How to Clean Your Pocket Watch

Mechanical pocket watches like your Colibri pocket watch need proper maintenance, including cleaning the tiny mechanical parts. After all, you depend on it and use it everyday. You’ll know you need to have your watch cleaned if you’ve been using it for three or five years already and it is no longer as shiny as the first day you bought it. If cleaning the watch is an issue because you don’t have any idea how to go about it, these tips will show you the way:

* If the product manual provides reader-friendly instructions, follow it to the letter. But if you feel you’d rather get professional service, do so. A professional should do the cleaning of the tiny mechanisms inside your Colibri pocket watch; they have the tools and the experience to do it.

* Don’t attempt to use any cleaning or lubricating solutions unless recommended by the watch manufacturer.

* Don’t attempt to clean the watch with a soft-bristled brush with soap and water, unless your pocket watch is water resistant up to 10, 15, or 20 BAR. If your watch is simply marked water resistant it simply means it can withstand splashes of water or raindrops only and shouldn’t be soaked at all.

* If it’s waterproofed, use a soft-bristle brush and gently brush the surface of the watch. Immediately but carefully, dry it with a lint-free cloth.

Cleaning Jobs

If you take your watch to the “cleaners”, ask about their cleaning methods. Proper cleaning involves disassembling the pocket watch, not just the dip and dry method. They charge less than $50 for disassembled cleaning. This won’t do good for your pocket watch, or for those antique engraved pocket watches.

The proper watchmaker or cleaner will disassemble your watch – remove the pivots, bearings, pinions, jewels, and teeth. These are carefully inspected for any irregularities before these are cleaned with an ultrasonic bath and passed through a three-stage rinse and heat dried. Sensitive parts are hand-cleaned with the correct solutions. After reassembly, the watch is lubricated and adjusted to the current time. This method will cost you about $100, but worth it.

Caring for Your Pocket Watch

Knowing how to protect your pocket watch from damage helps keep it going for years. Here’s how you can prolong the life of your pocket watch:

* When winding your watch, pull at the knobs carefully.

* Wind the clock at a regular established time.

* When storing it, wipe it with a clean dry cloth before encasing in its box.

* Keep it away from humid conditions.

* Keep it out of water.

* Follow the watch manual for proper care and maintenance.

* When mailing your watch to a professional watch service, enclose it in a bubble wrap before stuffing it into a boxed padded with Styrofoam or newspaper.

Your pocket watch shouldn’t be sidelined just because you don’t know how to clean it. Anyway, it will take another three or five years before the next visit to the “cleaners.” Until then, take good care of it.

Tags : Pocket Watch