I have a Elgin, 16s, 3 finger, #11536180. As I was trying to reassemble the bal system after a COA & the HS fell off. On very close inspection with a microscope I discovered that the spring wire had broken at the stud. I pulled the tapered pin and removed the piece but I am wondering if the shorter spring will
make a difference in the speed of the wheel. What I removed was about 2 or 2.5 mm. I don't think I would ever find another spring and the watch is a little beauty.

Patrick,

If the effective length of the hairspring was shorten it will cause the watch to run faster for sure.It doesn't take much loss of length in the hairspring to make a substantial difference in timing. You can repin the hairspring to see how fast your watch is running and determine if there is any chance to add weight to the balance to compensate for the loss in length of the hairspring. After you determine this you can decide on other options if needed.

Rob
www,pocketwatchrepairs.net

Rob, Thanks, I'll go with that and just play with the balance weights.

When I think about it, you changing the speed of a watch just by moving the regulator. Even a hair makes a difference. So shorting the spring would have a tremendous effect.