Disassembling The Incredibly Intricate Rolex Submariner

INPUT INNPUT

Cant post the vid itself so here she be...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wfNOgWGME_c

Eoin

That hurts my brain, just looking at those tiny pieces

lomb

How does he know where the parts go he just dumps them all in a pile?

Chuck_Norris

Thanks for that man. Brings back memories.

Mr Frog

Any reason why his nails are so very long?

deccy_moy

I knew watchmaking was intricate but I had no idea it was THAT intricate. Wow!!!

Wibbs

Just going on my lame arsed amateur hour tinkering(and many failures) over the years DM, you'd be surprised how quickly your brain adjusts to the sizes involved. And I've two left thumbs, actually four. So much so that now taking apart a laptop which was once an onerous task for me is now so easy by comparison. It's like working on a steam engine after a watch movement Your eye and hands do get dialed in.

Parts wise? At first you do lay them out in order and that's a good thing to continue with, but after a while you do see the big(no pun) picture of how a (non chrono) movement like the above goes together and it's a lot less complex than it appears. If you buy an old broken duffer of a pocket watch for peanuts on the bay, it's a good lead in to it for practice. The scales are bigger and without the automatic gubbins you can start to see the layout more easily. The hairspring bit is the most delicate, otherwise it's pretty straightforward(the keyless works can be another Doh! area, as can any calendar mechanism).

Just going on my tinkering, ease of take apart goes from; time only pocket watch, time only wristwatch, date/auto/time wristwatch. After that chronographs are another heap of complexity I'd not even touch for fear of screwing up. Even above them, I'd put tuning fork movements and early quartz(save for the Girard Perregaux which are a relative doddle except for their calendar gubbins). Something like a Beta 21 or Longines Ultraquartz or Omega 1310 makes the Rolex above look like Lego Duplo.

Chuck_Norris

Wibbs wrote: »

Just going on my lame arsed amateur hour tinkering(and many failures) over the years DM, you'd be surprised how quickly your brain adjusts to the sizes involved. And I've two left thumbs, actually four. So much so that now taking apart a laptop which was once an onerous task for me is now so easy by comparison. It's like working on a steam engine after a watch movement Your eye and hands do get dialed in.

Parts wise? At first you do lay them out in order and that's a good thing to continue with, but after a while you do see the big(no pun) picture of how a (non chrono) movement like the above goes together and it's a lot less complex than it appears. If you buy an old broken duffer of a pocket watch for peanuts on the bay, it's a good lead in to it for practice. The scales are bigger and without the automatic gubbins you can start to see the layout more easily. The hairspring bit is the most delicate, otherwise it's pretty straightforward(the keyless works can be another Doh! area, as can any calendar mechanism).

Just going on my tinkering, ease of take apart goes from; time only pocket watch, time only wristwatch, date/auto/time wristwatch. After that chronographs are another heap of complexity I'd not even touch for fear of screwing up. Even above them, I'd put tuning fork movements and early quartz(save for the Girard Perregaux which are a relative doddle except for their calendar gubbins). Something like a Beta 21 or Longines Ultraquartz or Omega 1310 makes the Rolex above look like Lego Duplo.

So when I started my training in 96, it's like Wibbs said. First movements we worked on were UT 6497/8's, and actually spent most of our first year honing our "feel" on them. We did very little balance work, primarily adjustments to escapements, jewels etc.

Second year, moved on to very basic quartz movements and I think we started on automatics at that point ETA 2824's, so we had the added complication of a sweep second and date. Few other fiddly bits. Guy who was training us that year had worked with some really top end manufacturers, so started some of us on skeletonising watches. And some very basic hairspring adjustments.

Third year, things got more interesting. Moved into making hairsprings from scratch, adjustment of standard balances. If you showed an interest, you could do bits on freesprung balances, along with Brequet hairsprings. Started on chronographs (7750 up to 7753) more quartz (ETA "magic crown", 251-262 5 Step Motor). And that was about it.

Chronographs were nothing too scary at that point.

Having said that, I did attempt to take apart the setting mechanism on my 251-262 chronograph about a year ago, and was saddened to see how ham fisted I had become. 12 years since I properly worked in the trade, and miss it absolutely every day. It's the one thing in life I'm truly passionate about, apart from the wife of course!

Edit: that's just a very brief synopsis. There was quite a bit of tool making as well. A lot of lathe work (making balance staffs for the craic), bits of restoration, be that watches or clocks, and the odd nixer/ project from family or friends. And that was just the practical side of things.

Mr Frog

Chuck_Norris wrote: »

So when I started my training in 96, it's like Wibbs said. First movements we worked on were UT 6497/8's, and actually spent most of our first year honing our "feel" on them. We did very little balance work, primarily adjustments to escapements, jewels etc.

Second year, moved on to very basic quartz movements and I think we started on automatics at that point ETA 2824's, so we had the added complication of a sweep second and date. Few other fiddly bits. Guy who was training us that year had worked with some really top end manufacturers, so started some of us on skeletonising watches. And some very basic hairspring adjustments.

Third year, things got more interesting. Moved into making hairsprings from scratch, adjustment of standard balances. If you showed an interest, you could do bits on freesprung balances, along with Brequet hairsprings. Started on chronographs (7750 up to 7753) more quartz (ETA "magic crown", 251-262 5 Step Motor). And that was about it.

Chronographs were nothing too scary at that point.

Having said that, I did attempt to take apart the setting mechanism on my 251-262 chronograph about a year ago, and was saddened to see how ham fisted I had become. 12 years since I properly worked in the trade, and miss it absolutely every day. It's the one thing in life I'm truly passionate about, apart from the wife of course!

Edit: that's just a very brief synopsis. There was quite a bit of tool making as well. A lot of lathe work (making balance staffs for the craic), bits of restoration, be that watches or clocks, and the odd nixer/ project from family or friends. And that was just the practical side of things.

Why did you leave it? Could you go back?

Chuck_Norris

Mr Frog wrote: »

Why did you leave it? Could you go back?

Reason I left was because of the manufacturers of the watch in the video above, for financial reasons I won't go into here. And then when I came home, was screwed over by my next employer. Was very disillusioned by it all, and kind of drifted out of the profession.

I could go back, but not financially viable. I would have to do the 6 month intense WOSTEP course at the very least, and just can't do it for financial reasons. Would then realistically have to emigrate to gain more experience, and can't do so at this stage in life.

Did have the option to go working for Omega after sales in the Uk about 9 years ago. They would have paid for re-training, but I'd just started going out with my wife at the time, so foolishly said no.

Wibbs

Chuck_Norris wrote: »

Moved into making hairsprings from scratch, adjustment of standard balances.

*bows* True balance work is pretty rare to get these days. I have a 1930's zenith "pilot's watch", basically a pocketwatch movement in a wristwatch(chatoned jewels to the centre, breguet spring, large balance etc) and ten years ago it was running arseways and this watchmaker of very advanced years had a go on it. He did the whole balance work vibe with equipment that looked near 19th century. My god the results were unreal. COSC specs? Ha. Easy feckin peasy. He got it running like a quartz, or tuning fork, no word of a lie. 1-2 seconds per day, whether I wore it or not. Like I say, unreal. Sadly it took a fall a few years back and that went out the window.

If you showed an interest, you could do bits on freesprung balances, along with Brequet hairsprings.

*bows to the feckin floor and tries to dig through it*

Chuck_Norris

Wibbs wrote: »

*bows* True balance work is pretty rare to get these days. I have a 1930's zenith "pilot's watch", basically a pocketwatch movement in a wristwatch(chatoned jewels to the centre, breguet spring, large balance etc) and ten years ago it was running arseways and this watchmaker of very advanced years had a go on it. He did the whole balance work vibe with equipment that looked near 19th century. My god the results were unreal. COSC specs? Ha. Easy feckin peasy. He got it running like a quartz, or tuning fork, no word of a lie. 1-2 seconds per day, whether I wore it or not. Like I say, unreal. Sadly it took a fall a few years back and that went out the window. *bows to the feckin floor and tries to dig through it*

Cheers man. Hairspring/ balance work was all patience. Serious patience! Quite a bit of the new hairsprings made in factories (Omega/ TAG/ Breitling) is done by women. Can't remember the reason why though.

Most of the equipment hasn't changed in decades/ centuries. We were all supplied tools in first year, which was added to through the years as we needed it, and it was exactly the same as the guys who started in the 60's. I was given a staking set when I finished, brand new, and again it was exactly the same as the originals the college got in the 60's.

I could ask a few contacts about having the Zenith looked at if you like. Might be able to get someone to do it at the right price as a favour. Get it back close to COSC standard.