gmtlover Posted November 13, 2014 Report Share Posted November 13, 2014 Hi Guys, after a fairly long wait (almost 6 weeks) I received 3 watches today. 2 for a friend and one for myself. Unfortunately the watch IWC big pilot has a loose date wheel.. I have repaired a keyless works on an eta 2836 before, but I am somewhat scared to remove the black painted hands and damage them. Any tips on that..And can there be more surprises? Also the rotor ( counterbalance ) is huge..this puts a lot of pressure on the screw and it was loose when I opened the rear. I will order a new (normal size) rotor for this watch. The big design rotor doesn't make any sense and is just a time bomb waiting to break.. I do have a hand remover tool and a hand press to put the hands back on.. Any tips for this procedure? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmtlover Posted November 14, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 14, 2014 anyone? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sputim Posted November 14, 2014 Report Share Posted November 14, 2014 Just use a dial protecter when removibg the hands and be very gentle when putting them back on. Once you removed the dial I am pretty sure you can simply glue the dwo back onto the date wheel and everything should be fixed. Keep us up to date Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
astonjenks Posted November 14, 2014 Report Share Posted November 14, 2014 As above, I use a business card with a cut slot to slide under the hands. With all BP's, be careful of the crown/tube thread as these are the achilees of the watch, 'feel' the thread and gently tighten! AJ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
panermaniac Posted November 14, 2014 Report Share Posted November 14, 2014 Go slow! As said, use a dial protector. You can cut a slot in a business card if you don't have one. Try not to touch the hands with your fingers or metal tweezers, use Rodico if you have it. I use a Post-it note when reassembling. I stick the bottom of the hands to it. That way I have something to hold onto when pressing the hands back. Good luck and keep us posted Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 14, 2014 Report Share Posted November 14, 2014 My method involves placing a plastic sandwich baggie over the hands/dial and gently prying them out with a set of hand levers. It's a trick I got off a member of one of these forums Not a fan of the dial protector and it's too thick, especially for the chrono hands Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmtlover Posted November 14, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 14, 2014 Thanks for the advice! I have a dial protector.. I am not worried about that.. It's just not damaging the hands.. And it's not only the DWO that came loose, it's they entire DW.. Anyone who can supply new hands? If I might scratch them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmtlover Posted November 15, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 15, 2014 Ok, New challenge.. How do I get datewheel back on there and in a good centered position? I saw some post about attaching a DWO but how does it work? I can't keep reglueing the dwo can I? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GenTLe Posted November 15, 2014 Report Share Posted November 15, 2014 Yoiu can reglue it, but you should find some slow drying one because you'll need to reposition it many times. Personally I use UHU Endfest 300 (very little amount), as it's incredibly strong (300kg/cm2) but it fully dries in 12h and gives you around 30mins (even more if you put less catalyst component in the mixture) to reposition it. It will be a lot of "put the dwo in position / put the dial / remove the dial / reposition it / put the dial / verify it's ok / move it 15 days advance / remove the dial / reposition it ..." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmtlover Posted November 15, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 15, 2014 Ok! Nice... Ehm not haha Fortunately i have that glue.. Ready for The challenge I guess! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmtlover Posted November 15, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 15, 2014 Quite happy with the result of my first dwo repair.. The date will always sit slightly high because of the design of the DWO. but at least it is in de middle now. The results, don't flame me.. Haha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmtlover Posted November 15, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 15, 2014 And of course a wrist shot to end.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
panermaniac Posted November 15, 2014 Report Share Posted November 15, 2014 yay! I love a happy ending! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sputim Posted November 15, 2014 Report Share Posted November 15, 2014 Congratulations and very nice watch enjoy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmtlover Posted November 15, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 15, 2014 It's not mine, ordered it for a friend.. That made seeing it arriving broken only harder.. Was his first rep.. So glad I could fix it for him! Thanks for the help guys! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GenTLe Posted November 15, 2014 Report Share Posted November 15, 2014 In my view: perfect. Well done mate!!! Did you used the Uhu 300 in the end? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmtlover Posted November 16, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 16, 2014 Thanks Gentle! Yes I did.. Should be stuck now.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GenTLe Posted November 16, 2014 Report Share Posted November 16, 2014 Thanks Gentle! Yes I did.. Should be stuck now.. Well, maybe if it goes behind a steamroller it can detach again... But at that point the dwo is a minor problem Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mymanmatt Posted November 16, 2014 Report Share Posted November 16, 2014 Good job!! You have the knack. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.