Why is it that every time I come to rebuild a 16 size Waltham, when I remove the dial there is no washer underneath?....I can appreciate the odd movement but so far I haven't come across a single one. Can I presume they had them fitted?.
Regards and a happy Christmas to you all.
Steve from across the pond.

I find missing or flat dial washers in the vast majority of watches that I service. The importance of this little spring washer is often overlooked. It keeps the hour wheel from lifting and possibly disengaging from the intermediate wheel and also keeps the hour hand from possibly coming in contact with the minute hand. The make and model and dial to hour wheel clearance dictate the degree of importance of this little washer. I replace missing or flat washers with every watch service.

Why are they so often missing? My guess is a previous person who worked on the watch either didn't have a replacement or didn't bother with it.

Happy Holidays to all as well.

Steve,
I think it is just a coincidence that they are missing, and yes they should have been fitted with one. In the past someone just lost it or didn't think it was useful.

The washer lays on top of the hour gear and keeps it from working out toward the dial,for instance if the watch was laying on it's face or carried in a certain postion it could make the watch stop.

Hope this helps,
tim

Roger,
Sorry about that. You explained it far better than I.

Merry Christmas,
Tim

No apology necessary Tim. I think your post was fine.

Roger

The "flat" washers we find when disassembling these watches can be "refreshed" after cleaning by drawing them across an edge. They "curl" right up and can be put back in for the next operational cycle.

Another uninformed washer (ab)use I found has been the occasional "stacking" of many washers on top of the hour wheel which seemed to be an attempt to "shim" the wheel away from the dial . Sadly, this can interfere with time accuracy by causing more friction between the cannon pinion and the two top wheels.

It was nice though as it would yield more dial washers for use later.

Thank you all very much. Have a lovely day today!!
Steve.