How I clean a pocket watch or wrist watch, Waltham

Since I didn't know how to clean a watch I looked on the internet for information. Due to my skill and equipment this is the procedure I came up with. This method is subject to change as my knowledge, skill and equipment change. Try this method at your own risk. Not responsible for your screw ups.

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Howto & Style

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• How
• clean
• pocket
• wrist
• watch
• Waltham

[gaarnal]

Good video - Thanks. For porcelain enamel dial cleaning I use Efferdent. Works quite well cleaning out hairlines as well as general crud. Since it is a water base cleaning method, drying is critical to prevent oxidation of any bare metal and solder. Haven't had any trouble with the soldered on sub sec. dial. For a low cost pivot hole cleaning I use bamboo sKewers. works better than toothpicks. The long grain of bambo makes it easy to trim down to pivot hole size...

[bunnspecial]

@gaarnal Thanks for the tip. I will have to try that.

[inkey2]

(2) They stated that removing all the tension off an old mainspring then rewinding it and installing it back in the barrel cause great stress to the metal. You are better off just replacing it.....or dip the entire barrel/spring (not removing the spring) in some cleaner...then when dry oil it. before reading this I had just restored a rolex tudor which I had removed the spring to clean it.....indeed the spring did break well before 90 days

[bunnspecial]

@inkey2 I don't remove a mainspring unless I have to. Just taking it out of the barrel does not look like you are doing the mainspring any favors. I figure just doing that you are bending it out of shape. Remove any crud you can and then a few drops of oil or oil if dry.

[JR3059]

pith wood works great to clean the pivots. My cleaning containers are old pickle jars. :)

Really enjoy your videos.

[bunnspecial]

@JR3059 I always wanted to get some pith wood but was too cheap to buy it. Because of your comment I now realize that pith wood would be far superior for cleaning pivots than folded up newspaper. Just push it in and pull it out, dirt stays behind. Love it. Thanks for showing me the light.

[Polybun]

@bunnspecial So after a minute or two of settling, you drop that liquid into the spring and work it a bit so it gets into all the creases. Once the white gas evaporates, it leaves behind a very very thin, very even coating of moly dry lube and it's just slicker than snot. Won't come off for nothing either. The stuff is a pain to get off your fingers too.

[Polybun]

@bunnspecial Just a tip we use on cameras that works way better than oil for that type of spring. What we will do is dip in an ultrasonic with coleman lantern fuel and then dry it real good. Then what I'll do is mix a little bit of molbenium disulfide with some fresh white gas in a dropper bottle. Give that thing a good shake, then let it sit for a bit, that lets the large particles settle. (continued)

[Polybun]

@bunnspecial Just a heads up, you can get some pretty cheap ultrasonic cleaners at harbor freight. I've got one, I do camera repair. It can be a real life saver on some jobs. Some of these cameras there just isn't anyway to get it apart, so you take the shutter assembly out and just dunk it and hope for the best. It's pretty wild, you kick the thing on and you can see streams of crap running out of the shutter mechanism. Now cameras use no oil, they use dry moly... so..

[inkey2]

(1) cleaning a mainspring. years ago i bought about 100 watch repair monthly trade journals from the 1930s through about 1960. In every issue there was a section "ask the master watch maker" There was an ongoing arguement on "cleaning mainsprings''. After following this arguement throughout all the journals this is what all the experts said....if you "remove" a mainspring, clean/greas it and re-install it there is a very good chance it will break w/in 90 days.

[inkey2]

@zellzildjian12 from my experience, reading many books and info I learned from old watch makers .....using the ultra sonic cleaner should be fine EXCEPT for the balance fork and the balance assembly. The two pallet jewels on the fork could vibrate off. The entire balance can be cleaned in hair spring cleaning solution without taking it apart. Just remove the entire balance assembly carefully (usually jut one screw holding it down) and submerge it in the cleaner

[roccotool]

I use a vinegar/water solution, 50/50, to clean the dial. It doesn't attack the lumina or anything glued down like alcohol does. I cleaned a Russian dial that way with good results. I learn a lot from these videos. Keep up the good work.