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 anyone 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 only as this is a topic that is not covered well somewhere else and yet they are most of watches you will be asked to repair. Fixing mechanical and automatic watches are covered in many locations and books (i discovered from this book 'Practical Watch Repairing' by Donald de Carle which is an old book however great) however to repair and fix these takes a lot more experience. This is why when fixing mechanical watches you can charge more money for repairing among these than you can charge for repairing the bulk of quartz watches.
Despite this, there is good cash to be made repairing quartz watches and it is much easier to discover too as there is less variation. The simple reason that repairing a quartz watch is easier is they have actually not altered much in the last 30 years while mechanical watches have actually been around for hundreds of years 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 qualified mechanical watch maker (horologist), while you can quickly expand your organization into fixing quartz watches with this online guide.
In this guide I assume you can open a watch back, change a bracelet and use basic tools properly. If not, then this guide may not be for you (if I get time in the future I will make a newbies direct too).
OBVIOUSLY you can't just begin turning screws ... there are a number of things you will require to do (and get) in preparation. You will have far better results, and a far more pleasurable experience if you take the time, effort, and cost to get the majority of the products listed below BEFORE beginning. Bear in mind that these are just the bare basics ... a major repair work individual has hundreds of other specialized tools ... however we'll save that for another conversation. The bottom line is that preparation and having the best equipment is crucial to success of any repair task!.
Workspacerkspace with a clean, flat surface. For a beginner a cooking area table will do just great, but as you become more major you may desire to consider a watchbench made specifically for repairing watches and an excellent fluorescent light which is easier on the eyes. A watchbench has actually small integrated in drawers for all of the tools and parts you are sure to collect in time.
The style is tall, with a surface that (when sitting) is close to the face so the repair work person does not have to downturn over when working. Some repairmen will put cork or linoleum on the surface area. These soft materials stop parts from bouncing away, and aren't hard adequate to damage anything dropped on them. Some benches even have a slide out "parts catcher" that presses versus the tummy when sitting. Mine is a wood frame with a loose piece of canvas added to the bottom. When a part is dropped and goes "over the edge", this fantastic gizmo catches it!
The majority of novices will (as pointed out above) begin at a cooking area table. A great tip for working at a table is to lay down a fine piece of white material (like a plain white pillowcase or cheesecloth) to do your work on. The primary advantage for doing this is if you drop among the parts, it won't bounce away and end up being lost. I recommend white since small screws (etc.) are simple to locate. This practice will likewise save your table from scratches, and secure your watch from the tables hard surface area. To keep it from shifting, you Click here for info may desire to consider taping it down with masking tape too.
Screw-driver set
You WILL need an excellent set of watchmakers screwdrivers. This is a MUST. The sets found at the outlet store for working on spectacles etc. will trigger more trouble than they deserve. They are not precision made and you will easily harm or strip the extremely polished screws discovered in most watches. The eager eye of a severe watch collector will choose this up right away; it interferes with the appearance of the watch thus minimizing value of your watch. Find and buy a set of watchmakers screwdrivers. Even a novices set will be better than anything you can find at the dollar-store.
The correct way to hold it (Right Listed Below) is to grip the screwdriver shaft in between the thumb and middle finger, with the index finger on the cupped end (which turns). Press down on the top of the screwdriver and swivel it in between your thumb and middle finger; turning the screw.