Bringing an 1803 back to its glory

[Ascari_2]

Hi all,

So I recently had a pleasure of working on a TRF member's 1803 DayDate, and I thought some of you might enjoy seeing where the process started and where it ended. Side note, I of course got his permission to post about his watch. 

Before seeing it in hand, we chatted a bit and I got my first impression of what the watch was about. Sounded like the movement was alive to some extent, but it wouldn't wind. So we made plans to have the watch dropped off and a few weeks later it was in my hands. 



As the watch was being dropped off, we decided to take a quick peek to see if there was anything obvious. Taking the case back off and giving the crown a wind revealed a likely issue. While the ratchet wheel would spin, it was clear that the mainspring was not gaining any tension. So it was likely that something was wrong inside the mainspring barrel. But interestingly enough, we also noticed quite a bit of what appeared to be black dust and it was obvious that one of the reverser wheels was substantially wobbling. 
 


Soon the breakdown began and as you can see from the pictures below the black dust was everywhere on the bottom side of the movement. But aside from that, the movement looked to be in good shape.















As parts came off, the culprit for the black dust was discovered. It seems that one of the pivots on the reverser basically disintegrated causing the resulting metal shavings to appear in the form of the dust particles. This also was the cause of the woddle that was seen earlier in the reverser.  With the disassembly continuing, it also became obvious why the watch wasn't winding ... a broken mainspring. 







Luckily all the issues, along with the dust, were kept to the back side of the movement and the dial side appeared relatively clean.  I was particularly glad to see the dial, hands, and day/date disks in excellent condition. The breakdown proceeded as planned and a bit later the watch was in pieces ready for a thorough cleaning and a careful reassembly.













Once cleaned (and replacement parts obtained) the movement was carefully put back together.







Since the watch didn't run when I received it I didn't have any indication as to how well it should run.  But as the balance assembly went back in and I saw the "heartbeat" for the first time, I was very excited to see a relatively strong amplitude even before applying oil to all necessary points.  Sure the movement was far from being regulated, but it was on the right track.



Applying the oil to where it needed to go and mostly finishing the assembly, the amplitude increased quite significantly into a very healthy range.





Dial and hands going back on, the watch is starting to look like it did during its glory days. 





And soon back in its original case and regulated, it's looking better and better.



In the end, the watch came back to life beautifully.  Daily wearing it, it was averaging under +1 sec/day and looked perfectly on the wrist.  It was a pleasure to work on this stunning piece and I'm glad the owner will be able to enjoy it for years to come.