Neuuubeh Posted November 29, 2009 Report Share Posted November 29, 2009 Hey guys, Ive been seeing some weird behavior from an Illinois movement.. it ticks fine, balance swinging very nicely when in dial-up position, however once I rotate it over to dial-down position, it seems to slow down dramatically - amplitude seems to drop down to like 45 degrees.. All other positions seem to be fine, crown up/down/left/right, amplitude seems to be fairly constant (dont have a means to measure it, purely visual observations..) Do you guys have any idea what might be the cause? The jewels seem to be fine, no cracks or anything.. Balance staff also seems to be perfectly fine, no play on the wheel whatsoever. Hairspring looks "old" (some of the blue oxide has peeled off on a couple of spots), but still, timekeeping seems to be fairly well, as long as not in dial-down position. I will try to time it in all positions, but as I said, it seems to be ok.. Am I right to assume the issue is with the balance or possibly pallet fork jewels? Or could an issue with the drive train be the cause? Should I hope a cleaning would fix the issue? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FxrAndy Posted November 29, 2009 Report Share Posted November 29, 2009 Could be just old gummy oil on the dial side balance jewel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RWG Technical Posted November 30, 2009 Report Share Posted November 30, 2009 In addition to the above, it could be that the balance wheel is touching something when it's dial down position, that would be the first thing I would look for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neuuubeh Posted November 30, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 30, 2009 Thanks for the replies guys! I too thought it might be touching something, but it doesnt seem to be the case, there is quite some clearance around it. It might be really some gummed up old oil, probably on the surface of the cap jewel, so that i couldnt clean it up properly.. Thanks a lot again, both of you! Was getting frustrated Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neuuubeh Posted December 1, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 1, 2009 (edited) Well, unfortunately that is not the cause of this weirdness.. Upon inspecting the balance assembly today I noticed there is quite a bit of a play vertically - as far as I know balances with cap jewels on both side have 0 play, as there is no endshake. So, i quickly took away the dial and tadaaa.. The cause is a cracked cap jewel on the dial plate... Guess I didnt see that one when cleaning it, I assume it was cracked before I got it, as I've observed this behavior for quite some time and have always thought "WTF?". Wearing it probably increased the damage, the jewel really looks cracked and displaced at the moment.. I dont see what I can do about that, rejewelling is obviously way above my abilities and even tho a cap jewel should be a lot easier to replace, I am sure I cant . Oh well, will think about it another day. Kinda depressing, was really enjoying the watch Edited December 1, 2009 by Neuuubeh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FxrAndy Posted December 1, 2009 Report Share Posted December 1, 2009 That is a shame, are spares available for these movements? What sort of shock protection if any is fitted? If it is a kif or incablock then changing a cap jewel is easier than you think after a couple of trys, i find incablok easier than kif. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neuuubeh Posted December 2, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 2, 2009 (edited) None, it was made 1923 . I have a very similar movement (the broken one is more "high-end" tho, 19 jewels, adjusted to 5 positions and so on; the one in my avatar), I will probably drop that one instead, and look up how much it would cost me to have a cap jewel replaced by some watchmaker. I'm thinking with shipping to and from and his fee, it will probably cost more than I paid for the movement tho ;s Edited December 2, 2009 by Neuuubeh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Francisco Posted December 3, 2009 Report Share Posted December 3, 2009 None, it was made 1923 . I have a very similar movement (the broken one is more "high-end" tho, 19 jewels, adjusted to 5 positions and so on; the one in my avatar), I will probably drop that one instead, and look up how much it would cost me to have a cap jewel replaced by some watchmaker. I'm thinking with shipping to and from and his fee, it will probably cost more than I paid for the movement tho ;s there are many, tons of replacements for illinois movements.... just use google and you will find them.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neuuubeh Posted December 4, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 4, 2009 My point was there is no shock protection. I know there are plenty of illinois movements around, most using interchangeable parts. However I'm not quite certain I can change a cap jewel on my own, and I'm fairly certain shipping to and from a watchmaker + his fee would cost more than what the movement cost me in the first place . Do you have some tips on changing a cap jewel on a non-shock protected balance assembly? Is it just a matter of unscrewing the jewel setting and swapping out the broken one, or do I have to measure the endshake of the staff and so on? I have a 12s Illinois movement I could use to get a replacement and although the setting looks very different, the jewel might be the same. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Francisco Posted December 4, 2009 Report Share Posted December 4, 2009 My point was there is no shock protection. I know there are plenty of illinois movements around, most using interchangeable parts. However I'm not quite certain I can change a cap jewel on my own, and I'm fairly certain shipping to and from a watchmaker + his fee would cost more than what the movement cost me in the first place . Do you have some tips on changing a cap jewel on a non-shock protected balance assembly? Is it just a matter of unscrewing the jewel setting and swapping out the broken one, or do I have to measure the endshake of the staff and so on? I have a 12s Illinois movement I could use to get a replacement and although the setting looks very different, the jewel might be the same. yes, normally jewels are screwed in these old movements..so it is easy.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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