Calling all Pocket Watch Buffs

Canuck · Jul 14, 2022

In my ongoing endeavours to make a railroad chronometer out of my scrap pile, 15-jewel, 18-size 1911 Elgin, I was finally able to spend some time on Wednesday, adjusting it. About 8:00 pm on Wednesday, I set it to time with my iPad. At 11:00 am on Thursday, it was within 5 seconds. That was a static test. Today, I am wearing it on my @DaveK lanyard, and will continue to do so for a few days.

Alpha · Jul 14, 2022

Smiths Empire at work, certainly far from being a high end piece but I love it for that very reason.
A timepiece for a working man.

DaveK · Jul 15, 2022

Alpha
Smiths Empire at work, certainly far from being a high end piece but I love it for that very reason.
A timepiece for a working man.

I now need a barometer and a thermometer in pocket watch cases.

Canuck · Jul 15, 2022

Canuck
In my ongoing endeavours to make a railroad chronometer out of my scrap pile, 15-jewel, 18-size 1911 Elgin, I was finally able to spend some time on Wednesday, adjusting it. About 8:00 pm on Wednesday, I set it to time with my iPad. At 11:00 am on Thursday, it was within 5 seconds. That was a static test. Today, I am wearing it on my @DaveK lanyard, and will continue to do so for a few days.

I found on Thursday morning that my Elgin was not fully wound when I started the test, and it had run down. So the test began again. As of Friday morning, it is to the second! Not bad for an un-adjusted, 111 year old watch, having badly needing repairs (now completed), and which hadn’t seen the light of day for about 45 years.

noelekal · Jul 15, 2022

Canuck
I found on Thursday morning that my Elgin was not fully wound when I started the test, and it had run down. So the test began again. As of Friday morning, it is to the second! Not bad for an un-adjusted, 111 year old watch, having badly needing repairs (now completed), and which hadn’t seen the light of day for about 45 years.

Keep us posted on your testing.

I need to get some pocket watch wearing under my belt, using a DaveK lanyard so that the lanyard can develop some of that vintage sheen that yours shows.

Think I'll harness up a watch for the day. Stay tuned.

noelekal · Jul 15, 2022

Now going out to eat Italian with Mrs. noelekal, son, and daughter-in-law.

Canuck · Jul 15, 2022

@noelekal ’s handsome Hamilton 992 checks all the boxes in the pocketwatchdatabase site.

https://pocketwatchdatabase.com/search/result/hamilton/2371981.

A quick peek at the inside surface of the case back tells me this one either was not used by a railroader (absence of repair marks), or it saw only abbreviated service in the bib overalls of a railroader. OR, chances are it was not owned by a railroader. Everything about it tells me it saw limited service, and was fastidiously cared for. The bar-over-crown model #2 case was popular among 16-size Hamiltons for a very long time. I don’t know that I have ever seen a Hamilton case marked 14-karat gold filled such as the image above. I have a 992E in a model #2 b.o.c. case, but it is marked 10-karat gold filled.

The 992E looks just like the 992, being marked the same way. In the picture of the movement in my 992E, one arrow points to the 992 marking on the train bridge. To distinguish a 992 from a 992E, look at he second arrow which points to the engraved ELINVAR on the pallet cock. The astute observer may also note that the 992E movement has a mono-metallic, white alloy balance wheel which does not have a split rim. The 992 has a bi-metallic, temperature compensating balance wheel which has a split rim.

The 992E was originally produced with a white, non-ferrous, alloy hairspring. People didn’t like the colourless hairspring, so later models (such as mine) had the colourless hairspring died BLUE so it looked like Hamilton hairsprings had always looked. BLUE! Anything to quite the plebes!

By the time the 992B was introduced in 1941, Hamilton dispensed with the subterfuge, and the hairsprings on 992Bs were colourless Elinvar Extra alloy.

Canuck · Jul 15, 2022

Canuck
In my ongoing endeavours to make a railroad chronometer out of my scrap pile, 15-jewel, 18-size 1911 Elgin, I was finally able to spend some time on Wednesday, adjusting it. About 8:00 pm on Wednesday, I set it to time with my iPad. At 11:00 am on Thursday, it was within 5 seconds. That was a static test. Today, I am wearing it on my @DaveK lanyard, and will continue to do so for a few days.

When I re-started my accuracy test on Thursday morning, I set the orphan Elgin to my iPad. It has been 36 hours since re-setting, worn 12 hours daily for two days, and static (face up) overnight. At 17:40 hours this evening, it is one second slow! Not bad for a 111-year old watch, I’d say!

Waltesefalcon · Jul 15, 2022

@noelekal 's 992 is a year older than mine which is also in the more common 10k gf case.

Canuck · Jul 15, 2022

Yet another model #2 bar over crown case. Nice ones, all!

noelekal · Jul 15, 2022

I know one thing.

The movements on pocket watches are hard to capture well.

Jones in LA · Jul 15, 2022

This thread still is, and will always be my happy place 😀

Canuck · Jul 15, 2022

@Jones in LA ,

A lot of folks like this thread. We are now at 95 pages, over 69,000 views, and almost 1,900 contributions! And the thread is only 18 months old. Lots of good work from lots of folks. And continued interest from folks such as yourself. Many folks have discovered the allure of pocket watches because of this thread. We owe it all to @DaveK whose idea this thread was, in the first place!

DaveK · Jul 16, 2022

Pvt-Public · Jul 16, 2022

Ok, you guys talked me into it, I’ll wear a pocket watch today.

But seriously it will be this one.

Canuck · Jul 16, 2022

Pvt-Public
Ok, you guys talked me into it, I’ll wear a pocket watch today.

But seriously it will be this one.

@Pvt-Public ,

The Hamilton 4992B was made with a chrome plated base metal case, as well as a sterling silver case. I have often wondered just what the reason might have been for producing this watch in a sterling silver case. It seems so un-military to have used sterling silver on some of them. Of course, the base metal case made up the bulk of the 4992B production. Which case is yours?

Canuck · Jul 16, 2022

Canuck
When I re-started my accuracy test on Thursday morning, I set the orphan Elgin to my iPad. It has been 36 hours since re-setting, worn 12 hours daily for two days, and static (face up) overnight. At 17:40 hours this evening, it is one second slow! Not bad for a 111-year old watch, I’d say!

Early Saturday morning, and I checked the Elgin against my iPad. It has been close to 48 hours since I re-started my accuracy test, and as near as I can tell, this old blister might be 1/2 second fast! That result comes from testing it 24-hours in the pocket, and 24-hours static, face up. This is not a railroad standard watch, but it is performing just as well as any one of my railroad standard watches. Of course, the true test would be to test the watch at varying temperatures, the way a true railroad standard watch would have been tested. I am impressed!

Pvt-Public · Jul 16, 2022

Just the plain base metal case, “nothing special”.

DaveK · Jul 16, 2022

Canuck
Early Saturday morning, and I checked the Elgin against my iPad. It has been close to 48 hours since I re-started my accuracy test, and as near as I can tell, this old blister might be 1/2 second fast! That result comes from testing it 24-hours in the pocket, and 24-hours static, face up. This is not a railroad standard watch, but it is performing just as well as any one of my railroad standard watches. Of course, the true test would be to test the watch at varying temperatures, the way a true railroad standard watch would have been tested. I am impressed!

Exciting to follow your progress with this 🍿

Canuck · Jul 17, 2022

Canuck
Early Saturday morning, and I checked the Elgin against my iPad. It has been close to 48 hours since I re-started my accuracy test, and as near as I can tell, this old blister might be 1/2 second fast! That result comes from testing it 24-hours in the pocket, and 24-hours static, face up. This is not a railroad standard watch, but it is performing just as well as any one of my railroad standard watches. Of course, the true test would be to test the watch at varying temperatures, the way a true railroad standard watch would have been tested. I am impressed!

I checked the Elgin later on Saturday, to find it stopped! Checking it over initially, I was unable to see what had stopped it. So today (Sunday), I stripped it again in preparation to re-clean it. Then I discovered the cause of the stoppage. From the time of the initial cleaning job, I had occasion a number of times, to do more adjustments in order to bring it to time. Somehow, something found its way into the movement, perched in the third wheel pinion, and the watch quit. So today, (Sunday) I cleaned it again. Re-set to time, and back in my pocket. We’re headed for the mountains on Tuesday, for four days of camping. I’ll wear it.