Repairing a Loose Pallet Stone

This 18 size Elgin pocketwatch had a loose pallet stone. This is a common problem in movements that have not been serviced in a long time. Fortunately in this case, the stone is still there, it's just no longer secure.

The pallet stones are held with shellac. To fix this, all I have to do is to set the pallet fork in a pallet warmer and then heat the side with the issue using an alcohol lamp. Then I add a tiny speck of shellac over the back of the stone. It melts from the heat and flows in. Moving the stone a bit to and from while the shellac is liquid assures it will be secure. The shellac firms up almost instantly.

Often this task has to be repeated to get the stone at the right depth for the escapement to function, assembling the watch each time to check it.