I thought I would show something that a lot of people have asked me how to do, and that is how to use bow tightening pliers. So here goes!!

The important thing to remember is, to stay to the corners of the bow as much as possible. If you think about it there is much less pressure required to tighten it this way as you are putting the pressure where it should be, and that is on the side of the bow pushing it in to the tower of the case.

Try to work both sides the same, as you can distort the bow if you stay to just one side.
I can see that on this picture I was a little turned toward the top of the bow, and not enough pressure to the side. It is a little hard to keep it where I want it and take pictures, but I hope you get the drift of what I am trying to say.

The other very important thing to remember is, you need something between the anvil and the bow. The anvil is brass but, "trust me", it will leave a mark on the bow.

You will also notice that I use as much of the pliers as I can so as not to bend the bow, and also make it easier to put the proper pressure on the bow. That is why it is always better to remove the movement, if you can, and to take the case completely apart to give yourself more room to work with.

You will notice that the bow still has the proper shape.
You CAN use the center of the bow, and will have to at times with different bows, but again just be careful that you go slow and keep checking that you are not bending the bow in a pear shape! It is best to stay a little to the left, and to the right of the center of the bow as much as possible.
Also you will need to use a LOT of pressure on some of them, so start working out!!!

This as you can see is the Hamilton Model #6 case which is an easy one to work on. Some of them can be a litle hard to do, but it can be done. Just take the time to try to understand a little how metal works, and what you can do with it. Understanding the pressure points will help you a lot.

It may take you some time, so use a case that is not one of your better cases to start on.

You can also reshape a bow that has been bent out of shape pretty easy with these pliers. Once you have worked with them you will see what I mean.

Well I hope this helps.

Wow Larry thank you so much. This will help a lot

agree with Phil! thanks, Larry!

Very nice of you Larry to take the time and explain a very important "work detail".

regards,
bb

Good job Larry....This will help a lot of folks and you are a very good illustrater....

Regards,

Jerry

I was always under the assumption that the bow got mashed into the little peg holes. That doesn't appear to be the case. For lack of a better way to say it, it looks more like a diagonal pressure fit.

Thanks Guys!

Thomas, they do have little pins in them, and that can also be something to think about.

If you look real close at the bow straight on, you'll notice that the right side of the bow is just a tad higher on the frame that the left side. That is because the little pins have worn the hole in the tower, and bow, a little more on that side. Maybe from a fob and pulling the watch out of the pocket over the years.

I have tightened some really loose bows that you can see the pins, they were so loose. Like on the Hamilton #A, or even the #11 case, and it went really well. Once in a great while I have had to reset the pins, as they will come out and hit the crown.

Regards,
Larry

Great Presentation Larry,

The pliers I have look just like the ones you’re using but it never occurred to me to use them on the sides of the bow. Also, I’ll be using paper to protect the bow from now on.

Thank you,

RR

Excellent pictorial, Larry.

Thanks Richard and Eric.

Hey Richard, I guess we can thank William White for the protection! I use the envelops that his crystals come in to protect the bows. I just fold them over as you can see and they work great.

I have been told that an old leather belt will work pretty good also.

Regards,
Larry

Thanks Larry, would you post a pic of the pliers, never know, might run across a pair and not know what they are.

Gary

These are the pliers that I use to remove the bows if I have to, and to reinstall them.

Regards,
Larry

These are them Gary.

If you look close you can use them to remove the bow also.

Julis Borel & Co. also have them now.

They were out of stock for a long time, and when they got them back in they look a little different than these. The spring is different. AND they are a lot cheaper!

Thanks Larry, the few times I've replaced a bow, I used a pair of snap ring pliers.

Gary

That sounds like it would work Gary.

Hey we do what we have to right?

Regards,
Larry

Just got a pair of these.A little different
than Larrys but they work. I did 3 bows in about 10 minutes. I found a used pair on ebay half price of new. Thanks Larry for the excellent
pictorial!
Roger

Thanks Larry, this is really good stuff and I can tell you spent some time and thought on it. I can only say, MORE, MORE, PLEASE!!!!
Thanks again from all of us. JMF