The other movement swap I posted about a couple of weeks ago was a practice run for this swap. I really like this watch, so didn't want to mess it up since I'd never done a movement swap before. I bought the previous watch to practice on, but since it worked so well I really liked the previous watch, and it's one I wear often. This movement swap was a little more complex since it's a day date and not just a date complication. This album of the swap is here: https://imgur.com/a/cEirjkU
Is it a dusty room?
I'm sorry you (and the other admins & mods of the community) have to deal with this shit, it's disgusting. Thank you for doing what you do.
This is my first time doing a movement swap. I bought this watch as a non-runner off eBay for £24. My intention was to take the movement apart to practice on and maybe fix it along the way. I bought a second watch (same model) for even cheaper in the hopes I could get one to work out of the two. The other watch works, just needs a new capacitor, so I left it alone. This one had a very stiff rotor. Apparently it's a common problem when they wear from a lot of use and the flywheel / stator starts to touch where it shouldn't. At my skill level (beginner) the only option is to replace the movement. I found the OEM version of the 5M62A (a direct replacement for the 5M42A in this watch) on AliExpress. I also changed the crystal for a sapphire one. The parts were cheap enough, but I also bought a crystal press and hand removal / refitting tools.
Here's an album of the process: https://imgur.com/a/5rrvTfS
I think it worked quite well. I gave the case and bracelet a clean & refinish too. I could have done the case better, may try that again in the future. This was my first time trying. The bracelet I'm happy with, but it's still only a folded link one, so may change that. This was supposed to be a practice watch, but I really like it now. That may be because of the amount of effort I've put in! Also it remind me a bit of a Datejust, except without the magnification window (which I've never really liked).
Taken at Hardknott Fort.
Taked in 2011 Bronica SQ-A Camera Bronica 50mm f3.5 Lens Fuji Neopan Acros 100ASA Film Rodinal R09 Developer Ilford Rapid Fixer
As I mentioned in the other post, I wanted a kinetic movement to practice replacing the capacitor on. I had placed a very low bid on a couple of candidate watches on eBay and ended up winning both. So I fixed this one too.
Again, there was more in store than I expected, but I got there in the end.
Album of the repair: https://imgur.com/a/51uOzUY
This is just a random watch I found on eBay that was dirt cheap, but a titanium cased kinetic model. It was non-working. I had another kinetic watch that I was planning on changing the capacitor on and wanted a watch to practice on that I wasn't worried about breaking.
All went well in the end, but this watch had an unwelcome surprise for me...
Album of the repair here: https://imgur.com/a/ySf54lL
This is so cool! Well done :)
I too would be very interested in what they have to say, but assuming they're not Spez, they are just another person working a job there.
Do you know if it's a hard water area? It may just be calcium.
When you say "funky", was it a little furry and white? If so, that's probably calcium deposits (aka "limescale").