[TECH] - SEIKO Repair BODGE Work - The REPAIR + TG Results

[@ELMS]

Fascinating. Just tightening the holder too much can cause all that grief. I’d have never thought.

[@hal0eight]

I know right? The Bergeon holders are all steel, so you can crank them all day and they will bend or bite into the soft brass on the plates no problem. They do sell a composite plastic holder, which when I remember, I'll buy. As the composite plastic is softer than the brass, the risk of damage is much lower. I currently use a nylon holder sometimes for various things. Besides that for most of the stuff I work on, I use one of my 3D printed rings.

[@ELMS]

Vintage Time Australia BTW, I have one of the two Bell-Matics I’m going to be sending your way. When the other arrives I’ll pop them in the mail. Cheers.

[@tods.9947]

Terrific info, thank you. I will remember this as I dig into my repair plan.

[@hal0eight]

Planning is the way to go with this.

[@adrianbirkett594]

Thanks for that info!.👍. Adrian

[@hal0eight]

No worries!

[@BillMrWild]

Do you view jewels under a microscope,? good point warping the main plate by over-tightening the movement holder, I still prefer the adjustable holder, a matter of preference.

[@hal0eight]

Yeah, I check all the plates under a microscope after cleaning. Cracked jewels aren't very common but they will ruin your day if they're missed. I prefer to do it this way as I can make sure everything is clean and clear, with no major faults before re-assembling. It's just cleaner and nicer to work that way. I have a nylon adjustable holder I use sometimes. I do have the bergeon steel units but they've been packed away for years. I find it really difficult to hold the SEIKO plates in them and they don't have enough contact area and really move around. Also, the risk of warping plates is high, you tighten it further to hold the plate in and you might just warp it enough to be an issue. As it's all steel, clamping on soft engraver's brass, it's going to cut into or bend the brass as much as you can crank the thing.

[@markirvin2809]

The guy I gave a hard time about this watch (I apologised) should be super happy now

[@hal0eight]

He's stoked. He actually bought it from an Asian seller, and that seems to be where the bodge work happened.