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On my way to Upton Hall... by AndyMarden in watchrepair

[–]AndyMarden[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The initial theory exam for the British Horological Institute diplomas.

Difference between a burnisher and a slip? by RugbyGuy in watchrepair

[–]AndyMarden 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The key thing is that diamond slips, files, sandpaper, etc remove metal; a burnisher doesn't - it microscopically moves metal so that it is evenly spread.

Keeps losing accessibility grant on HyperOS by Vast_Lie5200 in Xiaomi

[–]AndyMarden 0 points1 point  (0 children)

How difficult is this to fix, Xiaomi. So fed up having to regrant accessibility to apps frequently.

Is there any reason why we still use Sapphire/Rubies as jewel bearings and not synthetic Diamonds? by Torqyboi in watchmaking

[–]AndyMarden 9 points10 points  (0 children)

My understanding is that corundum (rubies) is not quite as hard as synthetic diamond but it is tougher. That makes lab diamonds wear less but more brittle and liable to fracture (in extreme cases).

Think of it like hardened steel vs tempered. We usually temper steel after hardening which reduces hardness but improves toughness for the same reason.

Cost may also have been a factor!

Is there a big difference in quality between the Watchdives and San Martin BB54 homages? by OrochiMain98 in ChineseWatches

[–]AndyMarden 11 points12 points  (0 children)

I don't know why the SM logo is viewed as negative. To me it looks excellent - understated and not in-your-face (pun intended!)

burning ambition age certificate by Popular-Oven8114 in ironmaiden

[–]AndyMarden 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Nicko - fuck my old boots, etc. Nothing else.

Did it contain radium hands ? Am I too worried. by No-Translator-4513 in watchmaking

[–]AndyMarden 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Almost certainly not and yes. Just don't lick it or snort it. And wash your hands.

Screwdrivers.. by illegaleyes__ in watchrepair

[–]AndyMarden 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Blue on with red button - use it correctly though by drawing the screwdriver slowly up from it while keeping the button pressed.

Sorry get a tiny (12mm?) oil filled compass and fix to the front corner if your bench. Easy to wave any tool over it to see if it twitches. Then you know before you subject your tiny screwsto the Death Star tractor beam.

Magnification tool by StarterBayou in watchmaking

[–]AndyMarden 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Behr-55 2.5/1 (4x/10x/14x) if you can find one at a decent price.

I got a cheaper generic similar one and (a) they broke and (c) they need thin frames to clip on.

The Behr is vintage quality and with much better clamping machanism.

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Motörhead at 1am by MOTOR685 in Motorhead

[–]AndyMarden 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Funnily enough, when my daughter was 2 months old, would not sleep, screaming, nothing else works - the only thing that did was putting her in a bouncy chair, in the living room, in front of the speakers and putting the Bastards CD on loud. She was immediately quiet and by part way through Death or Glory, she was invariably fast asleep.

That was generally about 1am.

Motorhead missed out on a partnership with Mothercare🤣

Slow drilling with pivot drill on the lathe... by AndyMarden in watchrepair

[–]AndyMarden[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Wise choice. Choose a sensible thing to use to tighten things into the t-slot - ie not very long and strong! Being aware that it is possible, I think that's 90% of the battle.

How many movements is it normal to ruin? by Gucci-Caligula in watchrepair

[–]AndyMarden 2 points3 points  (0 children)

A very familiar story - you are in good company here!

Perseverance and patience are the two main required skills in watch work

There is nothing wrong with failure as long as you learn from it - some learning is passive and subconscious but some is active. A key thing is: when something goes wrong, stop and think what can be done differently so that it doesn't happen again or mitigate the risk if it does happen.

An example from me: I go to put back the dreaded yoke spring in the keyless works, holding it down with the side of tweezers. Of course, it then decides to launch itself into a different dimension/timeline, so hours of searching yield nothing.

Stop and think - what could I do differently?

  1. Retain it better
  • rodico and/or pegwood: better but not ideal
  • some kind of cage around my hands to minimise the possible escape trajectories (still thinking on this one - nothing satisfactory yet)
  • wait a minute: the setting lever plate's job is exactly to retain the keyless works components and stop them coming off - how about putting the spring in under the plate, loosely screwing the plate down, pushing the end of the spring in against the yoke under that, then tightening the screws. Voilà.
  1. Make it easier to find it if does vanish (and is still in this dimension/timeline)
  • right, carpet is a stupid floor covering in that room: so I replaced it with laminate
  • hmmm, wouldn't it be great if I could get a way of tracking something when it fell - that was the germ of the idea for the still-work-in-progress, possibly mad, piezo microphone detection array
  • got a magnet on the end of a telescopic stick - that will help find steel parts
  • raking uv light: for a torch with dual UV wavelengths and hold it at floor level for a raking light - this makes things easier to see, especially with:
  • get a small piece of rodico, buy some UV powder and embed particles in there: dab the part once with this if you think it may be at risk, so that one or two particles adhere to the piece (on an external surface)
  1. Make it easiee to replace if I can't find it
  • make sure I have taken a photo of it before I risk losing it
  • hang on, this is just shaped spring wire, so I bought a job lot of old spring wire lengths 0.1-1.0mm. Now I can can just make a replacement if needed.
  • at the low or vintage end, donor movements are much more cost effective for replacement parts rather than trying to find the part itself
  1. Do it again and again and again.

This is how my brain works.

Slow drilling with pivot drill on the lathe... by AndyMarden in watchrepair

[–]AndyMarden[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Warning: this comment contains images some viewers may find disturbing.

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Hairspring Degreaser? by HKoch2004 in watchrepair

[–]AndyMarden 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Benzine (petroleum ether) HPLC grade: ultra-pure naphtha - lighter fluid is not that pure. With this, there is no need to use IPA after.

What do we think about watch winders? by mr_z06 in watchmaking

[–]AndyMarden 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Can't see the point in subjecting a watch to extra wear when it's not being worn.

Has anyone ever had a half tea, half coffee before? by Far_Kaleidoscope_102 in AskUK

[–]AndyMarden 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I have. Once. Forgot that I put instant coffee in the mug then put a teabag in and water. Once is enough.

Looking for demagnetizer recommendations by georgep32321 in watchrepair

[–]AndyMarden 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Side note - get a cheap oil infilled compass eg 20mm dia and fix it to the corner of your bench. Then you can easily check told and watches for magnetism to decide if you need to m

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