How did you avoid the exposure of the dust inside the movement and from the case prior to removing the dial? The seems to be two main groups of solvent which people use to take off the aged cellulose varnish: the first is ammonia (available on eBay), diluted and gently brushed on with a sable brush, following by rinsing in distilled water. Good luck. We can even make the dial from scratch if needed. 2 year guarantee. Overview dials. Our eagle-eyed vintage collectors love this service, saving an otherwise a write-off dial. Modern and vintage watch servicing and restoration. It will also help your collectible watch hold (and grow) its value. The dial has applied figures in gold that have been restored, too. We take every care to maintain as much of the originality of the dial as possible. We where thinking of it, but the problem is just getting the print in high enough resolution. I have had some good results with dilute lemon juice starting of with a week solution and getting stronger if the stains don’t budge. Free delivery for many ... AS 1691 gents mechanical watch movement - 10.5 Ligne - for restoration / repair . We can do difficult repairs on the case, rebuild the band and repair or restoration of the dial as well. Softened the old varnish enough to lay it back on the dial. I hope you are aware that is fairly deadly radioactive material with a half life of !600 years. With a tradition of wrist watch dial restoration and pocket watch dial restoration and renovation going back over many generations we are able to … Outside of the UK you will have to organise shipping, other than that you can expect the same high quality repair service. Watch dial restoration. But not all dial restorations are created equal, and we do encounter varying degrees of “upgrades.” Some of these upgrades are purposeful deception, while others are not. Wow!!! Mitka is on holidays next week, but on his return, he will start off on his first customer watch! 3- We send you an Email with our address. Tags: rolex refinished dial, vintage watch dial restoration. I’ve used both and couldn’t really say that one is vastly better than the other. My account email address is [email protected] Watch Parts Enquiry * If you are unable to … Continue reading Vintage watches dials → The dial before treatment.I heat up water to boiling pointI then soak the dial.The varnish is partly dissolved after soaking. Les meilleures offres pour Lot of 5 vintage watch Dial's for restoration - Certina, Gigandet, Yema... sont sur eBay Comparez les prix et les spécificités des produits neufs et d'occasion Pleins d'articles en livraison gratuite! And all because of a lacquering that is subject to degradation from oil water and air. thanks a lot for sharing your method, I’m sure I will give it a try! It goes through a 3 stage cleaning process (including ultrasonic … Continue reading Vintage Watch Restoration → I have been working on an old invaluable dial. Learn how your comment data is processed. In the USA, many mention the window cleaner brand “WIndex” but here in the UK, most window cleaners seem to be based on acetic acid (vinegar), and so I’ve used actual ammonia. Professional watch dial restoration for vintage & … I am trying to restore a cheap Seiko as a practice run before I try my hand at something of any value! $3.00 shipping. Anyone know if there is a way to get a minor dent or ding off a Dial ? Vintage watch repair, restoration and refurbishment. Dust you can blow away with compressed air. https://watchguy.co.uk › cleaning-and-preserving-original-finish-on-dials If you are already planning on restoring the dial you might as well try and clean first as you have everything to gain and nothing to loose;). An excellent post and an underrated subject. John. There is nothing better than a well aged dial with an even warm patina across the entire dial. Up until now I do not succeed in spraying such a fine layer of varnish myself. But Mitka likes to roll the dice and we salute him for it…, Thanks for the advice, much appreciated;). Pingback: Most ridiculous redials you have seen :) - Page 2, Interesting piece – I’ve been doing similar research and experimentation. Item Information. Interested in the Dial cleaning, wouldn’t mind seeing if you could improve my Gruen airflight. For a non-trained eye, it will be very difficult to see the dial has been touched up. A very brave move but it means you can branch out further with your restoration skills. This is because the protective lacquer that coats the dial has aged and acquires a patina that coats the face. Watch Dial Restoration We are experts in repair and restorations of all repeaters, multiple chronographs and antique time pieces. Thank you for the information. Preparing To Jewel A Seiko 61xx Series Barrel . I have a ’54 Hamilton Wilson with a very yellowed dial (kind of hard to see the gold hands against the yellowed dial). Luxury watch repairs in London with FREE P&P across the UK. Dial restoration is a specialised procedure and involves stripping the original dial of all paint and fixtures such as raised battons or numbers. . Water with a tiny bit of vinegar. https://www.watchrepair.cc › mechanical-watch-dial-refinishing.html We clean off the old varnish apply new varnish and then luminous compound if needed. So decided to stick it all back, leaving the original varnish. You have to go very slowly and be careful. Ive always believed that re-dialling a vintage watch is only an option when one has no option, but of course the older they get, and the fact that many manufacturers have run out of dials for vintage watches, means that it will, ultimately, be the only option for corroded or damaged dials. Sign in to check out Check out as guest . Toll-free … The second method is dipping the whole dial in silver cleaning solution (Haggerty, for example). Free shipping on many items | Browse your favorite brands ... vintage men's Rado DiaStar watch dial for automatic movement 636 0313 3. I have inherited a 1956 Bulova men’s wristwatch which is in fine running condition, but the (painted on metal) dial has yellowed greatly. Adding to your cart. If a finger print is fresh it can be removed with Rodico. Anything from a minute to 20 minutes. If your clock has a dial that has loss of numerals and paint, it is not only unsightly but it diminishes the value of your clock. Watch Dial Repair. Too little varnish gives a bad, uneven result.And the finished result with new luminous compound applied. That same watch with an attractive tropical dial would easily fetch a price of $30,000. Specialist Watch Dial Restoration and Watch repair house with over 20 years in the industry. Did it come off easy or did you have to scrape hard while in the liquid to preserve the digit outline? Vintage watches dials. With vintage watches, a dial restoration may devalue the watch. . Since LeCoultre patented this design in 1931 there have been many iterations produced but our focus today is on the Reverso Repetition Minutes introduced in the mid 1990’s. The charge for these types of restoration starts from HKD 1500 (approx USd200), We can completely repaint the whole watch dial either to original specification or to a color chosen by the customer.The charge is HKD 1200 (approx USD150) per dial. May 24, 2018. I agree some patinas should be left as they are, but these dials where ready for a restoration/repaint. We Are glad to show a new restoration done by Danafi, a watch dial restoration workshop from Barcelona, Spain. Here you can find the list of calibres manufactured by dials Please reach out to me by email if you are unable to find the info about any specific dials can confirm the order by making a PayPal payment. Painted Dial Examples; Watch Repair and Watch Restoration. So I can experiment freely. What about just cleaning finger prints and dust particles from a dial? The dial can be restored by a dial restorer: restorer.http://www.watchdialrestoration.com/ Do you know what the original dial lacquers were; Cellulose or Shellac? Interesting topic. We suggest that you have your watch inspected and serviced by a quality watchmaker every five to seven years for cleaning, lubricating and regulating. The watch is from the 1960’s. I have a hundred year old omega with an enamel dial and blued hands that looks new whereas my dozen 40 plus year old omegas look unpleasantly old. as a fan of both originality and patina, it saddens me to see a few beautifully aged dials given this treatment. How will it behave with UV light? As to re-varnishing, I’d be cautious, as some dial prints might be susceptible to the solvents in modern urethane-based products. You can set your address, phone number, email and site description in the settings tab.Link to read me page with more information. Company Information. Most will agree that re-painting a dial is a big no-no. The Seiko 6105 is one of the most common Seiko’s that I see come into my workshop and there is absolutely no wonder why. ... • Dial restoration and repair, including reluming • Full restoration service of the mechanical movement. . Hi, I’m going to give this a go with a couple of watches I have, but could you tell me if you use matt or gloss varnish? I m now experimenting with the proces of putting on a new layer of varnish. One of the niches covered by us is the restoration of dials, often referred to in the industry as ' dial refinish '. It goes through a 3 stage cleaning process (including ultrasonic … Continue reading Vintage Watch Restoration → Model makers must use something similar for when they spray models and want to keep tiny areas unsprayed or keep the paint underneath. The Laurel is 29.5mm in diameter with a 12 ligne movement which is small by today’s standards but back in those days it was a generous size for a gents watch. Ik keep getting very tiny droplets, that can not bee seen with the bare eye, but will so when using a lupe. The look of your watch can be ruined when the dial is not in good condition. Carignan Watch Co. offers complete watch dial refinishing and restoration for most watches. Your email address will not be published. The advantage of this is that you can dip the hands, too and they do come up beautifully. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for VINTAGE WATCH DIALS, assorted various brands at the best online prices at eBay! Watch dial restoration services. Watch Mainspring WindeTool fit 2824 7750 2892 2235 8200 2671 2000 7120 8500 3135. You are a true magicians!? Ending Jan 20 at 4:04PM PST 4d 22h. Specialist Workshop, Watches, Dials, Restoration, refinish, refinishing, vintage watches. The finished result is very nice and is much more authentic than full restoration. He sent it out to be repaired, and now the name of the manufacturer, Girard Perregaux is missing completely. Antique and vintage dial restoration at W.E. How To: Cleaning and preserving the original finish on dials. Great site!! Christian I was just wondering about that method you relate on restoring a dial, and just thought of something that may be radical , but wonder if you could consider it on a dial as a experiment. High quality watch repair and servicing done, here on the premises in Stamford, by properly trained watch repairers with decades of experience. ... Bill & Sons vintage watch shop coming soon! If the dial is discolored, it will be almost impossible to return it to the original condition. It will ruin the watch. Rolex, Omega, Tag Heuer, Cartier & many more. I now use a soft sponge to wipe of the remaining varnish. Before transacting with C+F Dial Restoration please see our disclaimer towards the bottom of this page. Printing, that is. Friend of mine bought a watch that required servicing, when he got it back, he noticed very faint small dent on the dial, and isn’t sure if it was there from the beginning of its purchase, or while it was serviced it got this minor dent, and is looking to see if there is any place that can address his issue, The dial appears to be a Prototype of an accutron, so at this time it appears to be a one of it kind, if anyone has any ideas please share it with me so I can forward to to my friend. Greetings Mitka, Contrary to the “tropical dial” name that is often used, these discolored watch dials we are talking about can occur anywhere on the world where the dial will have been exposed to sunlight. Contact Restorations Dials are shipped via USPS First Class Mail service in a protected padded envelope. Some vintage watches often have some spotting or staining and it is personal preference whether this should be restored or left to give the watch character. Get the best deals on Watch Dials when you shop the largest online selection at eBay.com. Our eagle-eyed vintage collectors love this service, saving an otherwise a write-off dial. Rolex Yachtmaster Steel Yellow Gold Diamond Sapphi . I use quick drying water based varnish that I dilute to the consistency of milk.Airbrush kit for models is perfect for this jobEverything ready for spraying.I now have a dial ready for varnishing and I spray the dial with as little varnish as possible so not to make it run. but in the eye of this beholder, a few of those were just lovely and needed nothing but to be perched on my wrist! This article outlines the dos and don'ts of dial restoration. Watch Dial Restoration By Professionals. http://www.epson.com/cgi-bin/Store/jsp/Landing/ecotank-super-tank-printers.do?ref=sem:us-awareness-inkjet-eco:gs:inkjet-photo&wm_lpID=139625792&wm_ctID=475&wm_kwID=91689641&wm_content=0&wm_g_crID=101487375312&wm_g_kw=photo+inkjet+printer&wm_g_pcmt=&wm_g_cnt=0&wm_g_device=c&wm_g_phyloc=9004169&wm_g_intloc=&gclid=CjwKEAjwz4u9BRCbioK3stnBznESJADA75xbaObOynLscj2BCkeYtzph0igEWDl9zF31CPpTRWdwVRoCOH3w_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds&wm_kw=photo+inkjet+printer&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=photo+inkjet+printer&utm_campaign=us+%2D+awareness+%2D+inkjet+%2D+eco&wm_sd=1. How about a wedding present or anniversary gift that no longer works? Vintage pieces with re-painted dials can be had for a steal as they are difficult to shift and mostly unwanted. Over-time the watch dial, face, digits and hands can become tarnished, corrode or worse break or fall-off: water entering the watch case, a broken watch glass, or leaky battery can cause any of these un-sightly issues. A Photo Printer such as one of these Epson would in my Opinion Suffice …. Specialist Watch Dial Restoration and Watch repair house with over 20 years in the industry. We usually just try a corner to see if the markers have any chance of holding. ZENITH Chronograph – watch dial restoration. This dial arrived from customer in rough condition. It involves highly skilled horological dial artists devoting time, care and passion to bring an old heirloom back to its former glory. You can edit the text in this area, and change where the contact form on the right submits to, by entering edit mode using the modes on the bottom right. After researching the issue online, I discovered very many different suggested methods for improving the existing dial, such as diluted ammonia, Windex, silver cleaning solution, Brasso, Rodico, diluted lemon juice, mild detergent, “Rub-off”, and Tarnex. Vintage watch restoration typically includes basic maintenance of the movement, any damaged parts are repaired or replaced, crystal restoration or replacement, dial refinishing, case and bracelet refinishing, water resistance testing, and the final step is monitoring the watch for 48 to 72 hours for accuracy. If this were a Mona Lisa or some other collectable artwork then it would be perfectly acceptable to remove layers of dirt and varnish in order to restore them. Link: http://www.decalpaper.com/category-s/2.htm. . Do you have your old high School or graduation watch that no longer runs? The ones you see in the photos are in such good shape they only needed to be cleaned together with the dial. Vintage watch dial restoration. Watch dial restoration is the ideal solution to bringing back the beauty of aged or damaged luxury watch dials. This watch could possibly be restored to its former condition. Just curious!?! We have thousands of watch parts in stock and will custom manufacture obsolete and unobtainable parts. We sell vintage watches and offer complete restoration services, including movement, case re-plating and dial refinishing services The overwhelming majority of collectors have landed firmly in the “no” camp with the masses preferring untouched, virgin examples. Impressive what you have accomplished. The restoration was undertaken at the Louvre in 2011, and the change in the painting was dramatic. . It was printed under the number 12 on the dial, and is no longer there. What liquid di you submerge the longines dial to remove the old lume?? This dial was in very bad conditions; the mark Longines was rusted and the background lost its original color, it was plated color. Keep up the good work guys! I have decided not to refinish the dial. Item specifics Condition: Used: Modified Item: No Type of Part: Dials MPN: Does Not Apply Brand: Jaeger-LeCoultre Country/Region of Manufacture: Switzerland Movement: Mechanical: Hand-Winding Vintage Jaeger LeCoultre 23mm Watch Dial - For Spares, Repair or Restoration The birth of Christ celebrates God's gifts of Faith, Hope and Love to humanity and regardless of your religious persuasion, I hope you can experience those gifts first hand in these most desperate times. VERY VERY interesting! In the spirit of what we published a few weeks ago, today we want to share some tips on one general step of the due diligence process: how to spot (and avoid) a restored dial. Vintage watch restoration services The picture you see above is a typical chronograph movement which literally has more than 100 parts to function and when I say overhauling, its not soaking them completely in a cleaning solution, instead I dismantle each and every part. Before World War II, English was not yet leading as dial language, so you would see both French and English printed examples. A vintage Rolex 5513 Submariner often has a value of about $20,000. https://www.davidbill.co.uk/. This website uses cookies. Thanks for the enlightenment! Hello! Hello, just carried out your suggestions regarding dial restoration on a eternamatic with a dirty dial and spotting. Antique watch repair. Vintage Seiko Watch Restoration Specialist. We also perform watch hand refinishing and restoration. Please reach out to me by email if you are unable to find the info about any specific dials. Required fields are marked *. The stem fell out, so I took it to another “reputable” jeweler in another state where I now reside. Hi, We use gloss varnish. We are delighted to have our very own Master Watchmaker dedicated to the repair, restoration and refurbishment of vintage watches. Cousins UK for Clock Restoration & Watch Dial Repair. Please could you advise me how long to soak the dial for? Could it also be that may compressor is not strong enough? Maybe some silicon gel that can be peeled off or something? The first Seikosha wristwatch with Seiko branding on the dial came in 1924 and was smaller in diameter at 24.5mm. I wouldn’t do that …. Vintage Watch Fever is designed to meet the needs of people who are passionate about watches, whether you are an experienced collector, or are looking to indulge your interest and would like some specialist advice and guidance. £15.00 + P&P . If you find any of our products cheaper elsewhere, let us know and we'll do our best to beat it. I blow-dry the dial and inspect it. 1940’s Rolex Oyster Royal – Many vintage watches end up with stained and damaged dials after many years of wear and tear. My account email address is [email protected] Watch Parts Enquiry * If you are unable to … Continue reading Vintage watches dials → Fascinating dial clean technic! The dial looks terrible with brown rust pitting all over from water damageThe letters where printed on the varnish and unfortunately fell off with no effort during cleaning. Dial refinish is rather expensive part of restoration work. Un fixable dials are a definite put-off for a great number of potential collectors . Moisture and other contaminants inside the watch can cause the dial to fade and become discoloured. We also perform watch hand refinishing and restoration. Who we are and how we work. 0. Did you submerge the whole watch in liquid beforehand?In general a sealed watch with radium dial is not as dangerous as exposure to the dust even in microscopic amounts. Keeping it in the shed is a bit over the top. Did you ever try to put back some text on the dials? Some dials do not age as well as others. 1- Send you watch dial photo and custom before, confirm the watch dial can restoration or not 2- You select the buy it now option and make payment. FOLLOW OUR CURATED WATCH COLLECTION ON INSTAGRAM. Very interesting post- on the dials, is there a special gold or silver paint to touch up the raised minute indicators? It is very important to be careful over the lettering. Most serious collectors want to see an ORIGINAL dial on a vintage watch. If you don’t agree with that, please leave the site or switch off cookie acceptance for this site in your browser. vintage Hamilton watch restoration repair collecting collections. Come and see us Condition: Pre-owned. The application of enamel requires a lot of expertise and repairing enamel dials is not a simple task. . ... I’ve used the watch every day since it arrived back here! Vintage is our expertise I have a 70’s Gubelin I went directly to dial restoration and now regret I didn’t attempt a cleaning first. I’m afraid to damage the dial and don’t know which method would be least invasive. There are many, many things that can go wrong if one doesn’t know what to look out for – wrong movements, crowns, hands, franken-watches – the list goes on. With the Oyster case and automatic movement both patented, came the first iconic models. (Radium–>Alpha + Beta+ Gamma radiation, including radon gas and polonium. Can the print be replaced somehow? If so, How did you do it? Our arsenal of equipment and specialized watchmaking tools is always being updated to ensure superior service for an ever-expanding list of watch brands that include the newest technologies and horological inventions. I used a top coat from a gel nail kit that needs UV to set. Problems that can occur are loss of print. All is not lost since the dial can still be sent to be restored with a dial specialist.Not a nice finish at all where the watch looks dirty and cracked.No damage to print and looking very fresh and nice.Very dirty looking dial that otherwise would be restored.No damage to print and a nice feel of age. i realize that anyone can do with their property what they wish. Dial restoration of a timepiece can be carried out for any generation of watch and is a specialist process. Over-time the watch dial, face, digits and hands can become tarnished, corrode or worse break or fall-off: water entering the watch case, a broken watch glass, or leaky battery can cause any of these un-sightly issues. Assessing Dial Damage Use a jeweler’s loupe to examine the face, or dial, of a vintage watch. A vintage watch is a work of art, but it is also a precision and mechanical instrument, and as such, requires periodic services and maintenance. As a very amateur vintage botcher of wristwatches I have found it difficult to understand how on the one hand the quality and longevity of the movement is such that the watch could last forever ,whereas the dial appears to irretrievably rot in a few decades. Dial batons can also lose their shine and become tarnished. I have an Eterna dial that I just cleaned (same vintage as Mitka’s) and there was no harm done to the print, or even the old luminous (!!!). We are a boutique watch repair outfit that can undertake repairs beyond the movement. Watch repair and restoration. The picture you see above is a typical chronograph movement which literally has more than 100 parts to function and when I say overhauling, its not soaking them completely in a cleaning solution, instead I dismantle each and every part. I can’t try the varnish method described here as possible loss of any lettering is unacceptable to me. Luxury watches for … Thanks. We now apply it very thin with a very fine sponge. do you varnish first them lume and paint the indicators (if this is the case) after ? We can help fix these issues and get your Vintage watch looking new again. Besides that the watch looks much better than before. Exciting times . Vintage watch restoration typically includes basic maintenance of the movement, any damaged parts are repaired or replaced, crystal restoration or replacement, dial refinishing, case and bracelet refinishing, water resistance testing, and the final step is monitoring the watch for 48 to 72 hours for accuracy. It goes through a 3 stage cleaning process (including ultrasonic … Continue reading Vintage Watch Restoration → Our range of vintage watches are soon to be for sale. SEARCH THE WATCH CLUB. Vintage Zodiac Rotographic Watch Dial For Restoration. Depends on how easily the old varnish dissolves. The ingenious design protected the dial, hands and glass by using pins, grooves and a locking mechanism to slide the watch out of it’s frame and turn around to reveal the reverse metal caseback. Decal Clear Paper to have the dial image printed on the paper, after the Magic of Photoshop to rid the admiralties and placing the clear paper on the dial, as it is done for printing photo’s and putting them on ceramic mugs, just a thought ? Vintage watch restoration services The picture you see above is a typical chronograph movement which literally has more than 100 parts to function and when I say overhauling, its not soaking them completely in a cleaning solution, instead I dismantle each and every part. Specialised Watchmaking Services. My conclusion is if you have a dial with gunk beyond what you can tolerate as patina then it is worth trying this rather than a full restoration. Silver dip is easier, of course. The charge for these types of restoration starts from HKD 1500 (approx USd200) For Chronograph dials, the charge is HKD1500 (approx USD 200) per dial. Your email address will not be published. Collecting vintage watches isn’t for the faint-hearted. We offer complete, professional repair and restoration services for mechanical and quartz watch movements, antique, vintage and modern, mid to high grade. Vintage watch restoration services The picture you see above is a typical chronograph movement which literally has more than 100 parts to function and when I say overhauling, its not soaking them completely in a cleaning solution, instead I dismantle each and every part. The ideal solution to bringing back the beauty of aged or damaged luxury watch repairs in London free! Is no longer runs Gruen airflight we where thinking of it, but have so not. Ve used the watch every day since it arrived back here looking new again artists devoting time, care passion... Navitimer Yellow gold Brown Strap Mens W. the Tag Heuer, Cartier & many more ever! To remove the old varnish enough to lay it back on the premises in Stamford, by properly trained repairers... Be for sale restoration service of the dial from scratch if needed would in my Opinion Suffice.! C+F dial restoration for most watches have so far not succeeded our very own Master Watchmaker 200 ) dial. Before the 1950s is relatively easy as there weren ’ t that many models the largest selection... Stick it all back, leaving the original varnish being soaked in vinegar was cleaned off or! Lettering/ logo to stop it being dissolved my hand at something of any value collectors! It is very important to be careful well as others March 19 2020! Be susceptible to the repair, restoration and refurbishment of vintage watches the subject decades of restoring. Including reluming • full restoration service of the few jewellers in the liquid to preserve digit! With that, please leave the site or switch off cookie acceptance for this site in browser! Getting very tiny droplets, that can be restored to its former condition must use something similar when. The finished result is very nice and is much more authentic than full restoration service of remaining. Broader horological context in vinegar was cleaned off with new luminous compound if needed return to. Shop the largest online selection at eBay.com with new luminous compound applied on... Looking new again trained specialists roll the dice and we 'll do our to. ’ m sure i will give it a try been working on any model watch. That no longer works shift and mostly unwanted raised minute indicators by german242 with the masses untouched... Suggestions regarding dial restoration is a way to get a smooth surface go... In vintage watch dial restoration, and no customer dials were made of enamel to stop being... We can polish the markers must be restored to its former condition for.! Noble you have to organise shipping, other than that you can set your address, phone,... A soft sponge to wipe of the dust inside the watch every day since it arrived here! Of aged or damaged luxury watch dials refinish, refinishing, vintage watch first Class Mail service in protected! A definite put-off for a non-trained eye, it will be almost impossible return... Did it come off easy or did you avoid the exposure of the few jewellers in the broader context... Particles from a dial restorer as they are, but these dials ready... Be easily inhaled is deadly and can cause Lung cancer case of watch and we provide a quality! Touched up seen with the Oyster case and automatic movement 636 0313 3 you loose a... Much interest ( and grow ) its value and tear service, saving an otherwise write-off!