Radioactive Jaeger LeCoultre Cal. P478 Military Watch 1940s Full Service and Restoration

[@stevemcgarrett24]

Again it’s another excellent video from your good self. Bravo and thank you for allowing these vintage watches to be functional again. 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

[@GermanWatchmakingChannel]

Thank you. Means a lot :) I am working on the next one already. But takes more time than expected.

[@stevemcgarrett24]

@@GermanWatchmakingChannel I can hardly wait because I’m excited to see what you have for us next. The quality of your work and the amazing way you video it, is simply incredible. Thanks once again for sharing your passion 👍🏻

[@mrmagoo.3678]

I could sit..chill..and watch these all day... I'm going to have to learn how to service & repair Watches.

[@seeyoulater118]

I also think the seconds hand suits the style of the watch very well! Great work :)

[@charlixism]

Absoutely agree! Great Choice.

[@Nobody-xt3xs]

Excellent work. I love the way the video is edited and the amount of detail you put into your descriptions. Much respect as well for including your minor error and how you corrected it, that shows true craftsmanship.

[@GermanWatchmakingChannel]

Thanks so much. It is truly a lot of work and the biggest comfort to see that it makes people happy and is interesting to watch. All the best to you

[@Mitchkoo]

Yo, this is really a lot of effort you put in your videos. I like the way you are sharing your thoughts of each journey with us. Also, very interesting to see how present radioactivity is while working with such a vintage watch. Keep up the great work.

[@mrmagoo.3678]

I didn't give too much thought to radiation..I just seen some pictures of the women who worked in the factories..Radium Girls... Gonna start paying a little more attention now!.

[@ronl7131]

Good restoration. Great timepiece.

[@patrickcannady2066]

What a beautiful little movement!

[@mollyfilms]

What’s a fabulous video and what skill you have. This is exactly how I would like that watch to look like after your work. Great contrast of polished and renewed, but kept the history of its life intact. As you say the stories this watch hold is priceless. Also on a last note the movement was very satisfying to see.

[@GermanWatchmakingChannel]

That is very nice of you. Thank you for taking the time to write this comment, it means a lot!

[@kens2328]

That’s the best dial I’ve ever seen.

[@JimGlasgow-e5o]

Super 👌 and very interesting to see how this is done .

[@germanspearfishingchannel5359]

Sehr sexy, genial wie das Lumineszenz auf die Zeiger adhäsiert!

[@mrmagoo.3678]

Ja.😊

[@rossboyd6622]

Excellent video. Thanks so much.

[@durchwelday]

Mine gussl The new watch is great! I've praised its realism many times. I really recommend checking out their selection.

[@IM-lf5qp]

Amazing work!!

[@GermanWatchmakingChannel]

Thanks, Means a lot!

[@kens2328]

I think I would consider trading my eternal soul for this watch.

[@GermanWatchmakingChannel]

I don't think that's a good idea :D

[@thwcologne1]

Well done I am impressed !!

[@scatjack]

This is a gorgeous time piece. What do you do with these watches? Do you sell them once you are done?

[@GermanWatchmakingChannel]

Some of the watches were given away as a gift. One I indeed ended up selling. But this JLC is still with me. Not sure yet what I am going to do. Even tho I adore the look, it might be a bit to small for my wrist.

[@joehead1294]

Nice. I like how the minute hand hits the track. I guess it's a peeve of mine, so many do not. That being said, I think the second hand is a little long.

[@zs1dfr]

I think the lume should have had a very small amount of coffee added to the mix to make the hands fit in with the age of the watch. But beautifully done. Thank you!

[@GermanWatchmakingChannel]

That is a very nice tip. I read that food color can also do the trick. But I also like the contrast between strong patina and the fresh lume / polish. But ultimately I think you are right, it would have been better to achieve a more vintage lume color.

[@boydsargeant7496]

Great transformation! How did you know the sourced seconds hand pipe would fit onto the seconds pinion properly?

[@GermanWatchmakingChannel]

Ranfft gives me the hands measurements. For the seconds hand that is 0.22 mm. That way I can source seconds hands that have the same inner diameter.

[@boydsargeant7496]

@@GermanWatchmakingChannel thanks!

[@boydsargeant7496]

@@GermanWatchmakingChannel Thanks!

[@mkahky]

Very nice video. I'm curious to know if you checked the watch for residual radioactivity after cleaning and re-luming the hands

[@GermanWatchmakingChannel]

hello, I sure did and it was fine.

[@Finn-nq8vo]

Ich habe genau die gleiche Uhr und mir fehlt auch der Sekundenzeiger. Wie hast du deinen gefunden? Kennst du zufällig noch die Maße?

[@duncanmyall1904]

Lovely!

[@qh5163]

Was wäre so ein Teil nach dieser Revision wert? Hatte eine Uhr aus den 40er schon Gangreserven von um 40 Std?

[@Tuna-0-5]

Excellent video. Is it dangerous to wear such watches? Unfortunately, I do not have that meter, but I have a WWII watch. I would be happy if you answer. Good work.

[@GermanWatchmakingChannel]

Hey, It is not really dangerous to wear them. Through the crystal the radiation is not higher than 0.25 µSv/h. And that is radiating to the top. To the bottom, so the direction of your wrist, almost no radiation will get through. So as long as the watch is closed and the crystal is intact, it is completely harmless to wear such watches. Probably I would still take them off at night.. If you work on them and breath in the dust of the lume material, that is where it gets dangerous, because it will never leave your body again. I did a lot of research before buying my geiger counter, and the one I have is about 65€ and actually works pretty accurate. The really cheap ones on amazon don't really work sadly.. Hope that helps

[@Tuna-0-5]

Thank you very much for your answer. It was very descriptive. I have another question. While cleaning the area outside the number of the dial, I accidentally dived into that part, a very small part of it, which was difficult to see with a magnifying glass, was dispersed. There was a magnifying glass between me and that surface while doing this process. I don't know if there is a possibility of breathing in the dust, but I disinfected the area I used. I ventilated the room. Do you think there might be a problem? I later learned that this radium could cause harm through inhalation. And is there a possibility that this dust will fly in the air? I am 18 years old. I hope my hobby does not turn into a nightmare. @@GermanWatchmakingChannel

[@GermanWatchmakingChannel]

@@Tuna-0-5 Hey, sorry for the late answer. Are you 100% sure that it is radium? Because Tritium would already be way less harmfull. And Of course I cannot tell for sure since I was not there, but I would not worry too much. It is possible to breath in the dust but for that it also has to be blown into the air somehow. If you did not blow on the dial afterwards or get it on your hands and from there on your body you most probably get away with it unharmed. I also already had this moment of shock while exploring this hobby after I was sorting about 400 vintage dials with bare hands together with a friend. Only later learning about radioactive lume. Afterwards I checked them all with my geiger counter and found out that we were lucky. It is definitely important to be careful with that and be informed exactly what material you are dealing with.

[@Tuna-0-5]

@@GermanWatchmakingChannel Hello master, my watch is a military watch that is likely to have been made between 1940 and 1930, and its mechanism is suitable for it. That's why I think it is likely to be radium. The dial size is 26 -25 mm, the painted part is where I damaged it, I hit the dial with air with a 0.2 mm watchmaker's pump, but I can't remember whether it was before the dust dispersed or not, I guess it was radium because of the year of manufacture. In the worst case scenario, if I inhaled it, I would have a serious health problem. This is the kind of watch I have turned on for the first time. I have never worked with such hours before. Sorry for my broken english.

[@GermanWatchmakingChannel]

@@Tuna-0-5 If you really inhaled the radium dust, that still does not mean that you have a serious health problem yet. And you still cannot be sure if it actually is radium, even though it seems likely. There might be tests that can detect radon (the breakdown material of radium) in your body, but this probably cannot be done by a normal doctor but some specialised laboratory. Sorry but I am not a doctor and can't give you the right advice here. But I really hope that everything will be fine.

[@hemantbisani1030]

In my collection jaiger lecoultre two key alaram wrist watch what is the cost

[@GermanWatchmakingChannel]

The Jaeger LeCoultre Memovox usually values between 1000-3000$ depending on case material and production year.

[@solstar4778]

It’s sad that you can’t get a same replacement dial that is NOT radioactive from the mfg. !

[@solstar4778]

How about a new crown for that stem ?

[@GermanWatchmakingChannel]

@@solstar4778 I thought about replacing the crown that was on the watch, but honestly it is pretty hard to source the original one. And I did not want to slap on some random one with a JLC logo. Since I also learned to like the look of it over time, I just left it on. Same with the dial. I think it tells a story and the patina is quite authentic. regards

[@baladinbaladin2549]

Radioactive EST CE DANGEREUX?

[@GermanWatchmakingChannel]

Oui c'est dangereux

[@germanspearfishingchannel5359]

Ich hoffe du hattest eine Maske an

[@GermanWatchmakingChannel]

Ja

[@anthonyxuereb792]

It needs a new face, let's face it! Keep the original obviously but I wouldn't wear a watch that looks like that no matter how beautiful the mechanism.

[@vvinniem8907]

To be credible you should show us the time-grapher results. 😢

[@GermanWatchmakingChannel]

i forgot to take the before video of the time grapher and then thought it would be strange to only have after service. But you are right, I should have included it.

[@horstjahn9137]

Dein Englisch ist woh

[@GermanWatchmakingChannel]

Ich weiß nicht genau was "woh" bedeutet, ich hoffe es ist etwas positives :)

[@qh5163]

Was wäre so ein Teil nach dieser Revision wert? Hatte eine Uhr aus den 40er schon Gangreserven von um 40 Std?

[@GermanWatchmakingChannel]

Schwer zu sagen, wieviel die Uhr wert ist. Es handelt sich nicht um einen kompletten Originalzustand (Sekundenzeiger, Krone, perfektes Ziffernblatt). So wie sie jetzt ist denke ich zwischen 400-500€ reeller Verkaufspreis auf eBay kommt gut hin. Wenn sie bei einem Händler liegt, dann natürlich deutlich höher, aber dann liegt sie auch eine Weile. Die Gangreserve ist noch erstaunlich gut. Voll aufgezogen sind es definitiv über 36h. Ganz genau habe ich es noch nicht gemessen, sollte ich mal tun.