Water damage to A7750 movt

[vikkyrob]

A friend of mine has bought a rep IWC GST Chrono in titanium and for some bizzare reason took it waterskiing. Not the brightest thing to do (should get him to write a post on rep watches and novice waterskiers!!). There is clearly lots of condensation within the glass and he has also informed me that this happened a week ago. I am struggling to get the back off for a start, and before I go wasting my time is there anything that can be done to save this watch? It is definiately not working but there are no odd sounds coming from within. Please can anyone offer some help. Many thanks.

[vikkyrob]

The watch needs service. And it needs a complete tear-down or a new movement (depends on how long you wait).

Is it possible to buy another A7750 easily and how much would it cost? How difficult is it to install?

[jmt]

Is it possible to buy another A7750 easily and how much would it cost? How difficult is it to install?

Wait.. first get the back off... then get some dessicant... like what comes in vitamins and but it in a tupperware with an open lid and the warch (dial side down) under a lamp. Wait a day or so. Check it out. It maybe nice and try. A week is a long time, but you MAY be ok. Try that and see what happens. I personallywould not have waited a week and if I did it would be off to The Zigmeister, but you may be ok ... dessicant and direct heat are key.

[Logan]

Only if it was fresh clean water, if its salt water you need to clean the movement asap before everything corrodes.

Wait.. first get the back off... then get some dessicant... like what comes in vitamins and but it in a tupperware with an open lid and the warch (dial side down) under a lamp. Wait a day or so. Check it out. It maybe nice and try. A week is a long time, but you MAY be ok. Try that and see what happens. I personallywould not have waited a week and if I did it would be off to The Zigmeister, but you may be ok ... dessicant and direct heat are key.

[jmt]

Only if it was fresh clean water, if its salt water you need to clean the movement asap before everything corrodes.

Absolutely! Great clarification...

[highoeyazmuhudee]

is it still running with condensation in there or has it stopped?

[like2watch]

Preferably get the back off and to a watchmaker fast...

When I drowned my daytona I called my watchmaker to find he was away for a week.

He told me to undo the crwon and pushers and sit it somewhere warm (in my case on top of the metal enclosure for a fish tank light) crown up and drop it around to him when he got back.

All up it was over two weeks between getting wet and getting fixed.

No drama's other than needing new hands and dial, in my case it was salt water and there was obvious corrosion blisters on the hands and subdial rings.

[italiano17771]

damn jon, what do you do for a living?

[like2watch]

You might need to check your equations Jon, I got eighteen months+ and going strong.... ;-P

Yes, point taken- in fact I have a spare 7750 as a donor given I expect it likely the saltwater has cused a greatly reduced life expectancy.

My watchmaker tends to think it is unlikley to deteriate further though give the chemicals he used in the ultrasonic cleaning and the lube on reassembly.

Time will tell.

Don't get me wrong, the thing won't explode. It may not even stop this year. But, like a smokers lungs, it will degrade much more rapidly over time. If you want a year out of your watch, you may get that. But here's what's going to happen:

O2 + 4 e- + 2 H2O → 4 OH-

Fe → Fe2+ + 2 e−

2 Fe2+ + 0.5 O2 → 2 Fe3+ + O

Fe2+ + 2 H2O ⇌ Fe(OH)2 + 2 H+

Fe3+ + 3 H2O ⇌ Fe(OH)3 + 3 H+

Fe(OH)2 ⇌ FeO + H2O

Fe(OH)3 ⇌ FeO(OH) + H2O

2 FeO(OH) ⇌ Fe2O3 + H2O

All depending on the conditions etc. But all make iron oxide. And iron oxide is bad.

(Note, yes there are other metals involved and other chemical horrors occurring as well)

[vikkyrob]

You might need to check your equations Jon, I got eighteen months+ and going strong.... ;-P

Yes, point taken- in fact I have a spare 7750 as a donor given I expect it likely the saltwater has cused a greatly reduced life expectancy.

My watchmaker tends to think it is unlikley to deteriate further though give the chemicals he used in the ultrasonic cleaning and the lube on reassembly.

Time will tell.

The watch is certainly not working in its current state. The waterskiing was on a freshwater lake, so some good news. Thanks for all your help. I think he will probably have to get a new movt (or watch!).

[gregers]

The watch is certainly not working in its current state. The waterskiing was on a freshwater lake, so some good news. Thanks for all your help. I think he will probably have to get a new movt (or watch!).

So what are the chances of getting a new movement for this (or any watch)?

In theory it sounds a good idea-just drop in a new movt. for any busted watch. However, there are, presumably, a huge number of 7750 variants (size, spacings, seconds@6/9, etc.) and getting hold of the right version is not going to be straightforward. Or am I wrong on this?

[stevethebest]

So what are the chances of getting a new movement for this (or any watch)?

In theory it sounds a good idea-just drop in a new movt. for any busted watch. However, there are, presumably, a huge number of 7750 variants (size, spacings, seconds@6/9, etc.) and getting hold of the right version is not going to be straightforward. Or am I wrong on this?

I would say you are right ... not so easy to swap the movement for the reasons you said!

[gregers]

I would say you are right ... not so easy to swap the movement for the reasons you said!

Thanks for that.

So, with swapsies out, unless you have a willing watchmaker to hand it's sensible to stick to quartz

[Toadtorrent]

I would say you are right ... not so easy to swap the movement for the reasons you said!

It's actually not too bad...IF YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING. This is not something for a first timer to do.

If you have some dessicant aroun (from camera or electronics equipment...if you work in IT...you can steal some bags of it from printers, routers, etc). Open the caseback ideally, and remove the anti-mag cover if there is one. Stick the opened watch and the dessicant inside a zip lock bag or plastic tub and stick it on a desk in the sun to get the evaporation going and the dessicant absorption going. Leave it for a day or two and see what happens.

If the watch can be revived after this...it could still do with a service...but you might be alright if you don't want to pay for the servicing for awhile.

Again...salt water dunk means the salt can quickly corrode parts...so a trip to a watchmaker for a breakdown is needed if you want the watch to last. A Ti GST is worth salvaging.

If you want a new movement...Ajoesmith has both 6-9-12 and 3-6-9 variants I believe for around $150.

You need to be able to decase the movement, remove and re-install hands, remove and reinstall a datewheel, clean up fingerprints and grease marks, etc...and re-case everything with stem re-install.

This requires specialized equipment (movement holder, horological quality screwdrivers, hand removal tool, hand press, rodico, caseback opener, etc...and more importantly, the know how to use them).

[gregers]

It's actually not too bad...IF YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING. This is not something for a first timer to do.

If you have some dessicant aroun (from camera or electronics equipment...if you work in IT...you can steal some bags of it from printers, routers, etc). Open the caseback ideally, and remove the anti-mag cover if there is one. Stick the opened watch and the dessicant inside a zip lock bag or plastic tub and stick it on a desk in the sun to get the evaporation going and the dessicant absorption going. Leave it for a day or two and see what happens.

If the watch can be revived after this...it could still do with a service...but you might be alright if you don't want to pay for the servicing for awhile.

Again...salt water dunk means the salt can quickly corrode parts...so a trip to a watchmaker for a breakdown is needed if you want the watch to last. A Ti GST is worth salvaging.

If you want a new movement...Ajoesmith has both 6-9-12 and 3-6-9 variants I believe for around $150.

You need to be able to decase the movement, remove and re-install hands, remove and reinstall a datewheel, clean up fingerprints and grease marks, etc...and re-case everything with stem re-install.

This requires specialized equipment (movement holder, horological quality screwdrivers, hand removal tool, hand press, rodico, caseback opener, etc...and more importantly, the know how to use them).

What do you estimate to be the most cost effective action - new movt (+possible cost of installation-presumably not too much) or a complete strip down?Would a strip down be pretty well the same as having a complete service ? In which case you kill two birds etc.

[RWG Technical]

It's probably going to cost you more to fix/replace than it would to simply buy a new watch.

I have seen many water damaged movements, and within a few days the movement will be a complete write off, water and watches don't mix well.

Unless you stripped it down within a day or two, the damage is done and the fix is going to be more than a replacement of the complete watch.

RG

[Toadtorrent]

It's probably going to cost you more to fix/replace than it would to simply buy a new watch.

I have seen many water damaged movements, and within a few days the movement will be a complete write off, water and watches don't mix well.

Unless you stripped it down within a day or two, the damage is done and the fix is going to be more than a replacement of the complete watch.

RG

Listen to the The Zigmeister-Meister...the man has seen more movements than I have seen watches. The deal is, that if you care about the rep in general, you would be having to pay to have the movement serviced anyways...otherwise...consider it disposable and get a new one.