RWG Technical

Time is the factor, not if they are running or not. Oils dry up and turn acidic over time, they get gummed up and this affects not only the timekeeping but the potential for wear if the movement is running. Up to the point that they need to be serviced (5 years after the last service) it doesn't matter if they are running or static. After 5 years and once the oils are dried up, then running them will eventually damage them.

If it's loosing that much, you may want to leave it sit until it's looked at. Some of these older Tudor movements are in quite rough shape, almost as if the original buyer never even considered having it serviced. You could also have a worn out slipping cannon gear.

Thanks for the link Dems. What I find interesting, apart from the fact it looks virtually identical to an ETA, is the statement that they "designed" the movement themselves. If that was true, compare the pallet cock to the ETA one, it's identical, would you not think that if you actually designed the movement from scratch, you would vary ever so slightly the design of the parts from the ETA models, for example, make the cock one sided or a different shape than the ETA. The fact that that part is identical to ETA tells me that the mainplate is an ebauch from ETA, why else would it be identical? I'll bet each and every gear in the train is interchangeable with an ETA off the shelf...but I'll probably never be able to prove it.

Fantastic. Thank you for all the time and effort and research you put into getting these dials made for us, you have really contributed and expanded our interest in the earlier PAM models. Well done.

Excellent post, thank you. I use the same type of set up, with only one difference, I removed the cover around the buffing wheel. Why? Well when the part you are polishing grabs onto the wheel and pulls out of your hand, it can end up jammed between the cover and the spinning wheel, and cause a lot of damage before you can shut the unit down. With the cover removed the worse case is that a part gets pulled out of my hand and flings down or back. I have the area underneath and behind protected with a soft towel, no damage when it hits it... Well done and detailed.

It's looking really good. Congrats.

There is still loads of ebauch and ETA movements available on the open market. I can buy 100+ ETA any caliber right now...if I had the money...

It does look very nice, and uncannily like a 6498 in more ways than one...in fact I would venture to say it started life as an ETA, too many things that are exactly the same as on an ETA movement. So they simply re-worked a 50 year old movement and tried to make it look sort of retro with some new finishes thrown in. Somethings stand out that don't make a lot of sense: What's the purpose of the handhold looking piece on the balance cock? Normally this would have a screw in it to secure it in place after you adjust the beat, they left the hole blank? If your going to go to the trouble in making a balance wheel the old fashion way, with all sorts of screws, why not do it right and make the balance free sprung with the timing adjusted by the screws. Why bother with a bunch of balance wheel screws if your going to have a regulator. Interesting as well that the balance stud and regulator are the same design that Unitas used when they first designed the original movement. So is RGM claiming they made this movement, including the design, or did they buy an ebauch and refinish a few parts and call it their own.

I was away for the last 3 weeks of August and had my PM turned off. I have also had some computer "issues" including having my Visa card hacked and a number of other on-line problems. Thanks Pug for helping me out, I think I got it all sorted out and cleaned up. PM's have been sent to everyone. NOTE the following change: I can no longer refund deposits, so please make sure you are serious about getting work done before you send a deposit. A deposit is just that, a commitment to have something done, and a reservation on the schedule. We commit to numerous Emails back and forth, booking a spot for you, turning others away because the schedule is full, and after all the time we invest, you change your mind and want your money back? Time = money, If your not 100% sure of what you want, then please don't waste my time and take a spot that someone else would want. Thanks for understanding.

For the Panda, all I can say is finally...it was a long time fixing... Yes, Ubi is correct, both are genuine ETA 7753 powered. Wear them in good health.

It is a trial and error fit. Install the new stem into the crown, insert in the case in the winding position, then note how much of the stem needs to be trimmed down, you want the crown to have about 2-3 mm of clearance from the crown tube. In other words, when you have the crown in the winding position, you should have to press down about 2-3 mm to engage the threads and screw it down. ALWAYS trim longer than you expect, cut the stem with side cutters, then file the cut part so it's slightly rounded, any burr and you will ruin your crown threads. As you get closer to the required length, do NOT cut it anymore, use the file to reduce the length. It takes me 5-6 install's and removals to get a stem to the correct length, don't rush the job.

They look great and I am glad you like them. Your photography is excellent, great composition and exposure and lighting, very impressive. Good lume shots as well, most struggle getting a good lume picture. Wear them in good health.

All spots filled, thanks...

Good to hear you got it fixed. I hope it's a permanent solution, the movement is very sensitive to any added power loss, making the spring more stiff will cause more power loss for the 17 hours that the calendar is charging up as it's running. This may cause running problems for the balance wheel. It would be better if you could identify the actual cause, and fix this, instead of having to make the spring harder. And yes, these asian copies are not well finished, some are just terrible...

Very well done, great job.

I can't see anyting, its impossible to troubleshoot a defect like this without having the movement in my hands, sorry.

If I need one, I make it out of my stock of misc sized stainless steel pins...

Your going to have to examine the date change gear and springs etc in detail and determin what the problem is and why it's not working correctly. Impossible to figure it out from here...

As already stated, DW is rubbing, it's probably got an overlay...remove the dial and test it.

Shave the CG's a bit, and you got one hell of a watch...Mrs Ubi would be forever grateful...

As Ubi correctly pointed out, there is no adjustment for a datewheel, it's fixed in position and not moveable. Probably misprinted, or the dial is misaligned, if it's a chrono then the dial can't be moved either, or the chrono subdials get out of alignment. An ETA datewheel would probably fix it...

Yes, most definetly they are all stamped next to the balance wheel, "ETA" and "7750" and to the left of this on the bridge is "17 Jewels etc". It's not an ETA if it isn't stamped. Another giveaway is the regulator arm, the ETA is a stud, the Asian has riveted regulator pins.

Guessing you missed the 145 reply post where the posse went after rocketeer for ripping them off on AR...and other issues...

Watch out for the coffee boys...

You are 100% correct in that statement. I find that most movements have the beat out of adjustment. If the beat is not correct, the pallet stone will lock the escape wheel and prevent the watch from "self starting" and can even stop it randomly. Adjusting the beat requires special tooling. While tapping the movement may un-lock the balance and get it working again, a watch with a misadjusted beat could over bank, and it could lead to a broken impulse jewel. So it comes down to the original statement, if it doesn't run when fully wound, have it looked at and corrected.