Newsome dial replacement.

Replacing a dial with one from a different type of watch is something I have managed to avoid doing in the last five years but this rare size 10, 17 jewel watch by Newsome of Coventry has been waiting for a replacement dial for a couple of years with nothing even close coming along so I decided to bite the bullet and modify a dial.

This posting shows how it should be done, and that is not by clipping off the fixing pins and using Blue-Tac or glue to fix the dial to the movement, a technique I see used fairly frequently on watches I buy in.

The first thing is to find a dial from the right period that is of the right size with the hole for the second hand in the right place. You then need some replacement dial feet.

Normally these can now be glued or soldered to the face but on this movement the dial is retained with pins rather than clamped in with screws, so the feet first have to be drilled with a 0.5mm drill held in a pin chuck. A fiddly job as the pins are round.

The pins are then positioned in the movement with "springy" dial washers or similar underneath to get the flat end of the pin high enough to contact the dial, the newly drilled securing holes have to be lined up so that the brass pins can be inserted  when the movement is finally assembled.

 

A thick glue such as the resign based Araldite or Loctite Hysol is then put on the feet plates and the face carefully positioned so that the centre hole is in the centre and the seconds hand hole is correctly aligned.

 

And there we have it, a hundred and two year old watch has a new lease of life.

June market update

LWC half Hunter, 1910

Its a funny old game. A severe shortage of English watches for months, then an avalanche of them, but almost all by the Lancashire Watch Company with 6 completed and a couple more that did not make it.


It was much the same with Swiss watches with 7 signed by J.W. Benson of which 6 were by Tavannes and another Tavannes for Russells Ltd. So from 22 watches completed in the last 5 weeks or so 13 were either by Tavannes or the LWC, of course  Benson is a brand I specialise in and so buy more aggressively but even so  the proportions are odd.

P & A Guye, 13J, London 1892

It was much the same with Rolled gold chains, very few since November then a bunch of them so that there is finally some stock at Brackley and on the web with one or two more to follow shortly.

The month closed out with a couple of nice English watches not by the LWC and I have some more coming in that hopefully will appear on the web site in a week or so.



A rare Beesley Silver Hunter, 1883, with an interesting engraving and repair.

A 17 Jewel Pinset Hunter by Beesely
for J.W. Carter. English Silver, 1883.

This watch is signed by J.W. Carter of London but under the dial it is signed "R.B" and is almost certainly by one of the Beesley family. The trade list compiled by Coventry Watch Museum shows Beesleys being active from 1850 until at least 1909 as variously movement makers, watch makers, jewellers (in this context craftsman who put the jewels in watches), escapement makers and gilders.

There are a couple of interesting features, an old repair and the case engraving with love symbolism.

J.W. Benson War Service Presentation watch

An appropriate post for the anniversary of the shooting of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo on 28th June 1914.

 

The watch has a 15 jewel movement by Revue Thommen  for J.W. Benson. It is interesting to note that in 1918 they are still engraving movements "J.W. Benson, 62 & 64 Ludgate Hill, London, By Warrant to H.M. the late Queen Victoria" 17 years after her death.

Of more interest is the engraving on the dust cover:

War Service
1914-1918
Bombr G.H. Martin.
R.F.A
Presented by
The Parish if Erbistock

 

The Waltham 1899-174 & other 11 jewel watches that try to look more than they are.

Waltham 1899-174, 11J  1902

This 1899-174 is essentially an 1899-Traveler with 11 jewels, it is rare with only 2,500 open faced and 4,500 hunter case versions made, many, if not all, of which I suspect came to the UK.

But the interesting thing is how the jewels are laid out. After the basic seven jewels the most efficient layout is for them to be in pairs top and bottom of each staff and put where they will do most to reduce friction and the impact of that friction on the watch. That will be the staffs moving fastest which happily in a watch are also the ones with the most gearing effect.

So with four additional jewels these would normally be set in pairs on the lever pallet and escape wheel or, as favoured by a number of quality English makers, on the escape and seconds wheel. But on this movement the extra jewels are lined up on the top plate, why?



Cyma 10J for Thos Russell

The simple answer is marketing, Waltham were following a common practice of Swiss makers which was eagerly taken up by the more aggressively market orientated English resellers, Thos Russell & Son of Liverpool being a leading culprit right through to the 1930's. If you click on the image above for a larger view you will see that contrary to Waltham's normal practice for movements of more than 7 jewels, the number of jewels is not shown on the movement.

This is so that the buyer (or perhaps a seller?) can show off the watch and claim it has 15 jewels!

Others went further, the second movement shown has ten jewels in the presumed  hope that no one will notice that the top pivot of the lever pallet, small and hidden under the balance, is not jewelled.

May Market update.

There was a sudden rush of good English watches in the second half of the month supplemented by a few watches from one of the big auction houses (the 20% buyers premium  hurts!).

Unfortunately quality did no always match quantity with several being scrapped or put to one side in the probably vain hope that spares will become available. Still 9 English watches, finished in a month (including the just finished 17J Rotherham from 1894 pictured) is probably a record and there are a few more on the way.

Particularly annoying were a Benson Ludgate and an Errington 16J (several of those this month!) which both had the impulse jewels replace with a metal pin, this kept the watch running but not well and it causes damage to the roller and frequently to the lever pallet so those have both had to be put away, the Ludgate joining 5 others in the same state - its long impulse jewel being particularly vulnerable.

Strangely the number of mid to good quality watches by Waltham such as the 1908-620 (a favourite of mine) has been in very short supply but hopefully that will change.

Watches as a financial investment? Not recomended!

Rotherham 19J Keyless 1907

I have been asked several times recently for advice on watches as an investment so I thought it might be useful to post one of my replies here:

I do not advise buying functioning, serviced watches as a financial investment. Yes the price of watches is going up and I suspect that the rate of increase will increase, given the current shortage of supply particularly of  good English three-quarter plates and other high grade watches.

Update, October 2016: Watches are now in even shorter supply and prices of unrestored watches have definitely risen very significantly and continue to do so!

 

The problem is if you are buying from me or some other dealers you are buying a serviced  / restored watch with a guarantee, when you come to sell it will be without either. For a cheaper watch the cost of a full (not just an "oil") service will be a significant part of the value of the watch so a dealer will not be able to offer a lot for it and even on a more expensive watch he will have to factor in the cost of a service, a risk premium in case there is a hidden problem with the watch, overheads and a profit margin. 

 

If you sell at auction it will probably sell at well below the current retail selling price for essentially the same reasons and will attract fees and in many cases a buyers premium of 20% which will further depress the price.

 

Buy for utility, to preserve for future generations and to enjoy, not for short term financial gain - but you might be lucky in the long term.