evening and I feel I have learned some very valuable lessons which will hopefully hold me in very good stead for the future. I'm looking forward to looking at some of your other tutorials on another evening. My very best wishes and kind regards to you. Howard.
Another winner! I’ve been struggling to decide whether to go for the set of Chinese winders that you showed (inexpensive but with brass hooks) versus a used vintage winder on eBay (somewhat risky) or to get the set from Bergeon (expensive enough to induce panic attacks!). Your suggestion of just buying the essential Bergeon winders and a single handle seems like the best choice that I hadn’t considered. I also appreciated your clarification of the red vs blue winders - it’s a bit tricky reading the descriptions because the orientation in the winder is the opposite of how it looks when inserted into the barrel. You’re a wonderful teacher!
Well Paul it’s like I said I typically use new main Springs but there are occasions especially in our pocket watches where you have to unwind the spring because the coil is too large for the barrel.
There is one brand of Chinese mainspring winders that do use steel for the arbors. I tried them once and I immediately returned them. They are on Amazon. Since then, I have been buying individual Bergeon winders and never looked back. I found that not only does the barrel of the winder need to fit into the mainspring barrel but the winder's arbor needs to be of the correct size as well. I learned this one the hard way: I bought a winder by diameter and whose barrel would fit inside the mainspring barrel, but the diameter of that particular winder's arbor was too small. So, I had to go back and purchase a nearly identical winder but one that was calibre specific.
@@tropicalspeed22 Thanks, I agree that it makes the most sense to buy the Bergeon winders and handles to meet your needs. As a hobbyist I don’t need a collection of winders to accommodate all possibilities- just a subset to accommodate my needs. And if those needs change in the future then I can buy new winders as needed. Quality always wins out in the end! Thanks!
These just get better with each video, thanks Alex! Terrific info about the mainspring winders, this is exactly what I have needed for reference as I practice doing this. Oh and that arbor vise looks extremely useful, and I never see any other channels use it really. Think I will have to pick one up -- *sigh*, yet another tool to add to the list 😁Looks like it's a Bergeon 30610 for anyone else looking for it.
Such a great series to find right at the beginning of getting my toes wet in this hobby. As much as I love the ASMR zen restoration videos, a lot of the finer points and techniques kind of get skipped over. Thanks for putting this together!
I have the Watch-craft mainspring winder set. It has the barrel size and arbor size that fit most of the Bulova and Gruen watches I repair. I have the Chinese set also, but the arbor sizes usually make them unusable.
I use my watch craft set for mainly pocket watch springs. What’s the problem with the arbor size on the Chinese winders, too small? Are they crass or steel ?
@@watchrepairtutorials Alex, I love the hair down! Other video ideas might be correcting the shape of hair springs, removing hair springs, cannon pinions (removal tools compared, re sizing, what tools to use, how much friction is needed). Fitting hands, sounds easy but tricky, which tools. Fitting poly crystals and the tools to remove and fit. Broaching (smoothing and cutting). Staking sets and what all the different stakes and anvils are for (I bought a vintage small set, I don’t know what most do, I have only tried it for making plate holes smaller, like for barrel, and resizing cannon pinions). Cleaning hands and dials. Polishing screw heads if you don’t have a lathe. Bluing hands and screws if you have no equipment, the minimum you need. How far you can polish chrome cases before you go through to brass. I’ll stop😀
@@boydsargeant7496 LOL I never know what to do where it up or where it down. Most of the suggestions are already in the list that I have which is about 150 different videos. Coming soon I’m going to be the calendar works, identifying movements and sourcing parts, and then the ultrasonic cleaning machine. Then I’m going into basic repairs including replacing all the crystals, casework, setting hands, luming and adjusting the size, and some others I can’t think of right now. I’ve got a whole series based around the escapement, Inspecting and correcting, Replacing all jewels, A series for the staking set, Everything that you can do with the staking set and what all the different stumps are for, with examples. And of course Hairspring work as well. Oh I’m also going to be working in full services, with corrections to get the Deltas low. Busy busy
Alex, as always, extremely helpful and I've finally signed up for the paid membership as I feel I have more than gotten help from these completely free videos. I have avoided even looking at mainsprings due to the cost of buying quality winders. I didn't want to cheap out on one, and your bonus tip made so much sense. Just so I understand though, if I needed say a #7 winder, I would get the #7 (let's just get the red one - right handed), and either handle (does direction not matter or how would I use it if I needed to go left handed and bought the right handed handle). And since the winder will normally come with a winder (arbor part), if I needed to wind the counter direction, I would just get the left (blue) one? So for example, if I need a #7 right hand, I would get Bergeon #7 right hand winder, a right hand handle, and If I wanted to use it left hand wind, then I would need an arbor to match the same size as the #7 ( I was hoping I would not need to buy one for each size, but it looks like you must). I'm really confused on the handle though.
Thank you and welcome aboard. When it comes to mainspring winders my typical advice is just put in a new mainspring then you don't need a Winder. If you're working on pocket watches, you can typically pick up a set of vintage pocket watch winders for a couple 100 bucks. Just remember that Swiss mainspring barrels typically use red or right-hand winders Japanese movements blue or left-hand winders. If you plan on working on Swiss and Seiko movements, then you need both they're not interchangeable because the hook direction is different on the Winder. In the short term, I would just install new mainsprings and not worry about using old mainsprings which is really the only reason you need a Winder.
@@watchrepairtutorials Okay, sounds like a plan. I take it all of the new mainsprings come in that packaging where you can just wiggle/slide/push them into the barrel.
@@perrybucsdad with the exception of some new old stock pocket watch main springs. The storage rings are too large, and the mainspring coil is too big to fit in the barrel.
Heh, I’ve always installed the spring on the winder arbour first, then put that into the winder. Neat tip on doing it the other way around; I’ll give that a go. Thanks!
Excellent video like any of your other videos, Alex! I appreciate you taking the time to impart your wisdom with all of that are in the process of learning! I have been fixing watches for about 7 years as a hobbyist, but I would love to learn more to do it more professionally and maybe do works for other people’s watches, and I feel that your videos are amazingly helpful and super clear to understanding. I saw where you are doing watchmaking classes, and I would be really interested in taking those classes so I can hopefully one day be as good of a watchmaker as you are!
ua-cam.com/video/BxpVygssz6w/v-deo.html The hobbyist watchmaker Russian watch maybe a new vid It’s about 12 mins into the vid I like the idea of buying as needed from bourgeon 👍
This is a real Master Class. It covers more aspects that I even thought I would need to take care of. Congratulations and thanks very much for this wonderful class! I am just hoping that the lesson(s) on Balance and Hairspring come quick!!! By the way, any recommendation on the barrel arbor holder size? (2mm for Omega 330/550 ?) Thanks again
Thanks Fernando, I have hairspring videos planned but they will be awhile. What exactly is the problem you are having ? The arbor vise I use most of the time is the 1.5 mm. This is the Bergeon 30610
@@watchrepairtutorials Thanks for your answer. I am all thumbs handling the balance system (it takes ages for me to do it): Disarming the balance from the bridge and putting back together and of course fixing hairsprings, especially those with over coil!
Hi Alex! I've been an enthusiast watch repairer for the past five years, but I still learn something new every time I watch your videos. So, thank you very much! 👍 That barrel arbor holder was new to me. I did some research and discovered they come from Bergeon in different sizes. Can you please let me know what size or sizes you would recommend? Thank you!
Great videos, I’m fairly new to the hobby but learning exponentially. Question, what is the best braking grease to use? I’ve heard everything from Kluber P-125 to Moebius 8201, 8301, 8213, 8217, graphite based grease, on and on. I don’t think you mentioned it here, also, is there a synthetic alternative for braking grease? I really like the other synthetics you have mentioned in other videos like the 9010, HP 1300, 9504, and 9415. I don’t really want to spring for the outrageously priced Kluber P-125 though. Thanks!
8213 is fine. The Kluber is great and is what I use but it’s a little pricey. Lubrication is hotly debated. Remember you don’t need the BEST. You just need it to work.
Thanks for the content, you are helping me a lot. I have a question, I'm just starting out and I don't know whether to buy a normal table with a low chair or buy a high table because my back hurts hahah. Thanks again. 🤜🏻🤛🏻
@@watchrepairtutorials My room is about 3 X 4 meters and I have 700€ left. I already bought the essential watchmaking tools like screwdrivers, tweezers, etc... But I feel like i'm not doing good because I can't study continuously for more than 30/40 minutes hahaha 😄 Thanks for answering me 🤜🏻🤛🏻
@@jesusm6759 the bench I sit at are made from 2 kitchen base Cabinets with in the US are 87.6 (34 1/2 inch) centimeters. Ones has all drawers, the 2nd is 1 drawer and a door for storing larger items. Then I have a 4 ft butcher block top on it. Any kind of top like laminate or wood can be used. Then I use an adjustable chair so that I can adjust the working height , so my shoulders are about the level of the top. This set up with all the storage from the drawers cost be about 300 USD
@@watchrepairtutorials Ok, I will try to find something similar, I think i'll get an adjustable chair first, greetings from Spain, thanks for your time and dedication, you're content is GOLD. Have a nice day teacher 🤜🏻🤛🏻
Dear Alex, when you’re polishing the lid hole it seems you’re doing the opposite you say, from inside to out. Could you please explain that for this poor newbie here? Thank you and I hope to be back soon on Patreon. All the best!
Good catch my friend. If you’re using a toothpick or anything, that’s tapered, you DO want to polish from the outside of the lid in. I can’t believe I missed that and you’re the first one appointed out so well done .
Thank you so much for these videos! I got started about a year ago so I'm still new, and the detail you put into these is fantastic. Every other video, including paid videos, glosses over the details about how to use a mainspring winder and it took me a while to get it right. Your video helped me improve right away! Sadly i had already bought the full Bergeon kit lol I'll most definitely be watching the whole series you have posted. Do you have a Patreon page?
I do. I have just started posting my Master series videos to Patreon which will concentrate mostly on the escapement and the finer points of regulation. In addition I am in the process of adding in a private Reddit sub for members that will allow me to help members with issues they are having. Alex
Fantastic--best explanation, UA-cam or book, I have come across. Wish I had seen this before buying the Chinese version and the several eBay vintage winders (although they look cool on the table). Thanks.
Hi Alex! Just found these videos since I'm hoping to pick up this hobby and gotta say these are great! You are going into the details and I love that. One thing that popped in my mind watching this video is that would it be beneficial to polish the bottom of the mainspring barrel and the lid from the inside? Is the spring rubbing against these surfaces under normal operation or only if the spring is "coned"? Thanks for the videos, I'll keep binging these now! -Tony
Very good question. The mainspring is designed to sit in between the lid and bottom of the barrel. If it's coned and dragging on either the top or bottom, no amount of polishing or oil is going to prevent the amplitude from dropping . This is why it's best to not hand wind mainsprings and to install a new spring if you don't have a winder and the spring is still flat. 🤙
Another great video! Is there a rule of thumb for how many complete turns (360 degrees) the barrel should be able to go through before the mainspring slips in an automatic watch? I'm trying to run down a low amplitude issue in a Bulova 11AOACB and wondering if I used too much braking grease.
It shouldn’t be slipping before 7 -8 revolutions of the barrel. Want to have some fun ? Install the spring dry and see how much amplitude you can get. That will tell you for sure if it’s in the barrel or somewhere else.
@@watchrepairtutorials That sounds like a good idea, I'll do one more eval of the train and if I can't find an issue I'll go that route. Thanks for the reply, I really appreciate that you take the time to make these videos and then answer questions from us beginners.
Hi Alex, I’m curious about your barrel arbor vise. What is/are the most common size(s) do you use? Any good alternative to the Bergeon’s? Your videos are so insightful, I find myself rewatching them as references while working on watches. Thank you so much. - David
Hi David, Unfortunitly no, I have never seen any other versions of this tool. There are other sliding vises but none with the jaws like the Bergeon. I have both the 1.0 and 1.5 mm and use the 1.5 most of the time. Hope this helps. Alex
Great videos, really impressive. I have a question please as I'm looking at getting a few winders as suggested and not a whole set. You said (22.35) that it doesn't matter if you get a left hand or right hand handle, just get one. Does that mean the individual winding barrels (Red or Blue) would work with either a Red or Blue handle then. Many thanks.
No. It depends on what type movement rd you work on Swiss typically are right handed or red winders and Japanese movements are are usually blue or left handed
@@reagannaidoo1981 well, you can start at the beginning and tell me everything you did through your service. It could be an issue in the powertrain or it could be an issue in the escapement.
Hi Alex, Another great video. I will be installing a new mainspring for a Seiko 5 automatic from 1969. Does new mainspring already comes with the braking grease? If not, is there a less expensive alternative for the 8213 braking grease? What will happen if I don't put braking grease on the barrel wall. Thanks again for your help.
Not really. That’s about as inexpensive as it gets. Without the breaking grease, the main spring is not able to slip inside the barrel. This can lead to all sorts of problems.
You can watch this video at about 8:40 on how to clean a mainspring. ua-cam.com/video/W7LSPeUF1ho/v-deo.html Once clean, you apply a small amount of 8200 to the mainspring and wipe off the excess. For a manual wind movement that's all the lubrication, but in a manual wind you need to apply a barrel grease like I do in this video. The mainspring in a automatic has to be able to slip around the barrel. this is all covered in this video.
Thanks for another amazing video in the series. I am about to attempt lubrication and assembly of my first watch which is an automatic (Seiko 6309A). After watching this video I have ordered a new mainspring; quick question, what grease is used on the wall of the barrel? Thank you.
I have a Spinnaker with an NH35 movement and my timegrapher reads 240 amplitude. Is this something I should consider servicing or am I overthinking that it is just under 250 amplitude acceptable rate? Thank you for all this great content!!
Your welcome Fran I use 2 different ones. Kluber P125 and Mobius 8213. P125 has become a requirement for many Watch brands today and is slightly thicker or stronger than 8213. So I get a little more amplitude at a full wind at 0 hours. That should also give a little more at 24 hrs as well. With that said, it is like 4 times the cost of 8213. For most work though you should be fine with 8213, so that’s what I would recommend.
@@watchrepairtutorials si, estoy usando los subtítulos, entiendo un poquito el ingles jeje, me gusta mucho el contenido que haces, soy un relojero cubano en miami. Que podrías decirme de la lubricación seca PTFE tipo epilame que usan las casas relojeras en sus muelles reales, e usado moebius 8200 a lo largo del muelle real y lo e limpiado a fin de dejar una delgada capa de esta grasa pero aun así no me convence del todo porque es una grasa que solo dura 3 años y puede crear vacío en las espiras del muelle real y perder potencia a lo que yo supongo.
Solo una historia rápida, hace muchos años viví en Miami Beach. Esto fue antes de que South Beach existiera. Nos encantaba ir a Little Havana y conseguir mi plato cubano favorito, Ropa Vieja. Nunca he oído hablar de que se aplique a un resorte de reloj solo en resortes de reloj y usan productos que nunca usarías en un barril de reloj. Los resortes reales modernos vienen con un recubrimiento de teflón y no necesitan lubricación, incluso después de la limpieza. El propósito del 8200 es evitar la oxidación o la corrosión, no reducir la fricción en el cañón. Solo requiere la más fina de las películas que no debería crear ninguna resistencia en el futuro. Cuando el resorte principal se enrolla, la bobina interior se enrolla en la siguiente bobina exterior y así sucesivamente para que no haya fricción en una cantidad medible. En un resorte real correctamente centrado, el resorte no toca la parte superior o inferior del barril, por lo que tampoco hay fricción allí. Si el resorte principal es cónico y roza la parte superior o inferior del cañón, ninguna cantidad de 8200 ayudará en esta situación. Espero que esto responda a tu pregunta, si no, házmelo saber y lo seguiré. Alex@@jorgeluislopezherrera4166
@@watchrepairtutorials hola, gracias por responder, jajaja si probaras la comida en cuba es aun mejor en los mejores locales particulares porque del gobierno no recomiendo nada, estoy de acuerdo en todo lo que me as dicho, te comentaba lo del ptfe o teflón ya que la mayoría de las cuerdas mas viejas están literalmente pulidas dígase diez, quince, o mas años, despreciando deformaciones de cualquier tipo en la cuerda y fatiga del metal seria bueno aplicar el teflón nuevamente ya que este incorpora las propiedades de lubricidad y protección contra la oxidación. Me e fijado que las cuerdas nuevas de rolex vienen con la delgada capa blanca de teflón que con el tiempo se va perdiendo por motivos fiscos como presión, enrollamiento y desenrollamiento, la estructura química de la capa que lo recubre, parámetros ajenos a la voluntad nuestra. Ahora parto desde el punto de una suposición técnica, que era lo que le comentaba del vacío de la grasa entre expiras ya que se deben despegar unas de otras uniformemente sin que ocurra una deformación que provoque fricción entre dichas vueltas o contra una cara x del tambor. Todo este tema lo planteo porque no me siento satisfecho con la grasa aunque sea la mejor opción, por eso quiero probar otros lubricantes secos con ptfe del tipo en aerosol o epilame que no dejen residuos grasos y obtener esa delgada capa sobre el muelle real esto lo probare en mis relojes personales y comparar sus amplitudes y sino funciona seguir como siempre. Llege de cuba como inmigrante hace 11 meses, en cuba bajo un raro caso se abría el barrilete por lo que si estaba dañado se remplazaba, ahí lo que mas se trabaja es orient, seiko y citizen grasas solo tenia dos que avia creado mi maestro pero no me gustaban pq se evaporaban muy rapido, asta que descubrí aceite mineral en la farmacia que no se evaporaba y obtenía amplitudes cercanas a 240 y 250 grados, el barrilete nunca se lavaba a menos que soltara su grasa por los apollos del arbol del barril. Yo tengo un citizen de 1970 que con estas grasa mineral lo que mas obtenía eran 256 grados de amplitud asta que llegue acá a los eeuu, y en el taller de mi hermano limpime mi reloj completamente, el barrilete solo engrase la pared donde desliza la cuerda, la cuerda la limpie y la monte, engrase con cada grasa que correspondía a cada lugar, contar que el apoyo del árbol del cubo en la platina tiene un leve desgaste al igual que en el pivote de la rueda primera del lado del piñón y perdía precisión de lado antiguamente con la grasa mineral y con las otras que avía elaborado mi mentor ni alcanzaba 250. Después de todo el servicio obtuve lecturas de 290 grados y estabilizo en 300 grados, ahi fue cuando vi la verdadera importancia de cada tipo de grasa, el epilame y la importancia de limpiar un barrilete antiguo. Si leíste asta el final disculpa por el texto, fue que me emocione jajajaja. y créeme en español no hay mucha información de relojería en américa. tu contenido es como un tesoro para las nuevas generaciones que se quieren formar y no ven posibilidades en ninguna casa relojera.
@@jorgeluislopezherrera4166 Parece que sabes mucho sobre este tema. Si conoce algún producto que pueda recomendar para la aplicación de teflón algo similar, por favor hágamelo saber. También me gustaría hacer algunos experimentos. Bienvenido a América hermano.
Question : with that polishing method for the arbor, is there any risk of damaging the square end that the ratchet wheel sits on? Should any precautions be taken in this regard when polishing that particular end of the arbor?
The Polinum is really just polishing and only removes superficial scratches, so no it not going to reshape the end. If you it’s badly scratches you can apply the either use a fine silicon disk and cut off a straight piece and come in from the flat side of the arbor, use a burnished or even square up a piece of peg wood and charge it with diamond paste
Hi Alex, quick question. What size brass tweezers are you using in the video when you’re removing the winding handle from the main spring winder (17:00)? I have a pair of gold plated brass 1AM’s, but they look too fine for using for that purpose. Thanks in advance.
@@watchrepairtutorials thank you Alex. I had narrow it down to either the bronze Bergeon 7421-PM-B5 or Brass Bergeon 7422-PM-AM Brass Tweezers which have slightly larger tips at 0.21 x 0.32 x 125mm. Any reason to buy brass over bronze or vice versa?
@@russellbiofish Well bronze is harder so It is less likely to need dressing as much as brass. Honestly there is not a huge difference other than that.
That’s actually a really good question. The issue with a standard pin vice, which is usually a three or four jaw, is that they tend to mar or put marks on the arbor, which is bad. The arbor vise has two jaws each being a half circle, so they grip the round arbor without damaging it.
@@wmueller0614 here is a link. www.jewelerssupplies.com/barrel-arbor-holder-bergeon-30610-1-50mm.html I didn’t realize they are this expensive now. Maybe shop around.
Bergeon makes a barrel arbor holder that looks like what you are using. They offer them in 5 different sizes and cost about $55 each, but each one is only good for that size barrel. I understand that most folks probably don’t need all the sizes, but if someone already has a complete set of pin vises, couldn’t they use one of those? Or is that not a good idea?
There are a couple differences between a regulate pin vise and the arbor vise. The first is the shape of the jaws. On the Bergeon 306010, the jaws are half round, so they clamp to the round arbor with out leaving any small marks on the metal which would be bad. The second difference is that the jaws are locked with a sliding ring as opposed to a threaded screw to close the jaws. This enables you to install and remove the vise with one hand while holding the barrel with the other. For what its worth I use the the 150 size which works on most arbors that I work on.
@@watchrepairtutorials Thanks. That all makes perfect sense. Of all the many videos I have watched, everyone else has used tweezers to reinstall the barrel arbor, but then again, most of them have also fumbled around a few times getting it reinstalled. As always, I learn a lot from your videos.
@@ScottSovereign just one more thing I would add. I also use the vise to hold the arbor when it needs polishing. It’s ability to hold the arbor tightly without damaging it is invaluable.
Amplitude is just how much the balance wheel rotates in a single oscillation.This is measured from the line of center. The line of center is an imaginary line that runs through the balance pivot, the center of the impulse jewel and pallet fork pivot. So a full circle is 360 degrees right? So if the balance wheel rotated half way around that would be 180 degrees, half the circle. When it rotates 3/4 around the circle that’s 270 degrees. What enables the rotation of the balance wheel is the available power after the escape wheel tooth runs across the pallet stone. This is called the impulse. So when we think of amplitude, we are usually thinking about the power that the movement has to rotate the balance wheel. Many many things take away from the available power coming out of the mainspring barrel and they are all associated with friction in one way or the other.
Hi man can I ask you for advice? Which slightly strong mainspring do you recommend for a rolex 3186 movement to increase the amplitude? I know a stronger spring can increase the amplitude . Thank u
Hey everyone' I'm a new starter based in the UK. I can't find a brass component probe to push a new mainspring into the barrel as shown in this video. I can purchase round brass rod locally; would I be able to fashion a suitable tool by clamping the end of rod in a vice to form a flat 'blade'? TIA for any suggestions.
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These are watchmaking school level videos for free, for everyone. Thank you for making these, they're undoubtedly bringing my amateur watchmaking to the next level.
Hi Scottie,
I am happy you are gettin what I’m laying down.
There’s is so much more to go.
I agree with Scottie 100%!
I have learned more in just a few months of these videos, than I have from several years of watching other UA-cam watch channels. The details make a huge difference between learning how to do something correctly and just how to roughly get it right if you are lucky.
Hey man,
I’m glad to here this format is doing it for you. These videos are never going to get big numbers but for the ones that just want to learn something, they seem to scratch that itch.
Lots more coming.
This has to be the best, most in-depth, video on servicing the barrel and mainspring on UA-cam. Well done... I bookmark every video you make so I can come back for future reference.
You are too kind my friend. I appreciate you checking in Luke.
Alex
without a doubt, your horology lessons are far more compelling than Breaking Bad.
Being compared to one of the top, three series of all time is quite an honor, but I don’t know if it’s deserved. But thank you all the same.
Thank you , you go into so much more detail than any other channel I have watched, and I have watched a lot
I have been restoring and servicing mechanical watches for about 3 years now and I have to say I learned some new things here. Thanks so much for sharing your knowledge and tips. Very helpful. I have used a tooth pick in the barrel arbor ports primarily for cleaning purposes but you now give me more reasons to inspect these areas and polish if necessary. Alex, right or wrong, one of the things I do before running the barrel through the watch cleaning solvents is hand clean the barrel and arbor parts in solvent using a small brush to remove the bulk of the dried grease etc. Blow dry. I then take a Q-tip and use a small amount of Wenol orange metal polish and go around the inside of the barrel surfaces of both the lid and lower barrel assembly to remove haze and put a high polish on these surfaces. Clean excess polish out with a clean Q-tip and re-clean in solvent with a brush. Then I run through my cleaning machine for final cleaning. I have been getting good results with this method. Thoughts. Could you also cover lubrication of the mainspring if re-using a spring? Do you run a thin film of lubricate along the mainspring using folded watch paper up to and including the bridle or leave the bridle dry? John S
Your precleaning is on point. There really is no right or wrong way to do it just as long as you do, Right.
I touched on mainspring lubrication briefly in the lubrication video, but, yes, I clean it first with the Watch paper, then a thin film with paper and one more to leave a fine film of the grease and that’s it.
I can't send money, so I will NOT SKIP ADDS! I will mute sound and let the adverts play through. I hope you will be compensated by YT like you should be. I really appreciate the information you provide and will support you anyway I can for it. Unfortunately this is the best I can do for now. Six minutes worth of adds watched before this video, make sure you get paid! Aloha
I appreciate that my friend. It all adds up
You are amazing! I've been thinking about this "mainspring winder" issue for days. I can't thank you enough for these videos. Huge respect for educating the ""next generation".
(a very very beginner from Hungary ...)
You are so welcome!
Sound honest advice thats all anyone needs in horology and ,this is what Alex gives thank you boss.
Hey Billy,
Good to see you again.
Your videos are excellent. I appreciate your work and generosity in sharing these. I've been doing this ten years now and taken several professional classes at AWCI. I cringe at some of the blind-leading-the-blind content I see on the internet. Yours, though, is detailed, very well explained, professional, and correct. A great resource for review or for people new to the field. Thank you!
LOL, Thanks Harold. That's the very reason that I started the channel.
Another great one again. Winders area still in the future, at the moment buying new springs is making more sense to me. Always appreciate the time and effort you put into these videos. Thanks teacher.
New mainsprings are the best option for sure. I hardly ever use my winder.
It’s always great to see you in the comments.
Another outstanding lesson
I just discovered your channel and it is incredible! I have immediately subscribed and really hope you I'll continue posting. The knowledge you are sharing is top notch and will be very useful to me as a hobbyist watchmaker. You deserve many many more subs. Thank you!
Thank you sir, I have a 150 specific topics planed starting with the basics and building up from there.
I am also going to be doing movement services and showing the adjusting and regulating process. Glad to have you.
Another outstanding lesson.
I learned the hard way that those Chinese mainspring winders, even the ones with the steel arbor, don't do the job and are pretty much a waste of money. I bought my first set off of Amazon and so, I had the option to quickly return it for a refund hassle free.
Since then, I have been buying RH winders in the size that I need at the time. The problem that I have with buying individual winders is getting one whose barrel is small enough to fit inside the mainspring barrel and at the same time, be large enough to hold all of the wound mainspring.
And just as important, the winder needs to have an arbor that is large enough to grab the mainspring and not too big where it may stretch the mainspring out of shape.
Bergeon sells individual winders adapted to particular Calibres and they also sell winders by the barrel diameter. So I believe that it is important that the winder's arbor closely matches that of the mainspring arbor of the watch and yet fit into the mainspring barrel and be able to hold all of the mainspring.
What are your thoughts on this?
I think you summarized it really well.
That’s the main reason I use the WatchCraft set for a lot of pocketwatch springs, because the winding stems seem to be better suited for the larger inner coils.
Why am I just now finding your channel!? Amazing through teaching. Well produced video. Great information and game changing tips. Someone posted your IPA video on a FB forum and now I'm binge watching everything of yours. Keep the great work
Well Brian, it is definitely great to have you. The videos I make I never going to get millions of years I know that that’s not what I do this. The purpose of this channel is to provide home watchmakers information that they don’t get anywhere else. These are topics that don’t have a high search but can save a new watchmaker a lot of time and grief.
Alex, another great and very informative video. The only thing you could have added in the end is how to know which spring we need if the old one is broken or something else. According to what principle and how to buy a new one. Length, width or something else. I don't know if you have made a video so far on how to know which parts we need in a certain hour if we lose or have to replace. Well, if you haven't, here's another idea.
I’ve done several videos pertaining to this subject.
Here is one in sourcing watch parts, ua-cam.com/video/viq9-V1sv7M/v-deo.htmlsi=2BpFVCF7d2DerYSA
Mainspring sizes for movements are widely available online. If you can’t find a reliable source, here is a video on how to figure out the mainspring size on your own.
ua-cam.com/video/BEfB8ZWoeII/v-deo.htmlsi=VYvA90B1PO-e_lh_
Thank you @@watchrepairtutorials
Man you have the best videos on repair.
What do you like them Andrew, seriously, I want to know.
@@watchrepairtutorials so I have the Daniels book and the Fried book. I have read them both many times. But the way you explain it just really breaks it down. Of course video form is going to always be better, but just how you are so easily to understand. Also I love the fact that you seem personable and that you talk like me. With cuss words lol.
@@NoBoW73 LOL, well I had to stop the cussing for various reasons.
Thanks, I’m working on smoothing out the delivery right now. Talking to a camera is not as easy as you would think.
Hope to see you again.
@@watchrepairtutorials oh I didn’t realize you wasn’t cussing anymore. Lol. And trust me I’m not going anywhere I’m doing a deep dive on all your videos now. Keep it up brother.
Thank you very much. I really enjoyed watching your video this evening and I feel I have learned some very valuable lessons which will hopefully hold me in very good stead for the future. I'm looking forward to looking at some of your other tutorials on another evening.
My very best wishes and kind regards to you. Howard.
Howard, thanks for dropping by and leaving me a short note. I know my videos are not for everyone’s taste so I appreciate your comment.
Another winner! I’ve been struggling to decide whether to go for the set of Chinese winders that you showed (inexpensive but with brass hooks) versus a used vintage winder on eBay (somewhat risky) or to get the set from Bergeon (expensive enough to induce panic attacks!). Your suggestion of just buying the essential Bergeon winders and a single handle seems like the best choice that I hadn’t considered. I also appreciated your clarification of the red vs blue winders - it’s a bit tricky reading the descriptions because the orientation in the winder is the opposite of how it looks when inserted into the barrel. You’re a wonderful teacher!
Well Paul it’s like I said I typically use new main Springs but there are occasions especially in our pocket watches where you have to unwind the spring because the coil is too large for the barrel.
There is one brand of Chinese mainspring winders that do use steel for the arbors. I tried them once and I immediately returned them. They are on Amazon.
Since then, I have been buying individual Bergeon winders and never looked back. I found that not only does the barrel of the winder need to fit into the mainspring barrel but the winder's arbor needs to be of the correct size as well.
I learned this one the hard way: I bought a winder by diameter and whose barrel would fit inside the mainspring barrel, but the diameter of that particular winder's arbor was too small.
So, I had to go back and purchase a nearly identical winder but one that was calibre specific.
@@tropicalspeed22 Thanks, I agree that it makes the most sense to buy the Bergeon winders and handles to meet your needs. As a hobbyist I don’t need a collection of winders to accommodate all possibilities- just a subset to accommodate my needs. And if those needs change in the future then I can buy new winders as needed. Quality always wins out in the end! Thanks!
These just get better with each video, thanks Alex! Terrific info about the mainspring winders, this is exactly what I have needed for reference as I practice doing this. Oh and that arbor vise looks extremely useful, and I never see any other channels use it really. Think I will have to pick one up -- *sigh*, yet another tool to add to the list 😁Looks like it's a Bergeon 30610 for anyone else looking for it.
Thanks buddy
@@watchrepairtutorials I see that the Bergeon 30610 arbor holder comes in several different sizes - which would I need for working on wristwatches?
@@jamielodberg I use the 150 for most everything
Such a great series to find right at the beginning of getting my toes wet in this hobby. As much as I love the ASMR zen restoration videos, a lot of the finer points and techniques kind of get skipped over. Thanks for putting this together!
That’s why I am doing this. Glad to have you.
I have the Watch-craft mainspring winder set. It has the barrel size and arbor size that fit most of the Bulova and Gruen watches I repair. I have the Chinese set also, but the arbor sizes usually make them unusable.
I use my watch craft set for mainly pocket watch springs. What’s the problem with the arbor size on the Chinese winders, too small? Are they crass or steel ?
Yay! Thank you, always looking forward to your videos. Keep them coming!
Thanks Brother.
Alex, another fantastic video! Wow, how many great tips in this! Loved the pro tip! Take care, thanks for sharing and see you in the next one!
Your awesome Boyd!
@@watchrepairtutorials Alex, I love the hair down! Other video ideas might be correcting the shape of hair springs, removing hair springs, cannon pinions (removal tools compared, re sizing, what tools to use, how much friction is needed). Fitting hands, sounds easy but tricky, which tools. Fitting poly crystals and the tools to remove and fit. Broaching (smoothing and cutting). Staking sets and what all the different stakes and anvils are for (I bought a vintage small set, I don’t know what most do, I have only tried it for making plate holes smaller, like for barrel, and resizing cannon pinions). Cleaning hands and dials. Polishing screw heads if you don’t have a lathe. Bluing hands and screws if you have no equipment, the minimum you need. How far you can polish chrome cases before you go through to brass. I’ll stop😀
@@boydsargeant7496 LOL I never know what to do where it up or where it down. Most of the suggestions are already in the list that I have which is about 150 different videos. Coming soon I’m going to be the calendar works, identifying movements and sourcing parts, and then the ultrasonic cleaning machine. Then I’m going into basic repairs including replacing all the crystals, casework, setting hands, luming and adjusting the size, and some others I can’t think of right now.
I’ve got a whole series based around the escapement, Inspecting and correcting, Replacing all jewels, A series for the staking set, Everything that you can do with the staking set and what all the different stumps are for, with examples.
And of course Hairspring work as well.
Oh I’m also going to be working in full services, with corrections to get the Deltas low.
Busy busy
@@watchrepairtutorials wow, yep, when will you sleep😂
Thank you for all your education. I have learned so much from you in a short period of time. You explain things well and clearly. Thank you!
Thanks Brett. I’m glad I can help.
Alex, as always, extremely helpful and I've finally signed up for the paid membership as I feel I have more than gotten help from these completely free videos. I have avoided even looking at mainsprings due to the cost of buying quality winders. I didn't want to cheap out on one, and your bonus tip made so much sense. Just so I understand though, if I needed say a #7 winder, I would get the #7 (let's just get the red one - right handed), and either handle (does direction not matter or how would I use it if I needed to go left handed and bought the right handed handle). And since the winder will normally come with a winder (arbor part), if I needed to wind the counter direction, I would just get the left (blue) one? So for example, if I need a #7 right hand, I would get Bergeon #7 right hand winder, a right hand handle, and If I wanted to use it left hand wind, then I would need an arbor to match the same size as the #7 ( I was hoping I would not need to buy one for each size, but it looks like you must). I'm really confused on the handle though.
Thank you and welcome aboard.
When it comes to mainspring winders my typical advice is just put in a new mainspring then you don't need a Winder. If you're working on pocket watches, you can typically pick up a set of vintage pocket watch winders for a couple 100 bucks.
Just remember that Swiss mainspring barrels typically use red or right-hand winders Japanese movements blue or left-hand winders. If you plan on working on Swiss and Seiko movements, then you need both they're not interchangeable because the hook direction is different on the Winder.
In the short term, I would just install new mainsprings and not worry about using old mainsprings which is really the only reason you need a Winder.
@@watchrepairtutorials Okay, sounds like a plan. I take it all of the new mainsprings come in that packaging where you can just wiggle/slide/push them into the barrel.
@@perrybucsdad with the exception of some new old stock pocket watch main springs. The storage rings are too large, and the mainspring coil is too big to fit in the barrel.
Heh, I’ve always installed the spring on the winder arbour first, then put that into the winder. Neat tip on doing it the other way around; I’ll give that a go. Thanks!
Excellent video like any of your other videos, Alex! I appreciate you taking the time to impart your wisdom with all of that are in the process of learning! I have been fixing watches for about 7 years as a hobbyist, but I would love to learn more to do it more professionally and maybe do works for other people’s watches, and I feel that your videos are amazingly helpful and super clear to understanding. I saw where you are doing watchmaking classes, and I would be really interested in taking those classes so I can hopefully one day be as good of a watchmaker as you are!
The course is open for enrollment at two different two levels at a discounted price while I finish building it out.
Thank you for taking time to make these great, accurate and informative videos!!
Glad you like them Mr Parker
Very easy to install steel hooks on those Chinese winders. Did it myself last week and they’re now perfect.
Well share how you did it.
I learn something new on every video! Thank you for posting!!!
Saw a guy use tweezers to wind his mainspring… thoughts?
Thanks again!!
Point me in the direction, I would love to see that.
ua-cam.com/video/BxpVygssz6w/v-deo.html
The hobbyist watchmaker
Russian watch maybe a new vid
It’s about 12 mins into the vid
I like the idea of buying as needed from bourgeon 👍
This is a real Master Class. It covers more aspects that I even thought I would need to take care of. Congratulations and thanks very much for this wonderful class!
I am just hoping that the lesson(s) on Balance and Hairspring come quick!!!
By the way, any recommendation on the barrel arbor holder size? (2mm for Omega 330/550 ?) Thanks again
Thanks Fernando,
I have hairspring videos planned but they will be awhile.
What exactly is the problem you are having ?
The arbor vise I use most of the time is the 1.5 mm. This is the Bergeon 30610
@@watchrepairtutorials Thanks for your answer. I am all thumbs handling the balance system (it takes ages for me to do it): Disarming the balance from the bridge and putting back together and of course fixing hairsprings, especially those with over coil!
Excellent, as usual.
Hi Alex! I've been an enthusiast watch repairer for the past five years, but I still learn something new every time I watch your videos. So, thank you very much! 👍 That barrel arbor holder was new to me. I did some research and discovered they come from Bergeon in different sizes. Can you please let me know what size or sizes you would recommend? Thank you!
That’s awesome to hear. Thank you for that.
The size I use almost at the time is the 150.
Thank you for the very informative video. Have been learning a lot from your videos to improve my working on my watches.
I appreciate you John. Thanks buddy
Great videos, I’m fairly new to the hobby but learning exponentially. Question, what is the best braking grease to use? I’ve heard everything from Kluber P-125 to Moebius 8201, 8301, 8213, 8217, graphite based grease, on and on. I don’t think you mentioned it here, also, is there a synthetic alternative for braking grease? I really like the other synthetics you have mentioned in other videos like the 9010, HP 1300, 9504, and 9415. I don’t really want to spring for the outrageously priced Kluber P-125 though.
Thanks!
8213 is fine. The Kluber is great and is what I use but it’s a little pricey. Lubrication is hotly debated. Remember you don’t need the BEST. You just need it to work.
Thanks for the content, you are helping me a lot.
I have a question, I'm just starting out and I don't know whether to buy a normal table with a low chair or buy a high table because my back hurts hahah.
Thanks again. 🤜🏻🤛🏻
How much room do you have and what’s your budget
@@watchrepairtutorials My room is about 3 X 4 meters and I have 700€ left.
I already bought the essential watchmaking tools like screwdrivers, tweezers, etc...
But I feel like i'm not doing good because I can't study continuously for more than 30/40 minutes hahaha 😄
Thanks for answering me 🤜🏻🤛🏻
@@jesusm6759 the bench I sit at are made from 2 kitchen base Cabinets with in the US are 87.6 (34 1/2 inch) centimeters.
Ones has all drawers, the 2nd is 1 drawer and a door for storing larger items.
Then I have a 4 ft butcher block top on it.
Any kind of top like laminate or wood can be used.
Then I use an adjustable chair so that I can adjust the working height , so my shoulders are about the level of the top.
This set up with all the storage from the drawers cost be about 300 USD
@@watchrepairtutorials Ok, I will try to find something similar, I think i'll get an adjustable chair first, greetings from Spain, thanks for your time and dedication, you're content is GOLD.
Have a nice day teacher 🤜🏻🤛🏻
Man, I wish I could add more likes for this 😀
I wish I had more people like you.😉
Thanks Tom
Brilliant as always. Thank you Alex.
My pleasure! Thanks Phil
Dear Alex, when you’re polishing the lid hole it seems you’re doing the opposite you say, from inside to out. Could you please explain that for this poor newbie here? Thank you and I hope to be back soon on Patreon. All the best!
Good catch my friend. If you’re using a toothpick or anything, that’s tapered, you DO want to polish from the outside of the lid in.
I can’t believe I missed that and you’re the first one appointed out so well done .
@@watchrepairtutorials I was almost going crazy with that. Thank you for your fast reply, friend!
Thanks for another great video that points out the dos and don´ts.
Amplitude is a constant struggle. Everything matters
@@watchrepairtutorials Amen!
As always, top insightful content!
Much appreciated!
Great video as always!
Thank you so much for these videos! I got started about a year ago so I'm still new, and the detail you put into these is fantastic. Every other video, including paid videos, glosses over the details about how to use a mainspring winder and it took me a while to get it right. Your video helped me improve right away! Sadly i had already bought the full Bergeon kit lol I'll most definitely be watching the whole series you have posted. Do you have a Patreon page?
I do. I have just started posting my Master series videos to Patreon which will concentrate mostly on the escapement and the finer points of regulation.
In addition I am in the process of adding in a private Reddit sub for members that will allow me to help members with issues they are having.
Alex
Fantastic--best explanation, UA-cam or book, I have come across. Wish I had seen this before buying the Chinese version and the several eBay vintage winders (although they look cool on the table). Thanks.
I have an old K&D winder that I use for pocket watches that works really well on the larger sized springs
Hi Alex, congrats for the great stuff you're sharing. I would like to know what is the rotary tool you're using. Thanks a lot.
It a Grobet model S300
Thanks Benoit
Really interesting. Thank you. So much better now that you are not swearing. Regards. Keep well.
Thanks again, great video
Thanks buddy.
Hi Alex! Just found these videos since I'm hoping to pick up this hobby and gotta say these are great! You are going into the details and I love that.
One thing that popped in my mind watching this video is that would it be beneficial to polish the bottom of the mainspring barrel and the lid from the inside? Is the spring rubbing against these surfaces under normal operation or only if the spring is "coned"?
Thanks for the videos, I'll keep binging these now!
-Tony
Very good question. The mainspring is designed to sit in between the lid and bottom of the barrel.
If it's coned and dragging on either the top or bottom, no amount of polishing or oil is going to prevent the amplitude from dropping .
This is why it's best to not hand wind mainsprings and to install a new spring if you don't have a winder and the spring is still flat.
🤙
@@watchrepairtutorials Great, thanks for the answer!
Another great video! Is there a rule of thumb for how many complete turns (360 degrees) the barrel should be able to go through before the mainspring slips in an automatic watch? I'm trying to run down a low amplitude issue in a Bulova 11AOACB and wondering if I used too much braking grease.
It shouldn’t be slipping before 7 -8 revolutions of the barrel.
Want to have some fun ? Install the spring dry and see how much amplitude you can get. That will tell you for sure if it’s in the barrel or somewhere else.
@@watchrepairtutorials That sounds like a good idea, I'll do one more eval of the train and if I can't find an issue I'll go that route. Thanks for the reply, I really appreciate that you take the time to make these videos and then answer questions from us beginners.
You are a really god teatcher. How long have you been a watchmaker?
Thanks Hans, Glad it helps.
I stated in my middle 20’s and am almost 63 now. So a few years.
Hi Alex, I’m curious about your barrel arbor vise. What is/are the most common size(s) do you use? Any good alternative to the Bergeon’s?
Your videos are so insightful, I find myself rewatching them as references while working on watches. Thank you so much. - David
Hi David, Unfortunitly no, I have never seen any other versions of this tool. There are other sliding vises but none with the jaws like the Bergeon. I have both the 1.0 and 1.5 mm and use the 1.5 most of the time. Hope this helps. Alex
Great videos, really impressive. I have a question please as I'm looking at getting a few winders as suggested and not a whole set. You said (22.35) that it doesn't matter if you get a left hand or right hand handle, just get one. Does that mean the individual winding barrels (Red or Blue) would work with either a Red or Blue handle then. Many thanks.
No. It depends on what type movement rd you work on Swiss typically are right handed or red winders and Japanese movements are are usually blue or left handed
Excellent video. Thank you!
You are welcome my friend!🤘
Hi Alex thank you for being an inspiration to me 😊
Oh wow. Thank you brother, that means a lot. 😀
@@watchrepairtutorials the mainspring video was a big help still getting used to the tool
Hi Alex I am having issues of low amplitude it's freaking out my brain
@@reagannaidoo1981 well, you can start at the beginning and tell me everything you did through your service. It could be an issue in the powertrain or it could be an issue in the escapement.
Hi Alex, Another great video.
I will be installing a new mainspring for a Seiko 5 automatic from 1969.
Does new mainspring already comes with the braking grease? If not, is there a less expensive alternative for the 8213 braking grease?
What will happen if I don't put braking grease on the barrel wall.
Thanks again for your help.
Not really. That’s about as inexpensive as it gets. Without the breaking grease, the main spring is not able to slip inside the barrel. This can lead to all sorts of problems.
Great video. What do you nead to oil and how in a manual winding barrel.Is there a difference from the automatick winding and why??
You can watch this video at about 8:40 on how to clean a mainspring. ua-cam.com/video/W7LSPeUF1ho/v-deo.html
Once clean, you apply a small amount of 8200 to the mainspring and wipe off the excess.
For a manual wind movement that's all the lubrication, but in a manual wind you need to apply a barrel grease like I do in this video. The mainspring in a automatic has to be able to slip around the barrel. this is all covered in this video.
@@watchrepairtutorials thank you. makes sense.
Thank you!!!!! This is greats!!!!!
Glad you like it!
Thanks for another amazing video in the series. I am about to attempt lubrication and assembly of my first watch which is an automatic (Seiko 6309A). After watching this video I have ordered a new mainspring; quick question, what grease is used on the wall of the barrel? Thank you.
Moebius 8213 is probably the most widely used
@@watchrepairtutorials Would Molykote DX also work? Since this seems to be metal parts sliding against each other.
@@illwill4544 no, it’s to thin and will cause low amplitude. 8213
I have a Spinnaker with an NH35 movement and my timegrapher reads 240 amplitude. Is this something I should consider servicing or am I overthinking that it is just under 250 amplitude acceptable rate? Thank you for all this great content!!
The ultimate metric is how well it keeps time on the wrist. Wear it over 24 hrs and see how the accuracy is.
Hi Alex,
Great video as usual, but a little confused on the Bergeon model numbers. Not seeing the #5, 6 or 7. Can you offer some clarification?
What are you confused about, the sizes for the 5,6 and 7
Yes, I’m not seeing the sizes when looking for the ones you referenced.
@@icyhot9783 here is a link to the chart.
blog.esslinger.com/mainspring-winder-size-chart/
@@watchrepairtutorials
Awesome, thanks!
what braking grease would you recommend?
Thanks for these great videos!
Your welcome Fran
I use 2 different ones. Kluber P125 and Mobius 8213.
P125 has become a requirement for many Watch brands today and is slightly thicker or stronger than 8213.
So I get a little more amplitude at a full wind at 0 hours.
That should also give a little more at 24 hrs as well.
With that said, it is like 4 times the cost of 8213. For most work though you should be fine with 8213, so that’s what I would recommend.
@@watchrepairtutorials Thanks a lot, keep the great work up!!
Exelente video, en el habla hispana no e podido encontrar buenos videos de relojeros.
Gracias mi amigo. ¿Cómo puedes entender lo que estoy diciendo? ¿Está utilizando los subtítulos para traducir?
@@watchrepairtutorials si, estoy usando los subtítulos, entiendo un poquito el ingles jeje, me gusta mucho el contenido que haces, soy un relojero cubano en miami. Que podrías decirme de la lubricación seca PTFE tipo epilame que usan las casas relojeras en sus muelles reales, e usado moebius 8200 a lo largo del muelle real y lo e limpiado a fin de dejar una delgada capa de esta grasa pero aun así no me convence del todo porque es una grasa que solo dura 3 años y puede crear vacío en las espiras del muelle real y perder potencia a lo que yo supongo.
Solo una historia rápida, hace muchos años viví en Miami Beach. Esto fue antes de que South Beach existiera. Nos encantaba ir a Little Havana y conseguir mi plato cubano favorito, Ropa Vieja.
Nunca he oído hablar de que se aplique a un resorte de reloj solo en resortes de reloj y usan productos que nunca usarías en un barril de reloj.
Los resortes reales modernos vienen con un recubrimiento de teflón y no necesitan lubricación, incluso después de la limpieza.
El propósito del 8200 es evitar la oxidación o la corrosión, no reducir la fricción en el cañón. Solo requiere la más fina de las películas que no debería crear ninguna resistencia en el futuro.
Cuando el resorte principal se enrolla, la bobina interior se enrolla en la siguiente bobina exterior y así sucesivamente para que no haya fricción en una cantidad medible.
En un resorte real correctamente centrado, el resorte no toca la parte superior o inferior del barril, por lo que tampoco hay fricción allí.
Si el resorte principal es cónico y roza la parte superior o inferior del cañón, ninguna cantidad de 8200 ayudará en esta situación.
Espero que esto responda a tu pregunta, si no, házmelo saber y lo seguiré.
Alex@@jorgeluislopezherrera4166
@@watchrepairtutorials hola, gracias por responder, jajaja si probaras la comida en cuba es aun mejor en los mejores locales particulares porque del gobierno no recomiendo nada, estoy de acuerdo en todo lo que me as dicho, te comentaba lo del ptfe o teflón ya que la mayoría de las cuerdas mas viejas están literalmente pulidas dígase diez, quince, o mas años, despreciando deformaciones de cualquier tipo en la cuerda y fatiga del metal seria bueno aplicar el teflón nuevamente ya que este incorpora las propiedades de lubricidad y protección contra la oxidación. Me e fijado que las cuerdas nuevas de rolex vienen con la delgada capa blanca de teflón que con el tiempo se va perdiendo por motivos fiscos como presión, enrollamiento y desenrollamiento, la estructura química de la capa que lo recubre, parámetros ajenos a la voluntad nuestra.
Ahora parto desde el punto de una suposición técnica, que era lo que le comentaba del vacío de la grasa entre expiras ya que se deben despegar unas de otras uniformemente sin que ocurra una deformación que provoque fricción entre dichas vueltas o contra una cara x del tambor.
Todo este tema lo planteo porque no me siento satisfecho con la grasa aunque sea la mejor opción, por eso quiero probar otros lubricantes secos con ptfe del tipo en aerosol o epilame que no dejen residuos grasos y obtener esa delgada capa sobre el muelle real esto lo probare en mis relojes personales y comparar sus amplitudes y sino funciona seguir como siempre.
Llege de cuba como inmigrante hace 11 meses, en cuba bajo un raro caso se abría el barrilete por lo que si estaba dañado se remplazaba, ahí lo que mas se trabaja es orient, seiko y citizen grasas solo tenia dos que avia creado mi maestro pero no me gustaban pq se evaporaban muy rapido, asta que descubrí aceite mineral en la farmacia que no se evaporaba y obtenía amplitudes cercanas a 240 y 250 grados, el barrilete nunca se lavaba a menos que soltara su grasa por los apollos del arbol del barril.
Yo tengo un citizen de 1970 que con estas grasa mineral lo que mas obtenía eran 256 grados de amplitud asta que llegue acá a los eeuu, y en el taller de mi hermano limpime mi reloj completamente, el barrilete solo engrase la pared donde desliza la cuerda, la cuerda la limpie y la monte, engrase con cada grasa que correspondía a cada lugar, contar que el apoyo del árbol del cubo en la platina tiene un leve desgaste al igual que en el pivote de la rueda primera del lado del piñón y perdía precisión de lado antiguamente con la grasa mineral y con las otras que avía elaborado mi mentor ni alcanzaba 250. Después de todo el servicio obtuve lecturas de 290 grados y estabilizo en 300 grados, ahi fue cuando vi la verdadera importancia de cada tipo de grasa, el epilame y la importancia de limpiar un barrilete antiguo. Si leíste asta el final disculpa por el texto, fue que me emocione jajajaja. y créeme en español no hay mucha información de relojería en américa. tu contenido es como un tesoro para las nuevas generaciones que se quieren formar y no ven posibilidades en ninguna casa relojera.
@@jorgeluislopezherrera4166 Parece que sabes mucho sobre este tema. Si conoce algún producto que pueda recomendar para la aplicación de teflón algo similar, por favor hágamelo saber. También me gustaría hacer algunos experimentos. Bienvenido a América hermano.
Question : with that polishing method for the arbor, is there any risk of damaging the square end that the ratchet wheel sits on? Should any precautions be taken in this regard when polishing that particular end of the arbor?
The Polinum is really just polishing and only removes superficial scratches, so no it not going to reshape the end.
If you it’s badly scratches you can apply the either use a fine silicon disk and cut off a straight piece and come in from the flat side of the arbor, use a burnished or even square up a piece of peg wood and charge it with diamond paste
thank you
You're welcome Frank
How do I know if I put the wrong mainspring on?
Thank a lot.❤️❤️❤️❤️
How to Size Any Watch Mainspring to a Barrel
ua-cam.com/video/BEfB8ZWoeII/v-deo.html
Hi Alex, quick question. What size brass tweezers are you using in the video when you’re removing the winding handle from the main spring winder (17:00)? I have a pair of gold plated brass 1AM’s, but they look too fine for using for that purpose. Thanks in advance.
They are actually Bronze. Bergeon 7421-PM-B5
@@watchrepairtutorials thank you Alex. I had narrow it down to either the bronze Bergeon 7421-PM-B5 or Brass Bergeon 7422-PM-AM Brass Tweezers which have slightly larger tips at 0.21 x 0.32 x 125mm. Any reason to buy brass over bronze or vice versa?
@@russellbiofish Well bronze is harder so It is less likely to need dressing as much as brass. Honestly there is not a huge difference other than that.
I have a barrel with too much side shake. Is it possible to reduce the hole with a staking tool?
In some cases, if the hole is not oval shaped you can close it with a punch.
Great video! Is the arbor vice a specialized tool or can you use a pin vice for this?
That’s actually a really good question. The issue with a standard pin vice, which is usually a three or four jaw, is that they tend to mar or put marks on the arbor, which is bad. The arbor vise has two jaws each being a half circle, so they grip the round arbor without damaging it.
@@watchrepairtutorials Thanks for the quick response. Where could I look to purchase one like the one you used in your video?
@@wmueller0614 what country are you in Wayne ?
@@watchrepairtutorials I’m based in the U.S.
@@wmueller0614 here is a link. www.jewelerssupplies.com/barrel-arbor-holder-bergeon-30610-1-50mm.html
I didn’t realize they are this expensive now. Maybe shop around.
Bergeon makes a barrel arbor holder that looks like what you are using. They offer them in 5 different sizes and cost about $55 each, but each one is only good for that size barrel. I understand that most folks probably don’t need all the sizes, but if someone already has a complete set of pin vises, couldn’t they use one of those? Or is that not a good idea?
There are a couple differences between a regulate pin vise and the arbor vise. The first is the shape of the jaws. On the Bergeon 306010, the jaws are half round, so they clamp to the round arbor with out leaving any small marks on the metal which would be bad. The second difference is that the jaws are locked with a sliding ring as opposed to a threaded screw to close the jaws.
This enables you to install and remove the vise with one hand while holding the barrel with the other.
For what its worth I use the the 150 size which works on most arbors that I work on.
@@watchrepairtutorials Thanks. That all makes perfect sense. Of all the many videos I have watched, everyone else has used tweezers to reinstall the barrel arbor, but then again, most of them have also fumbled around a few times getting it reinstalled. As always, I learn a lot from your videos.
@@ScottSovereign just one more thing I would add. I also use the vise to hold the arbor when it needs polishing. It’s ability to hold the arbor tightly without damaging it is invaluable.
Thanks!
You are welcome.
I hope you follow along through the series.
Thanks
Thank you for your support, sir
Maybe you should explain what amplitude is to us. New people to watch And clock making.
Amplitude is just how much the balance wheel rotates in a single oscillation.This is measured from the line of center. The line of center is an imaginary line that runs through the balance pivot, the center of the impulse jewel and pallet fork pivot.
So a full circle is 360 degrees right? So if the balance wheel rotated half way around that would be 180 degrees, half the circle. When it rotates 3/4 around the circle that’s 270 degrees.
What enables the rotation of the balance wheel is the available power after the escape wheel tooth runs across the pallet stone. This is called the impulse. So when we think of amplitude, we are usually thinking about the power that the movement has to rotate the balance wheel.
Many many things take away from the available power coming out of the mainspring barrel and they are all associated with friction in one way or the other.
Hi man can I ask you for advice? Which slightly strong mainspring do you recommend for a rolex 3186 movement to increase the amplitude? I know a stronger spring can increase the amplitude . Thank u
That movement deserves to fixed properly if amplitude is too low. That’s my advice.
@@watchrepairtutorials thanks
Hey everyone' I'm a new starter based in the UK. I can't find a brass component probe to push a new mainspring into the barrel as shown in this video. I can purchase round brass rod locally; would I be able to fashion a suitable tool by clamping the end of rod in a vice to form a flat 'blade'? TIA for any suggestions.
I think I just bought some assortment of brass stock from cousins. 2 or 3 mm and then just file a blade tip on on end.
Glad to have you man.
Can you share the brand and model of your arbor vise?
Bergeon 30610 #150
@@watchrepairtutorials Thanks very much!
Do you have a part number for the arbor vise?
30610. They are available in different sizes. Are use the 1.5 almost all the time.
@It's About Time great, thanks that's exactly what I wanted to know
Is polinum not available anymore?
No, it’s available all over the place.
Cousins has it and a bunch of US suppliers.
Ottimo, grazie.
Grazie per guardare il mio amico.
Sei in grado di tradurre in italiano
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I think I am a long time away from doing this to one of my watches. But, hey ho. One day. (UK)
baby steps, my friend, baby steps. not gonna learn all this in a month.
It takes some practice and some failures to get comfortable .
K&D mainspring winders, need i say more.
I have a set I use for pocket watches that are great but the arbor is much to large for modern mainsprings.
I put grease on the side of the barrel in a manual wind watch. Ooops
LoL 😂 Now you know. It’s not the end of the world.
Wow I just have to say these videos are amazing and have taught me so much about watches. Wish I could give a million likes
You’re sweet.