I'm looking for a book which can help me, a relatively ignorant newbie, learn more about how a watch functions, the components, and movement design. It looks like Daniels' book will give me that (and so much more) but I also wondered about Ryan Schmidt's The Wristwatch Handbook. Do any of you know both of these? Do you think that the Daniels' book might be completely overwhelming for a novice? Many thanks. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Wristwatch...85149829X/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8 https://www.amazon.co.uk/Watchmakin...856677043/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8
I'd opt for the George Daniels book just because he was the best. I can't say whether it will be overwhelming or not though as I don't have a copy. The book I started off with was something more like this: https://www.amazon.com/Watch-Repair...04&sr=8-1&keywords=watch+repair+for+beginners . I also started off by buying a few cheap American pocket watches to work on, seven jewel Elgins and the like.
I've been tempted to buy a Unitas 6498 copy to take it apart and assemble. Just to see what happens. But I think I already know how that story ends.
I’ve got a couple of cheap seiko movements I was planning on dissecting... Pretty certain something will go “ping” at some point and I will be hunting for bits on the floor...
I own George Daniels Watchmaking. It is good, but also not exactly what I expected. I’d say it seems to be targeted towards people who want to graduate from watch tinkering to watchmaking. Which, given the title, is fair enough. It does assume a pretty good basic knowledge though.
The best book for the new person, in my opinion, is De Carle. Available on Kindle for $10-20. Read chapters 3, 4 and 5 and then you'll have an idea what's going on. It explains the base movement quite well and if you do ever get something like an ETA 6497 or 6498, it will make sense. It also reads across to most calibres as they tend to share some basic traits. Good luck, Chris
Good for basics, but remember it was written in a different time. It's often recommended for beginners, but sometimes the instructions can be a little...well...scary. I was always struck by the one instruction in the cleaning section to "Dissolve a piece of cyanide the size of a walnut in a tea cup of warm water..." Yeah...I'll stick with my automatic cleaning machine and modern solvents thanks. Cheers, Al
Omg!!! That’s hilarious! I’m surprised watchmakers weren’t dying off with some regularity. The horological equivalent of a mad hatter.