Elgin 303 - 7j 1924 12s pocket watch on it's last legs

 

https://pocketwatchdatabase.com/search/result/elgin/26664950

Previous watchmarkers' marks, not really significant but always nice to see. Quite a few of them around the case so the original owner probably took good care of it. At some point, probably after the original owner died the watch was used for a long time without any servicing causing the pivot holes to become so egg-shaped that the escape wheel would not turn unless helped.

 

This 101 year-old pocket watch hasn't been serviced in a very, very long time. The case, however, is in immaculate condition which in this case is like getting the movement for free.

 

Wear to the plating causd by out of round pivot holes. 

 

 

At some point one of the barrel bridge's screw was either lost or broken. A watchmaker made a replacement that doesn't fit quite right, was slotted very poorly and wasn't finished and it seems that the material used was quite poor. No lathe at the moment so it will stay as is as buying replacement screws is too expensive. The other option is a donor movement but it isn't worth sacrificing a whole watch for one single screw.

 

Even if this is a 7j watch it is still well made, just a cost cutting measure to allow everyone to own a well built watch that would last but compromises on timekeeping ability in order to reach a certain price point. The movement is still decorated to a good standard, so much better than the Swiss in the 1970s who would only decorate the very high end movements. Evem the balance well and the bottom of the mainplate are decorated, something that only watchmakers would ever see. They really took pride in their work and it shows.

Here we see the results of an ever escalating patent arms race. Not much has changed in the logic of watches in the past two hundred years, and Americans, as Americans do, came up with a large variety of setting and winding mechanisms in order to patent and market the watch.

Also visible is part of the lever setting mechanism indicating that this model is based on a railroad grade design. The lever doesn't go out of the movement so it cannot be used but it must have been cheaper to produce an extra part instead of re-tooling the whole manufacturing and assembly lines.

Escape wheel pivot holes all shot, need to be bushed. Never did this repair and it can go sideways really quickly.

 

 

Fourth weel is almost as bad, needs a bushing too.

 

Barrel, second and third wheels weren't as bad and the staking set fixed them.

 Fixing the center wheel holes. Both needed it. 

 Badly worn barrel hole. Clearly someone added stupid amounts of oil just to be able to say that the watch works. A common tactic used by unscrupulous watchmakers and sellers.

 

 

Progress was slow but steady and the result is quite excellent. 

Center wheel was next. Compare the before and after; run so much better after fixing the hole. Still need to ream the edges of the hole and to burnish the pivots so there's still some extra friction at this point. Both top and bottom holes needed help.