I am writing this online guide to hand down the 20+ years of experience, repairing watches, to others who would like to learn the art of watch fixing. It is totally free for anybody to utilize although it is aimed at the battery fitter, jeweller or amateur watch repairer who has a percentage previous experience and wish to start healing watches. I am limiting my guide to Quartz views just as this is a topic that is not covered well somewhere else and yet they are the majority of watches you will be asked to repair. Repairing mechanical and automatic watches are covered in lots of places and books (i learnt from this book 'Practical Watch Fixing' by Donald de Carle which is an old book however great) however to repair and repair these takes a lot more experience. This is why when fixing mechanical watches you can charge more money for fixing one of these than you can charge for mending the bulk of quartz watches.
In spite of this, there is decent cash to be made repairing quartz watches and it is easier to find out too as there is less variation. The easy reason that repairing a quartz watch is simpler is they have not altered much in the last 30 years while mechanical watches have actually been around for centuries while the first Quartz Watch was produced in 1969.
To be an Excellent Watch Repairer you need experience so it is a lifetimes finding out to become competent mechanical watch maker (horologist), while you can quickly broaden your company into mending quartz watches with this online guide.
In this guide I presume you can open a watch back, adjust a bracelet and utilize fundamental tools correctly. If not, then this guide might not be for you (if I get time in the future I will make a beginners assist too).
OBVIOUSLY you can't simply start turning screws ... there are a variety of things you will need to do (and get) in preparation. You will have better outcomes, and a much more satisfying experience if you make the effort, effort, and expense to get many of the items noted below BEFORE starting. Keep in mind that these are simply the bare essentials ... a severe repair individual has numerous other specialized tools ... but we'll conserve that for another discussion. The bottom line is that preparation and having the ideal equipment is essential to success of any repair work job!.
Workspacerkspace with a tidy, flat surface. For a newbie a kitchen area table will do simply fine, but as you end up being more serious you might want to think about a watchbench made specially for fixing watches and a great fluorescent light which is simpler on the eyes. A watchbench has little integrated in drawers for all of the tools and parts you make certain to accumulate with time.
The design is high, with a surface that (when sitting) is close to the face so the repair work person doesn't need to slump over when working. Some technicians will put cork or linoleum on the surface. These soft products stop parts from bouncing away, and aren't hard enough to harm anything dropped on them. Some benches even have a slide out "parts catcher" that presses against the stomach when sitting. Mine is a wood frame with a loose piece of canvas tacked to the bottom. When a part is dropped and goes "over the edge", this dazzling contraption captures it!
Many newbies will (as discussed above) start at a kitchen area table. An excellent suggestion for operating at a table is to put down a great piece of white fabric (like a plain white pillowcase or cheesecloth) to do your deal with. The main benefit for doing this is if you drop one of the parts, it will not bounce away and become lost. I recommend white because small screws (etc.) are simple to locate. This practice will also conserve your table from scratches, and safeguard your watch from the tables tough surface. To keep it from moving, you might desire to consider taping it down with masking tape also.
Screw-driver set
You WILL need a great set of watchmakers screwdrivers. This is a MUST. The sets found at the outlet store for dealing with glasses and so on will cause more problem than they are worth. They are not accuracy made and you will easily harm or remove the highly sleek screws found in a lot of watches. The keen eye of a major watch collector will pick this up instantly; it diminishes the look of the watch hence decreasing worth of your watch. Track down and purchase a set of watchmakers screwdrivers. Even a newbies set will be far better than anything you can discover at the dollar-store.
The proper method to hold it (Right Below) is to grip the screwdriver shaft between the thumb and middle finger, with the forefinger on the cupped end (which rotates). Press down on the top of the screwdriver and rotate Click for source it between your thumb and middle finger; turning the screw.