Okay, so I’ve been messing around with this old Longines watch I inherited, the one with the small seconds dial. It wasn’t running, and honestly, I just wanted to see if I could get it ticking again. No fancy watchmaking tools here, just a basic kit and a whole lot of patience.
First, I carefully opened the back of the watch. I used that tiny little screwdriver from my kit, the one that’s almost too small to hold. Had to be super gentle because I didn’t want to scratch anything up.
Once I got it open, I could see the movement inside. Man, it’s intricate! All those tiny gears and springs… it’s crazy how something so small can keep time. I used a magnifying glass to get a really good look, trying to figure out what might be wrong.
I noticed some dust and gunk built up around the balance wheel. That’s the little wheel that swings back and forth, the heart of the watch. So, I grabbed a small, soft brush – I think it’s meant for cleaning camera lenses – and very, very carefully brushed away the debris. Had to hold my breath for that part, didn’t want to breathe on anything!
- Opened the watch back. Super careful, used the smallest screwdriver.
- Inspected the movement. Tiny gears, springs… amazing! Magnifying glass was key.
- Cleaned the balance wheel. Used a soft brush, held my breath!
After I cleaned it a bit, I gave the balance wheel a tiny, tiny nudge with a toothpick. And guess what? It started to swing! It wasn’t perfect, it was kind of stuttering, but it was moving!
Next, I looked at the mainspring, that’s the coiled-up spring that provides the power. It looked okay, but I figured it might need a little winding. I found the winding stem – that’s the little knob on the side of the watch – and gave it a few gentle turns. Didn’t want to overwind it, that can cause problems.
I then put it back and made sure I assembled it carefully.
With the mainspring wound a bit, the balance wheel started swinging more consistently. The small seconds hand started to move, too! It was keeping time, not perfectly, but it was alive! I was pretty stoked, to be honest. I mean, I brought this old watch back to life with just a few basic tools and some patience.
My Takeaways
It’s still not running 100%, though, still goes slow, I will need a professional, I think it probably needs a proper cleaning and oiling by a professional watchmaker. But for now, I’m just happy I got it running at all. It’s a cool feeling to connect with something old like that, and to understand a little bit more about how it works.
