A Treatise on Staff Making and Pivoting E-Book

Hall

• Herausgeber: Science & Technology Publishing
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 54

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2025

Beschreibung

A Treatise on Staff Making and Pivoting: Containing Complete Directions for Making and Fitting New Staffs from the Raw Material is a comprehensive manual authored by E. Goodrich and originally published in the 19th century. This classic work serves as an essential guide for watchmakers, horologists, and anyone interested in the intricate art of watch repair and construction. The book meticulously details the processes involved in crafting and fitting new balance staffs, a critical component in the mechanism of timepieces, starting from the selection and preparation of raw materials. The treatise covers every aspect of staff making, including the tools required, the methods of turning and shaping the staff, and the precise techniques for fitting pivots. It provides step-by-step instructions, accompanied by clear explanations and practical advice, ensuring that both novice and experienced craftsmen can follow the procedures with confidence. The author emphasizes the importance of accuracy and skill, offering insights into the challenges commonly faced during staff making and how to overcome them. In addition to staff making, the book delves into the art of pivoting, explaining how to repair and replace worn or broken pivots, and how to achieve the perfect fit and finish necessary for the smooth operation of a watch. The treatise also includes valuable information on the use and maintenance of lathes and other specialized tools, as well as tips for ensuring the longevity and reliability of the finished components. Rich in technical detail and historical context, A Treatise on Staff Making and Pivoting stands as a testament to the craftsmanship and precision required in traditional watchmaking. It remains a valuable resource for horologists, collectors, and enthusiasts seeking to deepen their understanding of the mechanical intricacies of timepieces and the timeless skills involved in their repair and restoration.

Leseprobe

STAFF MAKING

AND

PIVOTING

CONTAINING COMPLETE DIRECTIONS FOR MAKING AND FITTING NEW STAFFS FROM THE RAW MATERIAL

EUGENE E. HALL

WITH NUMEROUS ILLUSTRATIONS

CONTENTS.

STAFF MAKING AND PIVOTING.

CHAPTER I.

CHAPTER II.

CHAPTER III.

CHAPTER IV.

CHAPTER V.

CHAPTER VI.

CHAPTER VII.

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Transcriber's notes: Some minor typographical errors have been corrected. The author's spelling has been retained.

A TREATISE

ON

STAFF MAKING

AND

PIVOTING

CONTAINING COMPLETE DIRECTIONS FOR MAKING AND FITTING NEW STAFFS FROM THE RAW MATERIAL

EUGENE E. HALL

WITH NUMEROUS ILLUSTRATIONS

CHICAGO:Hazlitt & Walker, Publishers 1910

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER I. The raw material. The gravers. The roughing out. The hardening and tempering 5 CHAPTER II. Kinds of pivots. Their shape. Capillarity. The requirements of a good pivot 13 CHAPTER III. The proper measurements and how obtained 19 CHAPTER IV. The gauging of holes. The side shake. The position of the graver 23 CHAPTER V. The grinding and polishing. The reversal of the work. The wax chuck 29 CHAPTER VI. Another wax chuck. The centering of the work 35 CHAPTER VII. The finishing of the staff. Pivoting. Making pivot drills. Hardening drills. The drilling and fitting of new pivots 39

STAFF MAKING AND PIVOTING.

CHAPTER I.

To produce a good balance staff requires more skill than to produce any other turned portion of a watch, and your success will depend not alone on your knowledge of its proper shape and measurements, nor the tools at your command, but rather upon your skill with the graver and your success in hardening and tempering. There are many points worthy of consideration in the making of a balance staff that are too often neglected. I have seen staffs that were models as regards execution and finish, that were nearly worthless from a practical standpoint, simply because the maker had devoted all his time and energy to the execution of a beautiful piece of lathe work, and had given no thought or study to the form and size of the pivots. On the other hand, one often sees staffs whose pivots are faultless in shape, but the execution and finish so bungling as to offset all the good qualities as regards shape. To have good tools and the right ideas is one thing, and to use these tools properly and make a practical demonstration of your theory is another.

I shall endeavor to take up every point in connection with the balance staff, from the steel to the jewels, and their relation to the pivots, and I believe this will then convey to the reader all the necessary points, not only as regards staffs, but pivots also, whether applied to a balance or a pinion staff.

It may be argued, and we often do hear material dealers advance the theory, that to-day, with our interchangeable parts and the cheapness of all material, it is a waste of time to make a balance staff. To the reader who takes this view of the situation I simply want to say, kindly follow me to the end of this paragraph, and if you are still of the same opinion, then you are wasting your time in following me farther. For a material dealer to advance this theory I can find some excuse; he is an interested party, and the selling of material is his bread and butter; but the other fellow, well I never could understand him and possibly never shall. When we seriously consider the various styles and series in "old model" and "new model," of only one of the leading manufacturers of watches in this country, to say nothing of the legion of small and large concerns who are manufacturing or have manufactured in the past, and then think of carrying these staffs in stock, all ready for use, we then begin to realize how utterly absurd the idea is, to say nothing of how expensive! On the other hand, if you reside in a large city and propose to rely on the stock of your material dealer, you will find yourself in an embarrasing situation very often, for as likely as not the movement requiring a new staff was made by a company that went out of business back in the '80s, or it is a new movement, the material for which has not yet been placed on the market. This state of affairs leads to makeshifts, and they in turn lead to botch work. The watchmaker who does not possess the experience or necessary qualifications to make a new balance staff and make it in a neat and workmanlike manner, is never certain of having exactly what is needed, and cannot hope to long retain the confidence of his customers. In fact, he is not a watchmaker at all, but simply an apprentice or student, even though he be working for a salary or be his own master. There are undoubtedly many worthy members of the trade, who are not familiar with the making of a balance staff, who will take exceptions to this statement; but it is nevertheless true. They may be good workmen as far as they go; they may be painstaking; but they cannot be classed as watchmakers.

This article is intended for the benefit of that large class whose opportunities for obtaining instruction are limited, and who are ready and willing to learn, and for that still larger class of practical workmen who can make a new staff in a creditable manner, but who are always glad to read others people's ideas on any subject connected with the trade and who are not yet too old to learn new tricks should they find any such.

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