offshore

Many may not have seen this, but on top of the fires in Victoria, massive flooding in Nth Queensland, and a cyclone, we now have a major environmental disaster unfolding. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7941169.stm The reported 30 tons of oil, has now been upgraded to 42.5 tons, and tonite oil is appearing on beaches over 100km from the original spill. Some absolutely pristine island and mainland beaches are now heavily contaminated. To compound the problem, some imbecilic bureaucrat, allowed the damaged ship to enter the Brisbane River, and tie up. No oil booms, no contingency plans, and you guessed it, the Brisbane River & port area is now subject to a major oil slick! 24 hours after the ship berthed, they have decided to erect a spill boom around the vessel! Really! And this state goes into an election in 2 weeks.....gotta believe the opposition are having a field day with this one. Friday 13th indeed! Well its said things come in 3's! And BTW, the reason for the initial problem, was containers washed off the deck, during the cyclone, which was smashing the Queensland coast, from Cairns to Brisbane. One of the containers holed the vessel in a fuel bunker. Murphy's law. If it can go wrong, it will, at the worst possible moment. Offshore

Probably the best resource on the 'net for movement breakdown and parts listings, all in one place. http://www.cousinsuk.com/document/category/4.aspx Thanks to abakan. Offshore

May be some info in here. http://www.valjoux.info/manuals.htm Offshore

@ cyberfox, Read through this. http://www.tp178.com/mh/un_freak2/un_freak2.html @sur3wyn, Guess we know we won't see a Freak movement in a rep, any time soon. Have a look at Homers' tourbillons @ <$500. Offshore

Someone may have a use for this. http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi...A:IT&ih=003 Well known seller in Oz, for anyone concerned. Offshore

Yep! AFTER you have had them tested! Because a watch has a rating on the dial/backcase, doesn't mean it has been tested. If the seller guarantees waterproofing/ depth rating, you have some grounds for hope. But I would still have the watch tested. Offshore

To be technically correct- 1 Atm = 14.7 psi= 10M = 33ft! (Salt water) at sea level. Or if you need to go to 4 decimal points, DL this great little conversion program! http://joshmadison.com/article/convert-for-windows/ O/S

Ahhh, don't worry about BT, robsa, he's been like that for a couple of days now! Grumbling around in admin..... storming up and down the stairs to the cellar........ spendin' way too much time at the bar! Methinks we better extend the gym, and get him back excercising! Must be a testosterone thing! (jk J , we know you don't imbibe) And BTW ByTor, I just found this, just for you! O/S

I know this topic will raise some eyebrows, and potentially hackles as well. However I would like to get some, across the board views. Now we all know and realise, that anything short of a full strip down, clean and lube, is a faux service. We all know as well, that to complete it well, and successfully, takes at least a day, and costs from $150 upwards. And yes, it is the only way to properly service a mechanical watch. However- Let me pose some questions. Is a splash & dip service, better than no service? I realise that jewels are not being properly cleaned, and that lubrication is less than desirable. Yes it is a shortcut, but is it worse than no service? And, If it is such a negative, why does the pre eminent cleaning solutions supplier, L & R, supply their Duo Lube, and Solo Lube cleaning products?

Today I visited my local chemical supplier, and purchased a large quantity of chemicals, to brew various cleaners and rinses. To put this in perspective, I pay here +$100 for 5L of L & R #111 cleaning solution. I arrived home with almost 30L of various chemicals, having spent $120. I now have 5L of mechanical cleaner, 10L of mechanical rinse, 2L of ultrasonic cleaner and 2L of ultrasonic rinse. Also 1L of "One Dip" for main springs/ hair springs and balances, 1L of Duo lube, and 1L of Solo lube. As I have left over good quantities of the lesser used products, my next batch of #111 will cost me under $30, as I only now need the main ingredient (White Spirit, aka VM & P Naptha.) Just finished a couple of cleaning jobs, and the results are at least as good as from the professionally brewed product. If anyone would like the recipes, the MSDS sheets for the L & R products will give you a great start. Then cobble together info from the various forums, and you have your recipes. And the excercise also identified just how volatile some of this stuff is, so it is a good lesson in maintaining good storage and useage habits. Offshore

Have a great day mate! Another year older, but another year wiser. Offshore

There certainly are no bargains there! The prices I looked at were "up there". In the current economic climate, I would think that better deals are out there some where. O/S

I have been using an Elma 3 bowl machine with L & R cleaning solutions, and have recently purchased a 70W Ultrasonic cleaner. I find the L & R solutions to be expensive, so am doing some research on "home brewing" cleaning solutions, and associated rinsing products. My question is- does anyone have a recipe for a solution for an agitator style cleaner? Secondly, what solutions do people use in ultrasonics? And do you use flammable solutions in the tank of the ultrasonics, or do you use water as the base, and put the parts in a beaker, which contains the flammable (Naptha?- lighter fluid style) cleaners? Do you then use isopropyl (99%) as a rinse? The responses will make interesting reading, and I will post the "recipes" I have found thus far when I see what others are using. Offshore

Can only tell you that they ran a bunch of adverts about 12 months ago on ebay, but didn't sell much (if anything) Have obviously got some AD connections, and based out of Melbourne, I think. Offshore

You are probably better off to buy the cheapie set http://www.amazon.com/Deluxe-Watch-Opener-...BYP9YKDFEDPFNVX on the understanding that you will replace all, or most of the items fairly quickly. At least you will have then an idea of the quality tools you will receive. The kit from PMWF- http://www.pmwf.com/Watches/WATCHSALES03/W...lStarterKit.htm contains some marginally higher quality tools, although you will still need to replace some of those as well. Good screwdrivers are an absolute must. There is a French set, which sells around $25-$30, which are OK, the A-F drivers are a bit better, and a Horotec, or Bergeon set, are top of the tree. As you will find, good quality, doesn't come cheaply. Offshore

Thanks to the 1.1 crew for their wishes. Gee it doesn't feel like 3 years, I still vividly remember that frantic 1st day! As T said, we seem to be evolving into a more general watch forum, and it is mainly due to the quality of our members. So have a happy day all you who visit us regularly, and be thankful we retain the depth of knowledge, possessed here. Happy Birthday RWG & members. Offshore

If anyone needs a copy of the complete sets of G-S acrylic crystal catalogues, they are available here- http://ebookbrowse.com/gs-crystal-catalog-pdf-d116127267 This is a late update Jan 2012 It covers all the avail G-S catalogues, and crystals which were/are produced. If anyone finds a crystal in here that they need, I have approx 20000, (which would be maybe 1/2 of what is avail.) So shoot me a PM with a # and I will see what I have. Offshore

Due to some recent QC and performance issues, Watchmarks' sales and feedback sections, have been removed, pending further advice/response. Offshore

Watches may, or may not. Girlfriends ALWAYS do! O/S

@Freddy, Agreed. The logged on scenario on both sites is a little disturbing, and Plat status is bought, not earned! A solid history is what speaks volumes. @Toad, Anyone we know? O/S

No, not me, however.........must give it a try O/S

It was a no name, absolutely no markings! O/S

Some may remember my recent adventure with a Rx D/D quartz. Well this week I was handed a ladies copy D/J T/T, with another “dead battery” comment. I don’t take my Rx case back tool to my Sunday market stall, as (1) I wouldn’t work on a gen Rx in that environment, (2) I see very few gens (but oodles of cheap and nasty copies) and (3) I carry enough crud to market as it is, so am trying to cut back on my load. Today I got to this job, in my weekly work through. First checked to make sure it wasn’t a flip back…No..this is definetly a screw job. Normally the smaller case back dies line up perfectly on the serrations on Rx copies….but not this bugger…not even close! Same deal as before… Sticky ball…too small a case back to get enough purchase. Duct tape….same deal. And this is very tight!!!! So I sat and contemplated the need/effort required to make this work. Now, I am if nothing else, a stubborn b******d,not beaten easily, so I hatched a plan to beat this little mongrel! (Would all of our quality watch repairers –Ziggy/Freddy and kin… now please shut their eyes, or close this page, or leave the room) How to get this case back off? Easy….I placed the die closest to fitting (the 22.5) on the case back, and located it as best I could. I use a T bar style case back tool, so I removed the T bar from the die, and with a toothpick, applied a run of superglue around the die/caseback contact area. Yep, you read it right…superglue! Allowed to set, refitted the T bar, and voila, off it came. Of course I now had a case back and die firmly attached. But I have learned from previous encounters with superglue, that it doesn’t like acetone much. So a quick swab with a cotton bud of acetone, and die and caseback were two again. And a quick clean up with an acetone rag, and…Yes!…. AOK! Now I could turn my attention to the engine room, and what do I find, ….. a bloody mechanical movement. So why is this not going? Rotor spins OK, but no movement. What’s this in the balance? Doesn’t look like anything I’ve seen inside a movement before. A bloody great lump of timber. ? pithwood? Part of a match? A toothpick end? No bloody idea what it is, but it certainly won’t be helping this to run. And doesn't have a place in here! Removed same, and away the little bugger goes, ticking along merrily. Lube O ring, screw back down finger tight, and nip up with the sticky ball. Now I had quoted this client $7 for their new battery, so I am figuring, I may be able to get (hopefully) $10 for this job. Certainly worth a lot more for the time and effort, but at least it’s a goer again, and I figure in this instance, I have at least had a moral victory. But the scoreboard still must read Rx copies #2… Offshore Nil. Offshore

More to the point...would you walk in to a Mercedes dealership, and ask where you could buy a Kia?

Hello to you Andreas, Welcome aboard our little ship in cyberspace! Hope you find what you seek, if not,.... ask! Offshore