Hello Guys,

Looking for advice from the knowledgeable members that are seen often times in this fabulous forum (@Archer especially ): I recently acquired a spectacular 105.012-66 (HF case) from @stef2010 and whilst the watch runs great and looks even better, I've noticed a little quirk.
Sometimes, when I wind the watch, the dial spins very slightly (1mm maybe) to the left and gets back in place as soon as the crown is left alone.
Although I am far from being an expert, it feels like either a feet of the dial is gone or a screw holding the movement in place is loose (what I dearly hope for).

I know that it's probably impossible to tell for sure just by reading a forum post, but maybe someone has already witnessed this and knows if it is a hassle or not. I've looked for similar posts and found nothing, so if we can create a thread on the subject I'm sure that it will help someone down the line.

I was planning on servicing the watch in a few months as I wanted to enjoy it prior to that but if there's a risk of breaking a component (especially the feet of the dial) I will bring it to a watchmaker as soon as possible.
Thanks in advance for the advice guys, and don't hesitate to ask for more info!

 

Just to illustrate, some movement shots from Stéph.
Not sure if you can make something of them, I can't...

 

I'd get it to your local trusted watchmaker asap and don't wiggle the crown or wind it in the meantime. I'm not a watchmaker but can guess that it could be a retaining screw is out and rolling around in the movement which is not a good thing.

 

Thank you for your reply. It's a bit of a bummer. I guess I'll do that ASAP. If anyone can chime in I'd be grateful

 

Note that the case screws for Speedmasters don't affix the movement to the case. They clamp it to the enlargement ring (movement spacer) so they don't really hold the movement rigidly in the case. The inner anti-magnetic cover fits over that enlargement ring, and the case back presses on the cover - that is what holds everything in place firmly.

If the inner cover is deformed slightly, it may not be providing contact with the case back, so that may be allowing the movement to shift around on winding. If you have fitted one of those aftermarket display case backs, then the spacer they provide has to be just the right fit - if it's too loose again it will not contact the inside of the case back and hold everything in place. I know the seller for these has sometimes had issue with the spacers not being the right thickness.

Hope this helps.

Cheers, Al

 

Thanks Al for the helpful comment. I'm not sure what is the issue with the watch since the caseback is the original one and it looks like it fits tightly, but I'd rather hear this than "oh the feet of the dial must be screwed up".

I'll have it checked out/serviced and let you guys know, for the thread's sake!