Watch Repairing as a Hobby: An Essential Guide for Non-Professionals

by D W. Fletcher

Overview

Before Apple and Casio made watches, repair was a craft. Here an illustrated handbook, ideal for the beginner that acts as a watch and clock encyclopedia

First published almost 75 years ago in London, D.W. Fletcher’s guide is still an indispensable guide to understanding the way that watches work. Beginning with the absolute basics of watch operation, Fletcher explains the different tools needed for repair, cleaning, and disassembling. He also adds a troubleshooting guide for common ailments and detailed solutions.

With dozens of detailed diagrams, Fletcher’s book is divided into five main sections:

• How a watch works
• Tools and how to use them
• How to take down, clean, and reassemble a watch
• Common ailments of a watch
• More ailments

Watch Repairing as a Hobby takes a watch amateur from intrigued novice to skilled technician. With dozens of illustrations to lead you from analysis to repair, this classic manual is necessary for anyone curious about watches and how they tick.

“Have you ever thought of watch repairing as a hobby? You may feel that a watch is so tiny and your hands are so big. Just there lies the fascination of this hobby; watches are so tiny, and because they are so tiny they have to be much more perfectly made than other mechanisms. You may not believe it but you can, with practice, acquire such skill in handling the tiny parts of a watch that you will forget that they are tiny. You can start in quite a small way and you only need a few tools; as you grow in confidence and skill you will find more and more to interest you. It may even be that you will make some momentous discovery which will rock the horological world.”—From the Preface

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781616086459
Publisher:	Skyhorse
Publication date:	08/15/2012
Pages:	80
Sales rank:	386,978
Product dimensions:	5.60(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

D. W. Fletcher was an amateur watch-repairing enthusiast with many years experience repairing watches.

Table of Contents

Preface v

I How a Watch Works 1

The train

The escapement

Cylinder escapement

The motion work

The wind

The old English lever watch

II Tools and How to use Them 14

Lenses

Screw-drivers

Tweezers

Pegwood

Pith

Tray

Brush

Filter-paper

Cleaning fluid

Knife

Oilstone

Pliers

Oil

Oil-pot

Oiler

Hammer

Other requisites

III How to Take Down, Clean, and Reassemble a Watch 20

"Letting down" the mainspring

Removing the movement from the case

The balance

The dial

The cannon pinion

Cocks and wheels

Sources of dirt

Cleaning operations

Reassembly

IV Common Ailments of a Watch 38

Broken mainsprings

Abnormal gaining

Losing

V More Ailments 50

Broken watch glass

Winding button and stem

Stoppages

Erratic behaviour

VI Conclusion 60

Winding up the watch

Elementary precautions

Need for cleaning

Suggested books

Index 63