Hamilton Chrono-Matic 11002-3

A look at one of the first automatic chronographs

Every time I try to reassure my spouse that I’m close to the end of my journey collecting and servicing chronographs I tick off the movements still on the “To Do List”- Angelus, Minerva, Longines, Eberhard, Citizen, Poljot… and it goes downhill from there.

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Seiko 7018-8000 “One-Eyed Panda”

Service of a vintage JDM Seiko Chronograph

Well I’m still struggling to move through my backlog of watches awaiting service but that certainly doesn’t mean the desire isn’t there. I’ve got a lot of stuff coming which I hope to have posted at regular intervals and some exciting calibres to debut. Let’s keep our fingers crossed that the goods actually arrive on time and we can all bask in the nerdery that is my chronograph obsession!

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Jardur Bezelmeter 975-S

Service of a vintage 1940’s chronograph

Well, a lot has changed since my last post. The pandemic hit, I moved into a new (smaller) home and I’ve spent most of the past year and a half working from that home. I also lost my workshop as a result of the move and am now setup in the garage; sadly, I’ve found the summer heat in there to be unbearable and thus my hobby now needs to wait until late fall or winter.

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Movado Sub Sea Chronograph

Digging into Movado’s in-house chronograph movement

Since the day I set out on my horological journey I’ve worked on a lot of chronograph movements so it may come as a surprise, four years in, that there are still many I have yet to get my hands on. Beautiful movements by Minerva, Longines, and Angelus have yet to cross my bench as well sturdy workhorses from Seiko, Citizen, and Poljot. Today I’m pleased to check yet one more off the list and present a Movado Sub Sea chronograph dating from the 1960’s and powered by Movado’s own in-house chronograph movement. Continue reading “Movado Sub Sea Chronograph”

Seiko 6138-8021 “Panda”

Restoration of a 1970’s era Seiko chronograph

Even though months have passed by since my last post on this blog I have been keeping busy. In addition to making accommodations at home and at work for the Covid-19 pandemic and moving to a new house, I’ve also been diligently whittling away at the backlog of broken watches on my workbench and today I’m pleased to tell the story of a Seiko automatic chronograph from the late seventies which I just finished servicing. Continue reading “Seiko 6138-8021 “Panda””

Sprint Chronograph

Reassembly of a vintage Venus 170 chronograph

This watch has been on and off of my workbench now for three years. In the beginning it was missing parts and that’s what kept it off the bench. Then it developed a problem which took forever to track down; I’d lose interest in fixing the piece and forget about it, then rediscover it at a later date. I have a lot of watches that have followed a similar path to completion, but this one is a bit special because technically it isn’t complete (but I’ll get to that later). Continue reading “Sprint Chronograph”

Omega Speedmaster Professional

Rebuilding an 145.022 Speedmaster Professional

Although this is another Omega Speedmaster chronograph, it’s a little bit different from Moonwatch I did back in 2016 and the Speedmaster Automatic from earlier this year. This is the modern version of the Speedmaster Professional which is powered by the Omega calibre 861 chronograph movement. In outward appearance it is no different from earlier Moonwatches, but inside you’ll find Lemania’s most up to date hand wound chronograph movement. Continue reading “Omega Speedmaster Professional”

Gallet Multichron 12

Service of an Excelsior Park chronograph movement

Slowly but surely I’ve been working my way through the various chronograph movements from the Golden Age of Chronographs. I’ve worked on the Valjoux, Venus, Landeron, and Lemania movements and today I can strike the elusive Excelsior Park movement off the to do list. Continue reading “Gallet Multichron 12”

Omega Speedmaster Automatic

Service of an Omega 176.0012 Speedmaster

It’s been a long while since I’ve worked on an Omega but fortune smiled upon me late last year when I found this 1979 Omega Speedmaster Automatic in need of aid. The seller stated the watch was non-operative on account of parts missing- specifically the Balance, Pallet, and Balance Cock. Continue reading “Omega Speedmaster Automatic”

Navitimer 806 Restoration: Part 3

Conclusion of the Navitimer project

This is the final chapter of the Breitling Navitimer Restoration Project which began in 2016.  As you’ll recall I had serviced the movement and repaired the damaged case; I had also repaired the hour and minute hands which were bent and needed new luminous paint. Continue reading “Navitimer 806 Restoration: Part 3”