This is a newbie question.I have a Swiza 8 alarm watch.Got it at a yard sale.After having taken it apart,found that the pins on the pin-pallet escapement where sheared off almost flush to the lever.I would like to replace them if possible.Are there special tools involved,and what is the material the pins are made from.Also is it readly available in supply stores.I would like to use the watch to practice on.Never done this before,but willing to learn.Any advice appreciated.

thanks, Frank

Frank,

The pallet pins in "pin-pallet" escapements are harder than Chinese arithmetic; that's why they're so apt to break. Pins made from soft material won't last a week.

It's best to press new pins into place using a staking tool, preferably one with a jeweling attachment (press lever), but the problem is in finding material to use for the replacements.

It's possible to make new pins from very tiny spring wire, but spring wire really isn't as hard as the original pins, and it won't last as long. If you can find another similar pin-pallet watch with good pins, you might be able to rob them to install in the one you're fixing, but you'd have to be careful not to break them in the process.

To hold the pins in place while pressing them in, use a dab of grease or Vaseline (the same trick works on pallet arbors, and other tiny press-fit parts). If they're loose in their holes, tighten the holes (like you would a pivot hole in a plate) by using the staking tool.

Hope this helps!

===================

Steve Maddox
President, NAWCC Chapter #62
North Little Rock, Arkansas

[This message was edited by Steve Maddox on April 09, 2003 at 5:42.]

Hi Steve

Thank you for the reply to my questions.I will keep a lookout for another watch of the same make and model,I may get lucky and find one and with the pallet pins intact.My inventory of watch tools is rather slim right now,but slowly growing.I will just put the movement aside for now,as I have a clock that I have been meaning to repair and put back together for some time now.

Frank