Pocket Watch Case Repair Question
Donkey
Is it cost effective to have pocket watch cases repaired?
Who does these repairs? Watchmakers? Jewellers? Silversmiths?
I have a nice old pocket watch that is in good condition except for the case
back won't close. It just will not latch. It is not an expensive watch but
if the repair didn't cost alot, I would like to get it repaired.
Donk
Donkey
"Donkey" <nos...@nospam.com> wrote in message
news:dk4vlv$ed8$1...@newsg3.svr.pol.co.uk...
The case is made of solid silver, I should have mentioned that in the
original post.
Donk
bogar...@uwlax.edu
Without knowing if the watch is 'valuable',
or its size, or whether this is its *original*
case, this is a bit tough to answer. Your best
bet is probably to locate an older retired
watchmaker for a quick evaluation of the problem.
The good news is that silver is probably as easy
to repair as any other material. If it requires
some special treatment, I'd find the NAWCC website
and see if there is a link to case repair specialists.
But they'll (of course) need to see it to give you
a cost estimate.
It may need only a bit of 'tweaking', and in a typical
situation, should be worth a repair. One alternative,
finding a replacement silver case, could be at least
as expensive, depending on the watch, of course. But
I'd avoid doing that if the case and movement are an
original pair.
Good Luck
Lloyd
*****
Frank Adam
wrote:
Right, watchmakers can do that, but you'd want to look for the oldies,
who have been trained in jewellery repairs. And even then it is hard
to pick which one is good at it. I wouldn't recommend myself, even
though i was taught, done it and know how to do it. Problem is, in
practice it's much easier to pass it on to the jeweller and stick with
what i do.
So i guess, providing the latch itself is intact, a good jeweller is
your best bet. If the lid doesn't latch, it's likely caused by one of
two things. Either the lid is worn badly where it meets the latch(near
the crown) or the lid or it's hinge is bent, worn, broken etc..
Any decent jeweller should be able to fix those without a problem.
If you can, you may want to remove the movement yourself though.
--
Regards, Frank
ticktock
watchmaker who can repair... but trying to get one these days who is
competent in repairs of this type is difficult, ... there are many who
advertise themselves as such but whom you wouldn't want to entrust with
this type of work) ... but it might be something really simple that
with some guidance you could 'tweak' yourself.
Do you have a digital camera?
If so ... then take some pictures of the latch/snap/catch and the hinge
areas, with a side elevation (side on view) of the 'back' (so I can see
the plane in which the back is lying), email them across to me, and
I'll try and advise. (ieb-ahrt-klokwurx-doht-kohm)
Case repairs used to be the preserve of the case-maker who would be a
separate trade working either for a case manufacturer such as
Dennisons, or would work for the watch manufacturer directly. The
traditional training for watch horology included time spent at case
repairs and one of the first pieces of 'stock' I acquired when I
started out was a 6 inch length of 18carat gold 'chenile' (very fine
tube) used to make the hinges of watch cases ... but these days I
suppose the jeweller is the best bet.
A swritten though .. if you want to email me some pictures and I'll try
and give some practical advice.
Regards
Ian