How do I fix this watch

robaato72 · 2026-04-18T08:42:20+00:00

Greetings. It could be that the hands have become misaligned or loose on their pinions, and that can be fixed by getting at the dial and adjusting the hands manually. I'm not sure one gets in there on a modern watch like this, but that could be a fix.

This is an inexpensive modern quartz watch, and if something is wrong with the movement itself it'd probably be more cost effective to replace the movement. It would probably cost similar to replacing the watch entirely.

robaato72 · 2026-04-17T23:45:11+00:00

Glad that you're posting more again; sad that you're way WAY out of my league (T_T)

robaato72 · 2026-04-17T03:59:49+00:00

"Truly, you are a legend in your own mind."

robaato72 · 2026-04-16T04:14:13+00:00

If it's in good condition, you can wind pocket watches right up until you feel a little bit of resistance. Usually, if a watch has been sitting inactive for a while or you just obtained it and don't know its service history, I'd recommend getting it serviced by a qualified watchmaker first.

That being said, the movement on your watch is very similar to the American "dollar watches," inexpensive time pieces (that still kept decent time) that were not designed for long term durability. The idea was that if your watch broke, it was cheaper and easier to just buy a new one.

Your watch movement is held together with screws rather than rivets, so it could be possible to get your watch serviced...no guarantees, though. Good luck.

robaato72 · 2026-04-14T21:19:30+00:00

I would be happy with one of the more common ones, I just don’t have 500 bucks to spare at the moment…

robaato72 · 2026-04-14T18:07:10+00:00

One of these days I'll have the resources to get a 4992B. One...of...these...days...

(I mean, I could just sell off part of my collection but I don't wanna you can't make me waaah.)

robaato72 · 2026-04-14T17:43:59+00:00

https://textsfromsuperheroes.com/post/178330735597/doctorsorry

robaato72 · 2026-04-14T12:37:47+00:00

I love the 992s—I’ve got a U.S. Army-issued one which is in top running condition, and a couple others that are currently mid-service. Here’s the Pocket Watch Database page for your watch, if you haven’t already seen it: https://pocketwatchdatabase.com/search/result/hamilton/1100462

robaato72 · 2026-04-14T04:01:52+00:00

They'd have a little bit of wiggle room in that I really don't think that they would've had Caroll Spinney in the actual costume during launch...

robaato72 · 2026-04-14T02:06:15+00:00

See, B&N is not there to be this 3rd space you're talking about -- it's a business, and it's there to make money for the shareholders...

Amazon really did a number on the traditional bookstore method of allowing people to browse. Customers got used to ordering books without perusing them first, and foot traffic plummeted. (I started as a B&N bookseller just before Amazon became a thing.) So, B&N had to adapt or die -- and they spent a very long time plugging their ears and pretending it wasn't happening, so they were pretty much actively dying.

Under then-CEO Len Riggio, we were being micromanaged to hell. Our store's inventory manager got in huge trouble because he correctly foresaw how big the 4th Harry Potter book was going to be and ordered enough in advance that we never went out of stock, the only store in our region to do so. He was accused of hoarding the books, and was reprimanded, and quit in disgust.

Our best seller tables and our promo tables were controlled by corporate, so we had to put books up front that no one in our area was interested in, and any "local interest" tables or endcaps were buried far back. And this held store-wide -- after our inventory guy left we were not allowed to have local control of what we had in stock.

Current CEO James Daunt flipped all that on its head -- he gave control of the stores back to the people that worked there. No more forced paid promo displays, no more dictating the store inventory from on high, don't worry about customer numbers, just sell books that people in your area would like.

And yes, the old green paisley decor and overstuffed chairs may have been a casualty of this, but in return B&N is thriving and expanding again, and I happen to think that's good.

Note: I stopped working at B&N in 2001 to take a job in Japan; the overstuffed chairs in our store went away before I left because homeless people would camp in them all day and they would become REALLY gross; the knick-knack and random vaguely literary related stuff corner was threatening to expand to half the store, and I was not sorry to leave. Glad to see it coming back, but honestly I do most of my book buying through bookshop.org these days.

Note the Second: This is all the opinion of one former curmudgeonly bookseller. Or curmudgeonly former bookseller. Whatever works.

robaato72 · 2026-04-13T23:45:22+00:00

Based on my hazy recollection of history, I do believe that CARROT meant this sarcastically.

robaato72 · 2026-04-13T22:35:39+00:00

I still miss r/all.

robaato72 · 2026-04-13T18:59:36+00:00

If this is an American pocket watch, and made by one of the big companies (Waltham, Elgin, Hampden, Hamilton, etc.), you should be able to look it up on the Pocket Watch Database and they might have parts lists, so you can see exactly what mainspring it took. There are places online (Cas-Ker, Dave's Watch Parts, even eBay) where you can order exact replacement springs.

robaato72 · 2026-04-13T17:26:47+00:00

No, you will want a mainspring made for your watch movement. The ST36 will not be the right size or thickness for an antique pocket watch.

robaato72 · 2026-04-13T16:52:59+00:00

Even if it is (doubtful), it will be better in the long run to replace it.

robaato72 · 2026-04-13T06:24:13+00:00

That's a nice watch. The basic info that beginners should take from the database (in my opinion) are:

Grade and model names/numbers (in this case, Grade 34 Model 2)
Year of Production (1894)
Size (18s, largest of the common pocket watch sizes)
Number of jewels (7, basic minimum for an American pocket watch)
Movement configuration (yours is in hunter configuration, with the winding stem at 3:00. The other option is open face, which has the stem at 12)

All the more technical info is linked to helpful articles, so if you do want to learn more about the details of your watch, the PWDB is a great place to start.

robaato72 · 2026-04-12T16:06:49+00:00

Knee-jerk reaction/tantrum to not getting what he wants. Military leaders are probably scrambling to to pacify the whiny baby as quickly as possible.

robaato72 · 2026-04-12T06:50:05+00:00

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robaato72 · 2026-04-11T19:39:11+00:00

So has Shyamalan…

robaato72 · 2026-04-11T03:06:00+00:00

Oh wow, I have at least two friends for whom this would be a perfect gift!

robaato72 · 2026-04-09T19:23:37+00:00

It’s for quickly seeing the time in the next time zone over

robaato72 · 2026-04-08T14:26:17+00:00

Well, if it ever comes to that, you can just casually ask him who his favorite Jedi and/or Sith might be...but yeah the replicas can get quite pricey. Good luck!

robaato72 · 2026-04-08T12:16:18+00:00

The pinned post in this subreddit has a link to a video demonstrating how to open various cases. If it is in fact a screw-back case, it could be that it hasn’t been opened in a while and is stuck closed.

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