Reply With QuoteLots of work there but,I ask,why would you want to replace the bezel insert? It's nicely worn in!
A few months ago I was sent this 6306. It needed a lot of attention and I set about getting the movement in the best possible condition and running order for the owner. The hands needed sorting but they were corroded quite heavily, and so whilst a relume was on the cards, they needed some work, or replacements.
I haven't the shot of the rotating ring, but this was missing its lume pip.
The case and crystal were really quite dirty!!
Using the 5700 to get the caseback off as it was pretty stuck!
And here is why, try and remember this image to compare it to what we see near the end.
The movement was clearly in need of some TLC but after going through some rebuilds the goal was to get the rate more stable with a consistently higher amplitude in all positions. This would end up being a bit of a battle, but was very enjoyable.
You can see below that the dial was really nice, but the hands needed so e work.
Here we see a problem as a result of loose bearings on the framework for automatic device, this was in a poor state and you can see it's resulted in the plating of the balance cock being heavily worn. Ultimately I wanted to replace this and so later you'll see the results.
Balance removed and we can see a bit more debris and dirt and the outer rim of the mainplate with some wear from the rotor.
At this point I normally turn to the case quickly to dismantle it and start preparing it for cleaning, before ultimately getting it sorted out ready for when the movement is completely serviced.
Case cleaned and this is looking very smart.
Cleaning the dial ring, chapter ring, crystal gasket ring and then the gasket and retaining ring, the case started really shaping up nicely once a new crystal was installed.
A quick clean as best as I could of the movement ring.
The framework setup was a little dirty and this would be replaced if possible later.
Stripping the movement further we see more dirtiness, the ratchet wheel was caked in old dirt and oil.
Above we see the brass showing through as a result of the wear from the ratchet wheel.
Train bridge removed:
Further down the centre wheel bridge with its groove cut-out for the hacking lever.
Calendar side shows us some staining to the calendar wheel I wanted to see if I could clean slightly.
All the way down to just the canon pinion removal and the keyless works disassembly.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
The pallet fork wasn't very clean!
Nor the escape.
Quick pic of the hands showing their corrosion and lume rot.
The barrel was cleaned but soon replaced entirely as the lid had some wear and wouldn't rotate freely on the arbor, also a fresh mainspring was sourced and installed.
Moving on to the rebuild of the movement, this went through several stages of replacements with better/nos parts.
But here is the centre wheel in place.
I did eventually replace the barrel complete and installed a new mainspring. I also replaced the balance cock and the train bridge as the wear was on the top side whereas the mainplate wasn't in bad condition.
The movement was built up to gauge its performance at this point:
The unsightly original balance cock still being utilised, this would change later. But it was ticking again, and it was ticking OK. But not good enough, you can see from the following timegrapher image that the rate was unstable, and in various positions there were still some issues.
This would result in a 210 or lower 200s amp when positioned vertically, and the rate was still temperamental.
Anyway, a new 6306A framework had to be sourced and so one was taken from a donor watch that took a little time to track down.
It was rebuilt with the original components.
Calendar side progressing:
And despite the staining to the calender wheel, it cleaned up quite well.
I rebuilt the movement again and with a change of the balance, a new third wheel and pallet that were all showing just a tad too much wear for my liking, the results I got were a lot better. I also replaced a cap jewel that was showing a dimple from wear.
This eventually climbed to near 270 after a full wind minus about an hour, and the vertical positions were about 20 to 30 degrees lower but the rate was still consistent and didn't vary a huge amount. I didn't take pictures of this but I may well be getting the watch back to replace the bezel at a later date, so I will update the thread with what happens. I kept an eye on it and regulated it slightly.
Looking at how this movement now looks, I was very pleased with the outcome and the owner of the watch can enjoy wearing it after it was pressure tested to 12 BAR.
Look how nice this is now! It's a much more pleasing thing for me to know that underneath the dial, in a watch like this one that shows some wear, that there is a lovely condition movement keeping time.
I removed the lume and treated them, but unfortunately the plating had suffered. Despite this I wanted to keep them with the watch and also wanted to see if I could get a little bit of texture to the lume to match the dial plots. I also wanted them to be a slightly brighter white as is often the case with 6306s and 6309s.
I'm in talks with the owner to replace the rotating ring insert so I'll update with how this ends up looking down the line.
To the owner, thanks for your patience in waiting for the thread to be done! :)
Last edited by Bodo; 1st May 2018 at 01:38.
Lots of work there but,I ask,why would you want to replace the bezel insert? It's nicely worn in!
Well it's up to the owner. I would agree but then again, maybe it would benefit. Could always replace it back. :)
Plenty of life left in that.Originally Posted by village
Just for the record I'm not pressuring the owner to buy one from me. And I'd say yeh, leave it as is. :)
Lovely watch & fantastic work, well done Bodo.
Super job, well worth the effort, not many 6306s around now.
Cheers..
Jase
Put the bezel on mine Guy.......cheers.
i think that looks rather nicely run in, i would keep the old bezel insert a while longer.
I do love detailed restoration stories like this.
Well done to the OP and thanks for taking the time to post it.
R
Ignorance breeds Fear. Fear breeds Hatred. Hatred breeds Ignorance. Break the chain.
Nice work Guy. It’s always fascinating to see what goes on behind the scenes. Mine’s getting a hard time at the moment and will be in need of a service when I get back- though I don’t think it will be quite as bad as this one! Rob
Sent from my iPhone using TZ-UK mobile app
Thanks, all. Paul maybe the owner will see this and get in touch. :)
Rob, I hope all is well with you and yes I imagine your SKX is getting pit through its paces!
That looks great although if I were the owner I'd have left the knackered crystal on it too for the proper sleeper/patina effect.
"A man of little significance"
Love a detailed write up with lots of pics. Great post.
I'd like to thank Guy for the amount of work and effort he put into this for me :-)
As the pictures show it was in a bit of a mess when first sent to him but he has transformed it, and I'm loving it at the minute and wearing it now.
A lot of the work went into the movement, not just the bits that can be seen. I was offered a fair few options on how far I wanted to go, ideally I wanted to try and keep it as original as possible though (hence the original hands and bezel insert). As said, not many of these about so it deserved to be rescued that's for sure.
I'm still on the fence re. the insert. I may try a slightly better condition one (as in not 100% mint but something that would suit the amount of character the rest of it has). I'll still keep the original though to put back on, as well it belongs to it doesn't it?
Anyway top job and thanks Guy.
Sent from my Lenovo P2a42 using Tapatalk
A pleasure Carl. And nice to see that pic. :)
I may well have another option for you. I'll send a pic in the next day or two.
I love threads like this. Amazing work
What a great thread, very interesting to see the process. Thanks !
Very interesting, thanks!!
Sent from my iPad using TZ-UK mobile app
Posting Permissions
