oiling the Pallet jewel

[ABC]

My own WW has be running without any oil on the pallet jewels, for the
fear that the oil may creep to the pivots. Now I am having second
thoughts.

Should I oil the pallet jewels of a WW?

If so, which oil to use? According to this, the only recommended ones
are 941 or 9415. Very expensive. The lightest one i have is 9010.

http://www.tztoolshop.com/FB_Catalog_Oils_Lubricants.html

Thanks



ABC

[Frank Adam]

Post by ABC
My own WW has be running without any oil on the pallet jewels, for the
fear that the oil may creep to the pivots. Now I am having second
thoughts.
Should I oil the pallet jewels of a WW?
If so, which oil to use? According to this, the only recommended ones
are 941 or 9415. Very expensive. The lightest one i have is 9010.
http://www.tztoolshop.com/FB_Catalog_Oils_Lubricants.html

I've been oiling pallet jewels with Synta-Lube(9010) for decades on many
thousands of watches in that time. Hardly ever had oil run issues. It happens,
but that will be my fault in applying too much or miss the stone, or
something. We're not all perfect. :)

The amount of oil is the most critical here. You only want a tiny small dot on
each pallet jewel face.
If possible, right smack in the horizontal center line and not extending to
the lower or even upper edge of the jewel at any point. If it does, you may
see in time the oil travel off to the pivot and that's not good.
Synta-Lube sticks very well though, so if you get it even just close to right,
it'll be ok.
Word of caution, if you do get it wrong nd oil seeps to the bottom jewel,
you'll need to strip down the watch to clean the bottom jewel properly.
So... you know, don't get it wrong. ;-)

Btw, a simpler but less classy option is to hit each 4th-5th tooth's face on
the escape wheel(from the side is easier) with your oiler as it runs past.
Again, your oiler wants to be lean, you don't want to flood the tooth, just
moisten it. Bad word "moisten", but you get what i mean. :)
If you do it right, the pallet will show a nice horizontal line of oil smear,
about the width of the escape teeth.

[ABC]

On Sat, 28 Apr 2012 20:14:09 +1000, Frank Adam

Post by Frank Adam
If possible, right smack in the horizontal center line and not extending to
the lower or even upper edge of the jewel at any point. If it does, you may
see in time the oil travel off to the pivot and that's not good.
Synta-Lube sticks very well though, so if you get it even just close to right,
it'll be ok.
Word of caution, if you do get it wrong nd oil seeps to the bottom jewel,
you'll need to strip down the watch to clean the bottom jewel properly.
So... you know, don't get it wrong. ;-)

This is the thing I am worried about. Moebius 9145 does appear to have
an advantage, in that it is ADVERTISED to stay where you apply it, and
only turn into oil on impact.

Struggling to balance the costs and the trouble of stripping down the
watch......

See this page. Somewhere near the middle of the page, he said someone
used 9415 for the whole watch ???

http://www.tp178.com/jd/watch-school/4/article1.html

The bottom line seems to be that I DO need some lube on the pallet and
the escape wheel.

ABC

[Frank Adam]

Post by ABC
On Sat, 28 Apr 2012 20:14:09 +1000, Frank Adam

Post by Frank Adam
If possible, right smack in the horizontal center line and not extending to
the lower or even upper edge of the jewel at any point. If it does, you may
see in time the oil travel off to the pivot and that's not good.
Synta-Lube sticks very well though, so if you get it even just close to right,
it'll be ok.
Word of caution, if you do get it wrong nd oil seeps to the bottom jewel,
you'll need to strip down the watch to clean the bottom jewel properly.
So... you know, don't get it wrong. ;-)

This is the thing I am worried about. Moebius 9145 does appear to have
an advantage, in that it is ADVERTISED to stay where you apply it, and
only turn into oil on impact.
Struggling to balance the costs and the trouble of stripping down the
watch......
See this page. Somewhere near the middle of the page, he said someone
used 9415 for the whole watch ???
http://www.tp178.com/jd/watch-school/4/article1.html
The bottom line seems to be that I DO need some lube on the pallet and
the escape wheel.

Yes, the pallet stones must be oiled. Just get the smallest amount of oil on
your oiler and hit the escape teeth as i've described. It'll be ok.
Make no mistake, the grease that "stays" still requires close to perfect
application or it will not stay.
There are "perfect" oils for everything and as a professional i personally
have to take that into consideration as i see it fit, but in general the 9010
will do just about everything in a watch.
In fact, the only place you definitely need grease is the set lever spring and
the clutch/winding pinion pairing. You could oil the rest of the watch, barrel
spring and all using only 9010 and it would work fine for many years. Don't go
buying oils that will just sit there over the years doing nothing.