TwoTone

@Leo Play nice... TT - Aka Big John McCartney

Neil & Leo moved HERE! TT

PS: Just noticed your Warning History... Consider yourself uped to 40%... Next your posting abilities will be removed... TT

@Leo Is there a reason why you chose to step into this thread, crap on it, and take jabs at members? If you have a problem with TTK either start your own thread in the Review section [if you've purchased from him], or take it to PM... TT

PS: Nice Watch... Which one is it from your collection?

Hey Pugs... I didn't know you were a Sooner Fan... TT Pugwash at a game last season!

Thanks for the quick response Andrew... TT

Like little kids we are... Enjoy! TT

It's probably his dad... Now we know where he got it from at least... TT

@LP I'm a loooonnnnngggg way from an expert on movements... But in comparing Andrews picture and a genuine... Can you point out the differences to me? TT Top one is Andrews:

Opportunist: taking immediate advantage, often unethically, of any circumstance of possible benefit...

And another from 1975... TT

Here's a Vintage Rolex Ad from 1974... TT

DON'T ASK ME WHY THEY CALL IT THE TIME CUBE By Walt Odets Can we talk? Is there anything about this automatic watch winder (right) that reminds you of a cube? Are there eight days in the week? Sixteen months in the year? One hundred and two years until that extra leap year that your $25,000 perpetual can't account for? I don't think so. The Time Cube is definitely a rectangle--a rectangular parallelpiped, to be exact. But it's a good one if you want to keep a pair of automatic watches properly wound. After almost fifteen years with four utterly reliable Cyclomatics, I have been using a Time X for about six months. I have tried several others in the meanwhile, including three from Scatola. All in all, the Time X is quite clearly the best winding box I've used. The Time X offers extremely robust mechanical construction, an elegant and impeccable leather and chrome finish (for those who keep a box on the dresser rather than in a safe), and something that I have never seen before on a winder. The number of turns per day is completely adjustable. Although the instructions with the unit are not completely clear on the actual rotations represented by the dial markings (1 through 10), I would estimate that they correspond to between 100 and 1200 turns per day. Position 1 turns the watch for 30 seconds every 35 minutes. Every additional increment on the dial (2 through 10) adds 30 seconds to the wind period. Ideally, we would want to place a watch on a winder in a partially wound condition (e.g. after sitting over night) and then keep it at a partial state of wind. Full wind offers no running advantage and a winder that keeps a watch fully wound unnecessarily wears the mainspring barrel wall and mainspring bridle, and keeps the wheel train under maximum load. I like the Time X. Most of my watches keep running at setting 4. The Time X holds one watch in the front chamber, a second in the back. Direction of rotation can be switched. The panel switch markings (above, left) read for the front chamber. The watch in the back can be made to rotate either direction by inserting it facing in or facing out. The--ahem--"watch attachment mechanism" is a foam ball (right), which lacks je ne sais quoi. It just doesn't feel up to the standards of the rest of the unit. In practice, however, it is the most convenient method I've used in a winding box, is perfectly secure, and allows no possibility of scratching the back or bracelet of a watch. Get used to it. It may look funky, but you'll actually like it. There is one detail of the Time X's design and construction that I particularly like. The micro motor drives a massive tube (that holds the watches on their foam inserts) by means of a rubber belt. The mass of the tube and the isolation of the motor by the belt prevent the watches from being subjected to high frequency vibration. I suspect this will prevent a lot of loose screws that might otherwise occur with a higher vibration design. There are a lot of other details. The unit runs on two "D" cells or AC, and several units can be attached together to form a single physical unit and run on a single AC adapter. The manufacturer cites a one year life for the batteries, but this would depend on the number of daily rotations. The watches are magnetically shielded from the motor, and the heat of the motor keeps the interior of the box dry, but not warm. The unit is completely silent in operation. If I have a single complaint about the Time X, it is that it is a rather large and heavy unit to wind only two watches, and it must be turned around to insert or remove the second watch. It has the heft of a piece of equipment that might do something more than wind a watch--something like hoist the family sedan for a tire rotation. Three or four of these bolted together would be a back doctor's dream come true. But it's a small complaint, and one that pays off in the really good physical construction of the unit. I encouraged Richard Paige to offer the Time X in the TimeZone Store because of the excellent construction, relatively good value, and adjustability. If you get a Time X, adjust the rotation dial down until the watches run down in two or three days. Then simply go up one increment on the rotation dial. You'll do your watches a favor. Courtesy TimeZone

Today's a TwoTone Day...

Lived in Walnut Creek for 7 years... I'll be in Vacaville next week for 2 days... We should meet for a drink... TT

@LP Totally cool... Where in the Bay Area are you located? TT

Yes Dave you are correct... It is by far the most stunning AR I've ever seen... TT

It's Blue... TT PS: Where in No. Cal are you?

@LP I've had mine for 4 years now and simply love it... It's a massive piece... Breath Taking...

@Randy ain't gonna care... One of the benies of a Thread like this is the conversation that ensues... TT

@LP You're the first here that I've ran across who owned a Hercules... Fantastic piece of engineering... I absolutely LOVE mine... TT

A HEUER BEFORE IT WAS TAG BY WALT ODETS In the days before it was Tag Heuer, it was Edouard Heuer. Founded in 1860 in Edouard's St. Imier workshop, the company quickly became known for timers. Over the first century of its existence, Heuer was known primarily for hand and wrist timers, and in 1911 became well known for the first automobile, dash-mounted timer. Five years later, in 1916, Heuer produced the first chronograph with 1/100th second resolution, and in 1933 produced the first dash chronograph for use in race cars. While Edouard Heuer was responsible for these early innovations in chronograph design, for most of the 20th century the company was not a movement manufacturer. Instead, Heuer produced a variety of wrist chronographs using the movements of Hahn Landeron, and especially Valjoux (including the calibers 69, 71, 72, 69, 92, 230, and VZH). It was not until 1969, with the introduction of the caliber 11 (jointly developed by Heuer, Breitling, and Hamilton), that Heuer could be said to have produced a movement of its own. Later in the 20th century, with the 11 out of production, Heuer once again turned to other movement makers, notably Lemania and the caliber 5100. Regardless of the source of the ebauches, Heuer produced a large number of fine wrist chronographs like that illustrated left. A classic Swiss castle-wheel design operated by two case pushers, this movement is typical of mid-grade production of its day. By today's standards, however, it is a very high-grade piece of work. In an 18K case, such a movement may be commonly had for less than US$1,000, a bargain in today's market. Comparable or better quality in a contemporary chronograph would require the expenditure of many thousands of dollars. The inside of the 18K case back shows service marks scratched into the gold, a common practice until later in the 20th century. The ink mark ("BX5") is now a more common practice and preserves the integrity of the piece. In the classic Swiss chronograph, it is the castle (or column) wheel (right, 1) that coordinates the various functions of the chronograph. The beaks of the start, stop, and reset-to-zero levers (2) either fall between or land on top of the wheel pillars. Because the castle wheel rotates as one piece, the coordination of functions is assured. Note the castle-wheel activation lever at 3. At left, a close-up of the castle wheel reveals a nicely made, if not truly excellent, mechanism. The beak of the start lever (1) has fallen between pillars, while that of the brake lever (2) is lifted by a pillar to release the brake. It is thus that the castle wheel coordinates the start, stop, and reset functions of the chronograph. The chronograph center wheel (1) with its reset heart-cam (2) is shown right, and below... ...engaged with the chronograph intermediate wheel. The intermediate wheel powers the chronograph center wheel from the fourth wheel. The large, straight-cut intermediate wheel teeth and fine center wheel teeth are characteristic of traditional chronographs. On starting, the uncertain engagement of these teeth accounts for the commonly seen hesitation or jump of the center sweep hand. The fourth wheel (1), intermediate wheel (2), and chronograph center wheel (3) are illustrated left. Note the two eccentric screws (arrows) that adjust the travel of the intermediate wheel bridge (and thus depth of engagement of the wheel with the center wheel) and the minute totalizer (4). The very elegant, single reset-to-zero lever (1) and its nicely made spring (2) are shown below. Note also the brake lever (3) and the generally very nice finishing of parts. Such construction is seen only in the finest contemporary chronographs. True vintage chronographs are not to everyone's taste, in part because they often require some repair and restoration. Factory parts are often not available. In the example at hand, a broken jumper spring required the fabrication of a new steel part, a two-day job accomplished by hand. For those with the time and inclination, however, vintage chronographs are an opportunity. The Heuer pictured here, and numerous other chronographs from mid-line manufacturers such as Breitling, Universal, Eberhard, Zodiac, Pontifa, Delbana, Bovet, Excelsior Park, and Mido, offer a relatively affordable and interesting glimpse into an important segment of Swiss horological history.

ETA AUTOMATIC WINDING WALT ODETS The automatic winding system first developed by Eterna (which joined ETA in 1932) is certainly the most widely used bidirectional system in the world. With the possible exception of the Jaeger Le Coultre switching-rocker system <h3 align="center"></h3> (which does not rely on click wheels) it is perhaps also among the most reliable. With reference to the illustration above the power flow from rotor to mainspring (yellow arrow) is illustrated for clockwise rotation of the winding rotor (green hub, with a large lighter green area indicating the rotor mass). Both click wheels are turned by the rotor, but the click between upper and lower wheel is engaged only on the left click wheel (upper and lower are not engaged on the right). Power is thus transmitted from (1) the rotor to (2) the upper left wheel, to (3) the lower left wheel, to (4) the lower right wheel, to (5) the first reduction gear, to (6) the second reduction wheel, and to (7) the mainspring barrel itself. The reduction wheels are necessary to reduce the fast, low torque movement of the rotor into slower, higher-torque movement adequate to wind the mainspring. With counter-clockwise rotation of the rotor (illustrated below), the upper and lower right click wheels are engaged, while the upper and lower left wheels are disengaged. Thus power flow is transmitted from (1) the rotor to (2) the upper right wheel, to (3) the lower right wheel, to (4) the first reduction gear, to (5) the second reduction wheel, and to (6) the mainspring barrel itself. Because the rotor gear and both upper click wheels are constantly engaged, it can be seen that clockwise rotor motion produces unproductive "idling" rotation of the upper right click wheel during winding. With counter-clockwise rotation of the rotor, idling rotation of both the upper and lower left click wheels occurs. (The JLC switching rocker also eliminates this action). Courtesy TimeZone