The hairspring from this 3/0 size Hampden has a slight inside bend in the about a third of the way out, which is the hardest bend to correct. I find small Hampden springs difficult to manipulate.
Usually, you can sort of “feel” the tension in a hairspring. The material in some way wants to be in its original coil so correction comes almost naturally. But these things are really soft. They just about deform when you breath on them, and it’s really easy to over-shot a correction. I’ve had trouble with them before. I’m guess they must be all steel, old steel. This one is also has a trace of rust. It’ll likely never time right. I just found another one instead.
Close observers may notice a few odd things about the dial-side winding/setting mechanism (keyless works). Indeed this is a type not commonly found in American movements.
This movement is pin-setting. Notice the button to the right of the winding arbor.
I had to get out the little mainspring winders for this project… Once I was in a watch repair place, just looking around, and there was a display under glass of all sorts vintage watchmakers’ tools, including this once commonly used winder set, that I use all the time.
Here’s a shot of the edge showing the setting pin to the right of the winding arbor. There’s a pusher in the edge of the case that lines out with this pin.
Here is the pin-set button from the outside of the case. holding down the button puts the movement in setting mode. This is relatively unusual in American movements.
See the entire album for this watch here.
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