The Illinois Watch and Its Hamilton Years

I have just received this brand new, *five* volume set by Fredric Friedberg. Everything (everything) you ever wanted to know about the Illinois Watch Company and its relationship with Hamilton. An amazing resource!

Getting Started With Antique Watches

I am frequently asked about books and other resources useful in learning about collecting, and repairing, pocketwatches, and vintages watches in general.  There are several good ones.

These three provide a good deal of information on the history of watches as well as about their care and use. These are a great place to start with the basics.

  



 

How much is your watch worth? This book is the place to look. This is a very widely used price guide that also contains quite a bit of general information on vintage watches, watch terminology, history and more. This book are great as general reference.

Practical Watch Repairing by Donald de Carle is a reprint of a classic instructional book on watchmaking.  Some of it is dated, some but most techniques are basically the same today.

Also by de Carle is Practical Watch Adjusting.

For even more technical information, there's this one by master craftsman George Daniels. This book is the gold standard on how to construct a watch from scratch.

This is not a definitive list, just a few I have seen. There are also many old and out of print books on watchmaking. Regularly checking used book stores and eBay will turn up a more. Old books often contain hard to find information on specialized antique tools and certain repair techniques.

Here are a few online resources:

• Clocks And Watches
• Illustrated Professional Dictionary of Horology
• Mike's Clock Clinic's hints and repair tips
• The Watch Guy
• Escapements
• The Metatechnical Cabinet
• AWCI
• Elgintime, especially this vintage watch FAQ

You can also find many posts about watchmaking, new and old, right here on this blog, and still more in this Collection, here.

Finally, here's a few sources of watch material, specialty services, tools, books, supplies, and more:

• Wuischpard and Son, for case repair
• Esslinger
• Twin City Suppley
• The Tick Talk Shop
• Otto Frei
• Dave's Watch Parts and Tools
• Cas-Ker
• William S. McCaw Co
• International Dial, for dial refinishing
• Advanced Clock Repair Service, for enamel dial repairs, clock repair and more

Of course you can also find quite a lot on eBay too, including old and out of print books, hard to find tools and watch parts.

Collecting, or repair, antique timepieces make for a fascinating and rewarding hobby, enjoy!

Know Your Watch Parts

Here is another image with some parts labeled, to help with watch terminology.

Find the rest of this series here!

Antique Watch Restoration by Archie Perkins

Here are a couple of great books covering a wide range of topics and techniques in antique watch repair. The subjects range from the basics to fairly advanced. Some of the information is available elsewhere, but it is very unusual to see a collection like this, a modern publication, in print. These books are a niche publication, and probably won't be around for long. Check them out!

Hunter Cased Pocketwatches

Hunter or hunting watch cases have a hinged front cover. A steel latch holds the cover shut, but the cover itself is a soft metal. Because of that, in spite of what we see in movies, it is very important to press the crown in when closing, to pull the patch back, it rather than "snapping" it shut.

Otherwise, the latch part of the cover quickly wears and then the case won't stay closed.  In many instances this is unrepairable.

Know Your Watch Parts

Here are a few images showing the commonly used names of some parts of mechanical pocketwatches that can be seen from the outside.

This first one shows the back of an 18 size Elgin movement. The balance wheel and regulator are prominent, but everything else is covered up on this style of watch.

This is an open-face watch case. The glass covering the dial and hands is the crystal.

On this style of movement, more parts can be seen from the back.

The balance assembly, or balance complete, is made up of the balance wheel, the staff, the hairspring and (underneath) the roller table, which is on the other side.

This is the train of a watch, from the barrel to the escape wheel. Not all watches have the same train parts, but the majority do, although the exact layout can vary.

The escapement consists of the escape wheel and pallet.

Watches I have Known

I received this book yesterday from Amazon. It was recommended to be by a watch enthusiast. Looks great!

"As watches come and go from his workbench, Barry meets a host of vibrant characters whose incredible stories will inspire, sadden, and thrill you. With a firm belief that the owners sometimes need fixing just as much as, if not more than, the watch itself, this humble watchmaker acts as a healer to objects and people alike. From the watch of a man who rescued his grandparents from a devastated Italian village to the timepiece given to a man as a gift inside a concentration camp, these true tales are sure to move you as Barry reflects on the nature of human kindness, forgiveness, and time itself."

Watches I Have Known
by Barry J. Marcus and Julie Campisi

Vintage Pocketwatch Resources

I am frequently asked about books and other resources useful in learning about pocketwatches, and vintages watches in general.  There are several.

These three by by M. Cutmore provide a good deal of information on the history of watches as well as about their care and use.



Some Others:



How much is your watch worth? This book is the place to look. This is a very widely used price guide that also contains quite a bit of general information on vintage watches, watch terminology, history and more.




Practical Watch Repairing by Donald de Carle is a reprint of a classic instructional book on watchmaking.  So of it is dated, some but most techniques are basically the same today.

Also by de Carle is Pratical Watch Adjusting.

For even more technical information, there's this one by master craftsman George Daniels.

This is not a definitive list, just a few I have seen. There are also many old and out of print books on watchmaking. Regularly checking used book stores and eBay will turn up a more.

Here are a few online resources:

• Clocks And Watches
• Illustrated Professional Dictionary of Horology
• Mike's Clock Clinic's hints and repair tips
• The Watch Guy
• Escapements
• The Metatechnical Cabinet
• AWCI

Here's a few sources of watch material, specialty services, tools and supplies:

• Wuischpard and Son, for case repair
• Crystal Fit, for crystals
• Dashto
• The Tick Talk Shop
• Otto Frei
• Dave's Watch Parts and Tools
• Cas-Ker
• William S. McCaw Co
• International Dial, for dial refinishing
• Advanced Clock Repair Service, for enamel dial repairs, clock repair and more

An Absolute Beginner's Guide To A Movement Service

I just ran across this nice article on doing a very basic watch overhaul with minimal tools.

http://www.thewatchsite.com/index.php?topic=180.0

It's a pretty good overview for anyone with some mechanical inclination who wants to learn something about how their watch operates. I would add that an actual oiler, a tool intended for that purpose, should be used. Basic oilers are not expensive and learning to use them makes a big difference in getting oil where it should be, in small amounts, and no place that it shouldn't be. It's also worth mentioning that although the point about "bounce reduction" is a good one, ordinary paper towels aren't optimal for use in the way suggested. Something completely lint-free is preferable.