Caveman's Watch Forum

Avatar Is Happy Day!  - Am I on a roll, or what? Rolling on the floor laughing my a$$ off! Post contains photos Post contains linked URLs

Ricky Lee

February 22, 2009 01:29AM
Registered: April 2005
Posts: 1,848 (2009-02)


I've dropped a couple of hints, so you knew it was comin', right? Wink, wink ... No, not a brand-new watch, but another DIY repair project. The watch came to me in the same greg honeycutt trade that netted me the Smoking Gun Alpha and the case that I used on the Cavemaster. It was formerly owned by Allan Zirlin, and greg acquired it from him in some class of trade. Greg told me that Allan had tried a "known good battery", and that the watch had a dead module. Now, no offense to ye Allan, but it weren't a Known Good Battery to me, so first thing I did was buy a new Energizer 397 and install it. Bzzzzzzzt! Dead module alright. I am sad...

"Enough!" you say, "what the hell is it, Ricky?!" OK, OK! It's a Swiss Mountaineer model SM1080 quartz...


Swiss Mountaineer SM1080

Click HERE to visit retailer web site

Note the retailer link. Yeah, of course I researched it to see what it was worth. Wink, wink ... Watch District has it for $203 +shipping. Whoa! More'n I expected. I am confused... I could find only one other seller, and they had it as part of..

Swiss Mountaineer SM1080

Click HERE to visit retailer web site

..that "Interchangeable Watch Set" for $150. Still a bit higher than I expected for a quartz from an unknown brand, Post about a Swiss watch or movement Made or no. They even had a Flash video touting it as "The Only Watch You'll Ever Need!". Obviously they don't know WIS too well... Laughing! In any case, call the average price $176.50. Definitely worth fixin'!

It uses an ETA 805.111 movement, and I quickly ascertained that Otto Frei had 'em for the princely sum of $11.80. Sold! Next step was to take it apart. I mean, if I destroyed something during disassembly Scary! (and, yeah, I've been known to do so Laughing!) there's no point in ordering parts. But it all came apart with no drama, and I also took the opportunity to give the dial a good cleaning. A word about that..

Now, I don't know if 'twas Allan or greg, but it was obvious that the watch had been previously disassembled. One clue was the mangled head on the stem-lock screw. But the real giveaway was what looked like peanut butter and jelly fingerprints on the dial. Scary! I'll point no fingers, but Crikey, guys! Whichever o' ye it was, lay off the PB&J sammiches while you're workin' on watches. I am smiling... Laughing!

Executive Summary, it cleaned up OK;


Swiss Mountaineer SM1080

Click HERE for larger photo or HERE for supersized photo

I used a soft brush, warm water, and the mildest detergent I could think of - baby shampoo. Wink, wink ... Unconventional, perhaps, but it didn't harm the dial at all, and left it pristine and Minty Fresh. Thumbs Up!

Swiss Mountaineer SM1080

Click HERE for larger photo or HERE for supersized photo

The observant among you will note that the two OEM photos at the top show the watch with different hands. You'll also note that my pics show a third type. Yeah, I splurged and dropped $4 on a set of new hands from Otto Frei. Big spender, huh? Laughing! Two reasons - mine came with the Mercedes-style hands shown in the first OEM photo, and I've never been a huge fan of that style. Plus, I've already got plenty of watches that use them. Then, too, I figured as long as I'm pullin' the hands anyway, why not add my own touch? IOW go for the mod, instead of a simple rebuild / repair. Wink, wink ...

I'm pretty stoked about the way it came out, and consider these hands to be a ~ 200% improvement. WIS honeymoon Note that I did re-use the OEM seconds hand. It works OK, I guess, but I kinda wish I'd painted the tip red, or maybe white. Oh, and I gotta say that resetting that *^%#ed seconds hand was the trickiest part of the whole project. Frankly, the job pushes the limits of my dexterity to the ragged edge. Scary! I dunno.. maybe I just need to hone my technique. But I fear it's akin to "It's not how well the bear dances, but that the bear dances at all". IOW, "The amazing thing is not how well a Caveman can set a seconds hand, but that he can do it at all". Laughing!


Swiss Mountaineer SM1080

Click HERE for larger photo or HERE for supersized photo

The above shot illustrates one aspect of the watch I really enjoy, the deep offset of the dial. And the case is very finely wrought indeed! Very crisp lines, superb matte finish, and the 60-click bezel operates smooth as butter. Nice piece o' work! Thumbs Up! If there's one minor disappointment, it's..

Swiss Mountaineer SM1080

Click HERE for larger photo or HERE for supersized photo

..the lume. The Otto Frei hands are fine, mind you - almost on a par with Seiko lume. But the OEM lume on the indices could definitely be better. And Full Disclosure demands that I admit that I used Gimp to brighten the indices up a couple of notches in that photo. The hands and the bezel dot are untouched, though, mind you. I did this mostly to compensate for my lack of lume-photo skills - the photo is a fairly accurate representation of how the lume looks on the wrist when it's fully charged.

But there's the rub. After fully charging the lume, the indices fade to "mediocre" after 2 or 3 minutes, and are pretty much totally dark after 10 minutes. The hands, though, continue to burn like a torch for an hour or so, and remain usable for 4, 5, even 6 hours. So, a mixed bag. For what I've got in it, I ain't complainin'!

I leave you with a Wrist Shot..

Swiss Mountaineer SM1080

Click HERE for larger photo or HERE for supersized photo

..which shows the one flaw of the watch - a wee scratch on the crystal over the 10 o'clock chapter marker. If not for that, this thing'd be truly mint! Shoot, I'd give it a TZ 95% rating as it is. And, as I mentioned in one of my teasers the other day, my work on this job turned out so well that I'm not even willing to call it "Caveman Watchmaking". Wink, wink ... Nope, I reckon with this job I've graduated to "Dark Ages Watchmaking". Wink, wink ... Evolution, baby! Laughing!

As always, thanks for lookin'.

-Ricky


Messages In This Thread

Yet another Is Happy Day! - Am I on a roll, or what? Rolling on the floor laughing my a$$ off! Post contains photos Post contains linked URLs (views: 130)
Ricky Lee -- February 22, 2009 01:29AM
Wow... that's fantastic Ricky Thumbs Up! (n/t) (views: 3)
PaulGeo -- February 23, 2009 06:24PM
Thumbs Up! Ricky (n/t) (views: 4)
Reto -- February 22, 2009 06:10AM
Thumbs Up! Congrats! I like that!... (views: 5)
Brian Uziel -- February 22, 2009 05:44AM
I couldn't help getting the impresssion of "if Seiko and Vostok had a baby..." Which is a compliment to my way of thinking I am smiling... Great to see the extra machining detail on the bezel edge!

Re: .."if Seiko and Vostok had a baby..." (views: 5)
Ricky Lee -- February 22, 2009 05:38PM
Great way to put it! Laughing!

But.. JOOC, which elements of the design remind you of Vostok?

-Ricky

I'm with you, Ricky - those hands are a vast improvement >  (views: 8)
TakesALickin -- February 22, 2009 04:12AM
The watch seems to combine a lot of Seiko design elements - 007 dial, Sawtooth bezel, vaguely 6309-7040ish case. All in all, a danged good lookin' piece. I'll bet you graduate to Renaissance watchmaking in no time! Laughing!

...A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of small minds...
Jeff, PMWF Admin Emeritus

I was hopin' someone else would see the resemblance to the 6309-7040 Seiko case! Wink, wink ... (views: 5)
Ricky Lee -- February 22, 2009 02:19PM
I sure was, but as I'm not very knowledgeable on classic Seikos... I am smiling...

    Quote
    TakesALickin
    I'll bet you graduate to Renaissance watchmaking in no time! Laughing!

Thank you! Jeff. Though I've got my eye on a project that, should I go through with it, will probably bring up the subject of "recidivism". Laughing!

-Ricky

Looks good, nice job, Ricky! Thumbs Up! (n/t) (views: 3)
MCV -- February 22, 2009 02:26AM
Yer on a roll! Thumbs Up! Congrats all around! (n/t) (views: 5)
Dave Murphy -- February 22, 2009 02:21AM
Dave - hope you don't mind me responding to a personal e-mail here on the forum. I am smiling... (views: 4)
Ricky Lee -- February 23, 2009 03:23PM
But you raise some good points that are germaine to the thread, and I suspect that the only reason you went to e-mail is that you didn't want to call me out publicly on the chapter ring issue. Wink, wink ... Not to worry, Caveman have thick skin. {Ugh!} Laughing!

} the ol' WIS-eye says that your chapter ring
} and dial hashes need alignment. Unless it is
} a consequence of deepness of ring, or refractive
} index of glass that makes it look unaligned.


It's partly an optical illusion, a parallax effect. But also, the hash marks on the chapter ring and dial just plain don't match up 100%. Scary! I worked on that a bit, but even without the movement spacer ring in place, there's no getting it perfect. I am sad... But 'tis close enough for a Caveman Laughing!, and it's really nowhere near as bad as the photos make it look.
> Re: chapter rings:
> This is why people who mod Seiko divers will
> either sterilize the plastic chapter ring, or
> pay $30 for an aluminum, when they go from the
> Seiko dial without a minute chapter to a dial
> with one
I can see that.. Good to know that even Seiko isn't perfect. I am smiling...

} But what I really wanted to point out: If
} I recall correctly, that series of ETA
} movement, along with the ISA 1198 series,
} have dial feet and date apertures exactly
} in the same locations as the mechanical
} 28xx line. But hand sizes are smaller,
} as you have already discovered.


Yup. I actually considered springin' for a 2801 and converting it to a handwinder. However, that route would have run nearly 10 times the price of goin' back with the original (quartz) movement - the most inexpensive 2801 that Otto Frei currently lists is $108. Scary! That's a semi-fancy (gold) movement, and I could probably find a plain-jane 2801 cheaper, perhaps from Jules Borel. They list one for $69.95. But I've got a couple of major problems with them in that the price is always higher once you hit the 'Checkout' button, and I dislike having to register before buying.

And, in any case, I wasn't 100% sure I could squeeze the 2801 in, depth-wise. The 'movement bay' of this case is very shallow. It might work, but it'd be very tight indeed...

} Just lettin' you know, should you get
} the urge to tinker more.


Nah, I'm happy as a slopped hog with it at present. In the future.. well, you never know. Wink, wink ...
> Re: 2801
> If you plan to do this, download the data sheets
> for ETA 2801 and ETA quartz. Surprisingly, the
> "dial rest to stem center" distances do not match,
> which could cause a stem to bind in the tube. Even
> more surprisingly, the ISA quartz to ETA mechanical
> distances are a better match.
Thanks for the info Dave!

Best regards,

-Ricky
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