A non-seaworthy SeaWolf; confirmed in the worst way!

Yikes!

I just got out of the freshwater Jacuzzi after I realized I forgot to remove my 1950s Zodiac Seawolf…😲

I immediately popped open the back to find ( as expected🙄) a drop of water under the rotor, and a few small specs around the hairspring and between case and movement. Fog formed under the crystal, but I don’t see any water on the dial. The movement had stopped running.. no surprise.

I don’t have any cotton triangles on a stick so I ran tips of a paper towel around the edges to get up any water that I could see. I don’t have a blow dryer in the house, so I just turned on the toaster oven on low at 150°, and set the watch on the edge of the slightly ajar door, where a warm flow of air could pass by the movement. I was able to measure the temperature of the air at that location at about 105°
After about 25 minutes, the fog under the cassette was gone, The acrylic crystal had not melted, and the watch was not hot to touch 😜.. The movement started running too!👍

I plan on getting the watch serviced as soon as possible just in case the water may have affected things during the brief time It was wet. Besides, the movement hasn’t been serviced in over six years…

i’m so glad that it wasn’t a saltwater Jacuzzi!

I just wanted to share my experience/actions in case there were some suggestions of anything else I can do right away..

I’m not a watchmaker, only a WIS…so please forgive me for any ignorances; That said, I’m all ears to any comments/advice!

Right before the dunk:



10 minute after the swim!


After absorbing macro-visible water

Good for you for acting quickly. I'd continue to keep it open in a warm place with plenty of airflow. If you can pull the movement out of the case, so much the better.

Thanks, yeah, I wanted to pull out the movement, but I could not figure what screw would release it if there is one, and also how to pull the crown; probably another screw? I was afraid to just start randomly removing screws! lol

Oh no!

As a 1950s Sea Wolf owner, I have a lot of affection for the watch, its styling, and its history.

Hoping the movement is conserved and especially the dial. Yours has an appealing vintage look.

I've read that the back may only be removed with difficulty. I have no experience in this. Did you find back removal to be difficult?

Please keep us posted on the outcome. It will be nice to hear that your Sea Wolf is happily howling again.

It just took a couple of tries to get my little knife wedge under the correct spot where I could turn it to have it pop loudly as it opened! I guess that means it had a good seal at that point, but I think water must’ve been able to get around the crystal or perhaps less likely, the crown.

If you move the rotor to the other side and post a photo, we may be able to give you directions to release the stem. Most likely, there is a small screw, and you just want to loosen it by half a turn at a time, attempting to pull the crown.

Here’s the rotor turned.

also, you can see where the caseback has the little area to wedge under it to be able to pop the case back off..

DONE! That’s EXACTLY what I did.. 🤦 …

Fail!

… of course, no one would expect it to pass the water test after 70 years!

Nice thing is, I didn’t even need to wind it and she began running again after drying.

You might want to wait for someone who's more experienced with that particular movement, but it looks like there's a case screw that should be removed and a stem release button. Gently pull out the crown and stem while keeping that depressed with, e.g. a toothpick.

Got it, thanks!

The stem will be easy to remove, by pushing down that spring-loaded button with a toothpick or something like that. You may need to jiggle the crown slightly as you pull it out.

Then you will need to remove both case screws from those clamps and I think the movement should come out from the back.

I tried all three points, and the crown came out very easily, but no such luck with the case screws. My little screwdriver in the crappy little watch working kit that I own didn’t have a screwdriver to match the slot and gain torque well enough to break the screws lose.

I will just leave the movement open to the warm air vent overnight and I’m sure it will be OK.
It’s already running well just from picking up the watch. My only concern would be with the dial for right now, but it looks dry.

Can you place it on some (uncooked) rice to further absorb water?