Mate, send it to Jim, he's done many jobs for me [see his on my bench posts] and he's in Melbourne. Top bloke

 

Thanks mate. Do you have his contact details?

 

Send Jim a PM
https://omegaforums.net/conversations/add?to=JimInOz

 

He literally had a conversation with you earlier in the thread. PM him.

 

Well Phase One is complete. @bindo dropped the watch off about 90 minutes ago.

We stood well over 1.5 metres apart and only leant toward each other to pass the bubble wrapped "consignment".

My initial instinct (right side of brain talking) was "Ooooooo, a new project! Let's get on it!".

But my sensible side of brain said "Put it away, finish your beer, have dinner, have a wee dram, watch James Bond and then go to bed, it'll be there tomorrow!".

So, there we are.

 

I'd have had 16 more beers and maybe a bit of rack to straighten myself up before getting a start on it. Good job he chose you and not me.

 

Nice meeting you Jim. Good luck with it

 

Please make sure you observe proper disinfection rules before starting on it Jim. I'm doing this with every watch that comes in. They typically sit for 3 days, then are unwrapped and disinfected before I start working on them. Watches aren't worth getting sick or dying over...

 

Was wondering what SMP 600 was then I clicked and saw that it's a PO..

 

bindo
your watch is in the right hands, you have nothing to worry about....
Enjoy the beer & your dinner +++ the wee dram jimInoz... Very kind gesture you are a "Bonne Homme"
Wish you all well in these difficult times..

 

I agree Al. Even though the risk factor is low I took the normal precautions that we're becoming used to these days.
I wiped the watch/wrapping with benzalkonium chloride towelettes as I unwrapped it, then it was placed in room temperature water/detergent solution for 30 minutes. It'll be rinsed in lukewarm water and allowed to dry before I do anything else. It's been in there for about half an hour so here's a pic before I take it out.

Hmmmmm............did I remember to screw the crown in?

 

I'm sure you did.

 

I realize you know what you're doing, and that that is an extreme understatement.
But given that the reported problem was "water ingress" if that were my watch, I'd be having conniptions!

 

I would put it in a bag w/rice, and contact the Omega AD where you purchased the watch to let them know the situation. I assume even though they may be closed there should be a way to contact them. This way, you let them know as soon as it happened and are clearly trying to protect it from damage. For the watch to fog up like that when it's never been near water is unusual, to say the least. But it's a huge watch with a lot of air in it (comparatively) and somehow enough water got inside to do this. Best of luck. If you have a decent AD they should try to get Omega to make it right; a 4 year old watch shouldn't have this problem. Stay safe.

 

Just a thought.....Are you changing temperatures from one extreme to the other when it happens. Like for instance leaving a cold air conditioned house and into a hot humid day? An example would be wearing eye glasses in an air conditioned car, getting out of the car in the summer time, and your glasses fog up really bad. I could be way off base here but like I said- just a thought.

 

A short period with both watch and water at room temperature and no pressure variations and it'll be OK.

Nobody knows what caused the initial problem, but this activity is to eliminate any moisture remaining in the watch until the repair centre re-opens.

 

Now that the watch is clean and dry, first thing is to remove the bracelet.



Then I can clean around the edge of the caseback prior to removal.



Caseback is removed.



Movement is inspected for any signs of serious damage.



Nothing of concern, the crown area has no evidence of serious water intrusion.



Although some of the screw heads have a slightly frosted appearance, sometimes an indication of moisture but not always.



Now it's ready to be dried out.
The watch is placed on watch paper in the "drying machine" where it will live on a warm window sill for a few days before being sealed up again.



The bracelet goes into an ultrasonic bath for 10 minutes, then it'll be rinsed in hot water, dried, and then put away until its ready to go back on the watch.

 

You are a genius Jim! That’s some excellent work, thanks so much.

 

Where in the hell would anybody get rice from?

It's easier to get toilet paper!

 

Crikey, you're right! Hey Archer, can you just heat the watch up a bit? Unscrew the crown, heat it up in an oven at a modest temperature?