Bump! A little help?
Damn! Damn! Damn! Was winding my Damasko DC 57 this morning. Didn't realise I had just moved the hand past midnight and tried to change the date, Now the date wheel is stuck half way. Is this the end? Do I need to send it to a professional? Any help appreciated. Thanks!
Bump! A little help?
Well I haven't tried this myself, so beware!
I read a suggestion that you can try and reset the date wheel by turning the hands forward until you reach 12 and it moves on as intended at which point if you are lucky it might go back to normal. Don't force it though if it feels stiffer than usual.
Good luck :)
Is the movement a eta7750? If so unfortunately it is the worst offender for massive problem date changing at 12 and is more than likely broken the triangle from the date change wheel
This wheel
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i manged to similarly get my stenhart (2824 movement) half out of kilter. can't remember exactly what i did, but some gentle adjusting and i got it back and it owrks fine so be gentle and don't panic
Did it not cross your mind to ask someone on the forum to help?
Duncan at Genesis will sort it, but be prepared to pay full commercial rates, whilst he’s spending time fixing this he could be servicing a Rolex.
Paul, with respect, I think 72bpm, actually, was asking someone on the 'forum' FOR help in his post, to my mind anyway. Also, are you suggesting that Duncan is far too busy 'servicing' Rolex to be spending time on another brand? Does Rolex have some sort of priority in his business.?
Cheers.
Rolex accreditation requires financial commitment and skill in equal measures, it’s not easy to attain and there’s an ongoing cost in keeping it. Those who reach this level are then able to charge premium prices, and rightly so, for servicing Rolex watches at the going rate, so where’s the incentive to work on lesser stuff?
Last edited by walkerwek1958; 23rd April 2019 at 23:59.
Ignorance breeds Fear. Fear breeds Hatred. Hatred breeds Ignorance. Break the chain.
A PM to the likes of Brendan, thewatchbloke, or myself would’ve been sensible.
As a ‘hobbyist’ repairer I try to maintain a good relationship with the professionals who make a living from watch work. It’s bad form to be openly undercutting these guys on price; if the OP isn’t happy with the quote he gets and he subsequently approaches me I would turn the job down purely for this reason.
I’s a question of principle; there’s plenty of work to keep everyone as busy as they want to be at the moment but that hasn’t always been the case and it may not be in the future.
Last edited by walkerwek1958; 24th April 2019 at 00:37.
Last edited by 72bpm; 24th April 2019 at 20:54.
Movement parts are available via Cousins, but specific Damasko parts (dial, hands, crown etc) aren`t available unless Damasko are prepared to supply to repairers. What I`m not sure about is the day and date date wheels, they appear to be offset from the normal position which suggests they're Damasko-specific parts rather than the normal Valjoux items. Possibly this is why Duncan doesn`t want to get involved with it.
In hindsight I chose my words badly in my original post on this thread, the Bear Pit brigade have already had a pop at me over this and it's fair to say I got quite cross with one of them (not for the first time).
None of the squabbling is helping the OP, but my advice is to ask Duncan which parts he feels will need replacing and confirm whether the day/date wheels are the issue. When the date change problem occurs I don`t know which parts get damaged, I disagree with the previous suggestion because I'd expect the teeth on the date wheel to suffer rather than the part shown, but if someone knows better I`m happy to be corrected. If indeed that's the problem it's an easy fix.
If the day/date wheels need replacing and Damasko won`t supply parts it'll have to go back to them. Page and Cooper might be able to help, it's worth asking. I could ask whether parts can be supplied 'within the trade', I`m sure they supplied me with parts previously for a small brand, but I`m v. busy tomorrow and won't get chance to chase this till Friday.
Update: C W Sellors are the folks who sell Damasko in this country, not Page & Cooper. I’ll talk to their technical guy tomorrow and see what can be done. If I don’t take this job on I can at least point the OP in the right direction.
It happens , I’m sure you know the workings of the 7750 but for those who don’t the wheel near the 19 date has the triangle at 12 or near it will be inbetween the two notches of the date wheel , manual adjustment of date is done by the cog wheel seen at 13 which moves and engages with the date wheel turn it and you are forcing the date wheel notch against a triangle snap ,
Some Chinese 7750 clones apparently have a spring loaded triangle pushed along by a post which makes the triangle move clockwise out of the way if quick date changed
The date adjuster wheel gets fouled up as the date wheel tries to move, but which part gets damaged?
I’ve no first- hand experience with this problem, but I’d expect the date wheel teeth to suffer some damage. I’ve read about the date adjuster breaking and losing its little protrusion, but it must take some real ham- fisted force to cause this. In that scenario I can’t see the date wheel escaping without damage.
Sometimes it’s possible to clean up the teeth on a date wheel if the damage isn’t severe, but unless the teeth are perfect a replacement is desirable.
Anyone with first- hand experience of working on a Valjoux 7750 that’s suffered from this problem able to clarify?
I’m genuinely curious about the failure mode, which part comes off worst?
Anyone who’s seen this problem on their workbench will know more than I do, but I’m always keen to learn. Plenty of nice pics on the internet, but there’s no substitute for a first- hand account.
Yes, I've done many, over the years I've done the same watch 3 times for the same forgetful owner!
The 7750's date change wheels finger is weaker than the date disk teeth, so when you drive the date disk via the quickset and the date change wheels finger is in the way, it results in the finger snapping off.
The quickset's date corrector star is steel and the date change wheel is brass so it's not surprising.
Thanks Duncan, you're a star!
That's exactly what I wanted too establish, it sounds counter-intuitive and that's why I had my doubts, but your explanation makes sense.
I`m still making enquiries regarding Damasko parts, it's worth knowing whether Damasko-specific stuff can be supplied. If I have success I`ll keep you informed.
It would've made sense to alter the design,avoiding damage relies on the owner thinking a bit when setting the date etc, but even the best of us can forget. That's why the crown should be handled carefully, as soon as any resistance is felt or something doesn`t feel right it's possible to avoid damage by not proceeding to try twisting it! Sounds obvious but it's true, I have to admit that even I forget which watches are sensitive to date setting at the wrong time and which aren`t. The problem is compounded by owning several different watches. I own one watch with a Val 7750 movement and I`ve been caught out like this, but fortunately I avoided any damage because I was handling it v. carefully.
Best advice I can give is to always turn the hands through 12 o clock first to find midnight or 12 noon, then set the date accordingly. Setting a watch in a rush isn`t a good idea, and setting the watch (or winding) whilst its on the wrist increases the chance of bending the stem or causing damage.