Apprentice

[Canuck]

I have been showing the ropes to a young friend whose profession is IT, the basics of repairing watches. He absorbs like a sponge, and has acquired and serviced twelve watches after my helping him with his very first watch repair. On Thursday and Friday this week, I serviced his very first Accutron, an Astronaut. He has the repair manual, and has acquired about 100 Accutrons to experiment with. As I serviced this watch, I spent a lot of time showing him the steps to stripping, conditioning, re-assembling, and adjusting his Astronaut. This watch is virtually as new.

 

[JimInOz]

It's not just material things you leave when you shuffle off, it's things like this.
Passing on knowledge and skills that are slowly fading away in most areas.

 

[HamDoctor]

Great work there, Canuck. It seems you have hit a nerve there, what, a hundred Accutrons? That is showing some serious interest.

Mind you, an Astronaut is a perfect way to show how cool these things could be. High-tech, space program, and looks that are absolutely striking. One hell of a watch.

 

[Canuck]

HamDoctor

Great work there, Canuck. It seems you have hit a nerve there, what, a hundred Accutrons? That is showing some serious interest.

Mind you, an Astronaut is a perfect way to show how cool these things could be. High-tech, space program, and looks that are absolutely striking. One hell of a watch.

The 100 Accutrons! He answered an ad for an auction of the effects of a deceased watch repair guy. Most of the usual household “stuff” had been sold already, but the stuff that had not sold consisted of about 100 Accutrons, some complete but not running, some having been dismantled, some 214s, some 218s, Omega F300s, Hamilton Electrics (mostly in parts), and too many other makes in a similar state. Tools! He was just at that moment preparing to move to Thunder Bay (Ontario), and the day before they left, he had his Hyundai Santa Cruz pickup truck box and back seat JAMMED with the watches and tools! The Astronaut is only chapter one!

 

[JwRosenthal]

Please, please impress upon him not just how hard it is to find watchmakers these days, but ones that actually specialize in Accutrons- they are literally a dying breed!! My
Now retired watchmaker was a Bulova/Accutron authorized service provider and he said they set him up with all the specialized equipment that was needed to services these watches correctly- and it was far more than just a set of screwdrivers and tweezers.
I hope you let him know there are only a handful of tech’s left that can do these, and then have him join this forum because half his customer base would be right here.

 

[Dan S]

I'm loving this story.

 

[dsstephens]

JwRosenthal

Please, please impress upon him not just how hard it is to find watchmakers these days, but ones that actually specialize in Accutrons- they are literally a dying breed!! My
Now retired watchmaker was a Bulova/Accutron authorized service provider and he said they set him up with all the specialized equipment that was needed to services these watches correctly- and it was far more than just a set of screwdrivers and tweezers.
I hope you let him know there are only a handful of tech’s left that can do these, and then have him join this forum because half his customer base would be right here.

AWCI runs an Accutron only course up in Cincinnati for this reason. Worth getting him to go!

 

[pdxleaf]

Can we call dibs on a watchmaker?

 

[Canuck]

pdxleaf

Can we call dibs on a watchmaker?

His actual profession is in information technology. He is not planning on chucking his career for the trade of watch repairing! I have never met anyone as avid in his interest in watches! Not just in collecting them, but in the intricacies of the tiny mechanisms. He has become active in numerous watch and clock collector groups in Ontario, but also in Minnesota where he is presently employed. This past week end, he spent two days with two of us, manning our display at the 2024 Railway Days event at our local historic park. We exhibited about 110 railroad standard pocket and wrist watches, and two Seth Thomas railroad standard clocks. Today, we do the finishing touches on his newly acquired Accutron Astronaut. He has several appointments with business contacts here over the next day or so, then he’s off to Minneapolis on Tuesday afternoon.

 

[JimInOz]

IT is a mental occupation (except for a keyboard basically) so I think he will relish the opportunity to forget about codes and nodes and other IT stuff and absorb himself in something physical, tangible and tactile when he is on his own time.

I think I knew someone like that, and although he doesn't work anymore, he still enjoys his "watchmaker" hobby.

😉

 

[JwRosenthal]

JimInOz

IT is a mental occupation (except for a keyboard basically) so I think he will relish the opportunity to forget about codes and nodes and other IT stuff and absorb himself in something physical, tangible and tactile when he is on his own time.

I think I knew someone like that, and although he doesn't work anymore, he still enjoys his "watchmaker" hobby.

😉

Yup! Working at a bench in the zen of something tangible/ mechanical can clear the mind.
My bench hobby was stereo repair (turntables, amplifiers, preamps, speakers, etc). When I lost my job after 13 years I had a 6 month gap of unemployment- I let everyone i knew in the area (local record shops) that I was open for business and I couldn’t keep up with the demand- it sustained me during that time.
I continued doing it for a few years into my current job (evenings and on the weekends) until I just couldn’t juggle both so had to close up the workbench- but still do it for friends and family.

 

[rendo]

This sounds great! What you are doing for him is priceless and it sounds like he is giving back to the community already.

I have been learning about watchmaking on my own for a couple years and practicing on various vintage movements. I wish I could find a mentor like you.

 

[Canuck]

rendo

This sounds great! What you are doing for him is priceless and it sounds like he is giving back to the community already.

I have been learning about watchmaking on my own for a couple years and practicing on various vintage movements. I wish I could find a mentor like you.

This fellow is a unique type. He has required very little hands on help from me. It seems he was born with the unique capability of analyzing and organizing his work. I did his Astronaut for him because they really are quite different to the watches he has worked on. But he was right there, absorbing how to avoid the pitfalls of working on these tuning fork models. His collection now is at about a dozen watches, and he really only required my help on the first one he did. It is a manual wind Langendorf man’s watch which came from his father-in-law, and which needed a balance staff (which I did for him), but he finished it himself. His wife now wears that watch, and she has shelved several other watches in favour of this one.

 

[Pastorbottle]

It has been said that: "If you love what you do for a living.......you'll never do a days work in your life!"

 

[JwRosenthal]

Pastorbottle

It has been said that: "If you love what you do for a living.......you'll never do a days work in your life!"

Cheers to that!

 

[rendo]

Canuck

This fellow is a unique type. He has required very little hands on help from me. It seems he was born with the unique capability of analyzing and organizing his work. I did his Astronaut for him because they really are quite different to the watches he has worked on. But he was right there, absorbing how to avoid the pitfalls of working on these tuning fork models. His collection now is at about a dozen watches, and he really only required my help on the first one he did. It is a manual wind Langendorf man’s watch which came from his father-in-law, and which needed a balance staff (which I did for him), but he finished it himself. His wife now wears that watch, and she has shelved several other watches in favour of this one.

That's exactly the help I need from a mentor. I have learned a lot on my own, but watching videos and reading books does not seem enough at this point. It would be great to have a mentor who can watch what I'm doing and give me some direction on what to focus on. My plan is to enroll at a watchmaking school one day. I just have to find the right time in my career to do that.