Admitting my horological embarrassment, must confess!

[Timelord]

Well,

I was in two minds whether to vent here about something that I have always been unsuccessful in my horological journey!

 

I have over the years managed to pull apart and put together many watch movements from most of what I have learnt here and from the good will of other members volunteering their knowledge  and patience!  

 

During any of my services , I have only been successful in removing a mainspring and only have been able to put it back in the barrel with the plunger tool that is specifically made for the eta 2824 which I bought o eBay many moons ago!  Cheap thing but has worked so far!

My embarrassment comes from the fact that I have never been successful  in putting a mainspring In the barrel back by hand!  😔 on two occasions I have come close to the end and the spring just  broke just before the last wind where the arbor sits!  Maybe I have been winding them in the wrong direction!  Maybe I am not up to it!    I have even seen the already coiled up in a round steel holder which I believe is just pressed into the barrel by hand!  This also makes me wonder I how to line them up straight and correctly pressing them in?
 

I have two questions :

 

1.  Is the one sold in the holder just pressed in and if so , are there any traps one needs too avoid from the spring flying out into my face?

2. How do you tell the direction of the mainspring before beginning the wind by looking at the shape of the spring?

 

thanks for any advice!

 

 

 

[automatico]

"My embarrassment comes from the fact that I have never been successful  in putting a mainspring In the barrel back by hand!"

 

After you get the MS started do not look at what you are doing...do it all by feel.  Put your hands under a table so you will not be tempted to look.  No kidding.

My downfall is hairsprings.  I am too slow working on them to be worth a hoot.

 

1.  "Is the one sold in the holder just pressed in?"

 

Yes.  Carefully and flat.

 

2.  "...and if so, are there any traps one needs too avoid from the spring flying out into my face?"

 

Be sure that any tool you use to press the MS out of the holder into the barrel has an OD big enough to shove the complete MS down into the barrel and not let a run of MS get outside the barrel when removing the MS holder or the MS might/will fly out.  Also seat the MS fully in the barrel after inserting it with something that will not damage the MS or barrel wall before you move the MS holder away from the barrel.  I use a piece of peg wood a little bigger that a toothpick with a flat end.  The ideal tool would be round aluminum etc and just barely slip through the hole in the MS holder so it will push the MS all the way into the barrel but too many tools would be needed for different barrels.

 

3..."How do you tell the direction of the mainspring before beginning the wind by looking at the shape of the spring?"

 

Always look at the old spring before removing it from the barrel.  On automatics be sure the bridle is properly positioned and oil the barrel wall and floor before installing the MS.  On manual wind models look at the barrel wall to see which way the MS needs to go in order to get 'snagged' on the wall.  Many new MS come dry lubed and only need oil on the wall and a drop on the floor and cap, not much at all on the spring itself.  Manual wind watches need very little oil on the barrel wall.

 

Oil the arbor where it passes through the barrel.  I use D5 on the arbor where it runs in the barrel and plates...D5 because I already have it and do not want to spend $$ on the latest synthetic FOTM.  Heck, I'm already using 9010 and 9020!

Besides...D5 is $55 on Amazon now so it is expensive enough for watch snobs. 

Maybe they should name it D$55.

 

If you do not remember which direction the MS goes in the barrel, you can also look at a similar movement and see which way the MS arbor turns when hand winding. 

Since the threaded end of the barrel arbor usually goes through the barrel cap, you can tell which way the MS goes by the sharp end of the 'hook' on the arbor.   

 

My K&D MS winders are probably 60 years old but they were free.  Hard to beat the price.

FOTH = Flavor Of The Month.  Ha!

 

 

 

 

[Ronin]

Speaking of D5 & 90xx oils. I bought large bottles of these circa 2010.  I’ve heard mixed messages on if they expire. Is my 12yr old almost full bottles still good?

[automatico]

"Is my 12yr old almost full bottles still good?"

 

Moebiu$ says NO!

Internet windbags say NO!

 

I say probably but I'm a contrarian windbag.  

I bet a lot of repair guys are using oil that old. 

[Ronin]

Yeah. I read similar by arm chair Internet experts.
 

But I spoke to a watchmaker at a National High End Rolex AD. Their service department has been using the same 8oz+ bottles for at least 10 years. He said when you understand how little oil is actually used in a service. These 8oz+ bottles of lube last forever from a usage perspective. 
 

You would think if it went bad, how much would be waste? And that being the case you would think they would sell it in single use packs or something smaller. 

[Timelord]

Gentlemen,  thanks for your input!

 

my failure is towards the end of the last turn while feeding in the mainspring!  Just  as I am turning the last  part that latches onto the arbor,it gets a sharp bend and breaks!! Maybe it is that I am not putting enough pressure on the initial turns that makes it hard for that last loop to go in?  Or maybe arthritis in fingers compounded by carpel tunnel or even lack of skills!  Thanks for your support!

[horologist]

This is not an embarrassment at ALL by any stretch of the imagination!!!!!!

 

I myself struggled in the early days with the amount of mainsprings that I have damaged because either I fed them in the wrong way or my fingers were not yet upto it.  It is a skill which I took a long time to cope with at the cost of many mainsprings.  They can be tricky to orientate which is where I think most of the problem with installation comes from.  That is why there is also  special tool made for installing them in.    In fact, according to this professional watchmaker on the watch repair channel, he does not encourage it either!!!!!   

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KcI3X7oovbc

 

After I had acquired a way of installing one in by hand, I got worse when arthritis hit me and in your case having Carpel Tunnel can totally cripple your hand dexterity at many levels of watch repair and not just with mainspring installation!!!!

 

I usually take strong painkillers for my fingers if I need to install one in by hand as I know that as soon as I get to the end, my fingers will give way!!!!

 

Thank you for sharing with us your story and NO we are far too broad minded group of people here to be judgmental of this!!!! You are with the elite of elite when it comes to our interests!!!!  Good Luck!!!

[ceejay]

Hand winding auto mainsprings...hell no! Especially on those tiny modern calibres!

 

Only mainsprings I hand wind are those that are not replaceable, easily. Other than that, new mainspring, pressed in.

I have on occasion came across new mainsprings that the retainer ID is larger than the diameter of the barrel it's going into. On these occasions, It has to come out of the retainer and be wound into a mainspring winder.

Mainspring winders are ridiculously expensive but I managed to get a decent set, without remortgaging the house.

 

As, said above make a note or take a picture before removing the old mainspring so you know what way it goes back in.