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Last week was Madison Avenue Watch Week here in New York, a seven-day stretch dedicated to showcasing and recognizing the work of watchmakers and the high-end timepiece brands that line Madison Avenue. As part of the week’s festivities, I took...
Last week was Madison Avenue Watch Week here in New York, a seven-day stretch dedicated to showcasing and recognizing the work of watchmakers and the high-end timepiece brands that line Madison Avenue.
I must admit I had my doubts before heading into the class.
I don’t have an exceptionally steady hand, probably due to the three cups of black tea I consume throughout the day. Also, as has been mentioned before in this blog, my vision is not the best to begin with, and staring at a computer screen for 10 hours a day hasn’t helped; I now have prescription computer glasses and am pretty sure I’m on my way to needing bifocals.
Suffice it to say, I didn’t think watch-making would be my strong suit, and I wondered if I’d even make it through the entire class. I honestly was nervous about the whole experience.
The movement we disassembled and then re-assembled was, as the wonderful instructors from FHH told us, an ETA (Unitas) 6497-1, produced between 1967 and 1985.
One very intelligent tip I received when disassembling the watch was to keep the parts together that belonged together.
The 36.6 mm hand-wound mechanical movement (below, right) has 78 parts, 17 jewels and a 46-hour power reserve with off-center seconds at 9 o’clock. As mechanical watch movements go, this is a pretty simple one, perfect practice for people who are learning.
Despite my nerves, and the cup of Earl Grey tea I consumed just prior to the class, I did better than I thought I would.
One of the hardest parts of the class for me, as well as many others, was putting back into place a part called the yoke spring. Yet with some help from an FHH instructor I managed to get the spring back into place without losing it.
Not having the steadiest hand (see tea reference above), I also scratched up the movement quite a bit when try to remove and then re-set the screws. This would never be allowed for a true watchmaker. We were told that any movement that gets scratched is considered damaged.
While out for drinks on Friday night, I was telling a watch-loving friend of mine about my experience
After spending three hours learning how to assemble one simple movement, it is easy to see why.
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