3135 Movement - Jewels

[pyromaniac2112]

Hi Guys!

Im sure somebody can satisfy my curiosity on this one......

I have a 'M' serial Sub with the 3135 movement. As far as I understand it it is a 31 jewel movement.

Maybe somebody could tell me how many of those jewels are functional jewels and how many are non-functional?

I know my terminology is not the best but i hope somebody can understand my question and give me a lay-mans answer.

Thanks.

PS. Does anybody know where the 'name' 3135 came from? Maybe the '31' part is the number of jewels??

[xjeeunitx]

When I first heard of jewels, I really thought of jewels, like gems and diamonds. I said, 31 Jewels? Where would they fit that inside a mechanical watch, and how come I can't see any? LOL.

[pyromaniac2112]

:lol:

[Tools]

Jewels............:thinking:

Here is an excerpt from an article I wrote a while back:
..........................
The basic watch as we know it starts with about 15 Jewels, 7 of which are on the actual escapement - upper and lower balance staff hole jewel, upper and lower balance staff cap jewel, a roller jewel (this is where the pallet "connects" with the hairspring balance), and two jewels on the pallet "arms" that lock and unlock the escape wheel.

That leaves the rest to give a bearing bushing to the wheels or gears that turn, even if there isn't a lot of movement involved..

There is almost always an odd number because of that 1 roller jewel.

For the 17 jewel watch, they add two extra hole jewels, or bushing jewels to the center wheel, ..
...for a 21, add two to the pallet shaft and two cap jewels to the escape wheel..

Then add some to the date wheel... other complications..chrono functions...

Before you know it, you have a handful all over the place....

But it really goes back to that initial 7 doing most of the work...and 21 being a fully jeweled movement..

As has been said....a 15 jewel movement can be as accurate as a 44 jewel movement. ................

With a Rolex, the extra 10 jewels (beyond that of a 21 jewel "fully jeweled" movement) can be attributed to other areas where they feel less friction is needed for smooth operation, the auto-wind mechanism, and a couple of others to reduce friction of the continuously moving parts; they also have 8 jewels (beyond the 31, but considered non-functional) for the date complication wheel and levers.. So, I would say that - Rolex considers their 31 jewels to be functional.

In the 44 jewel Daytona, the extra jewels can be attributed to the extra chronograph functions.

[stevemulholland3]

all are functional or they wouldnt be in there.

[Perdu]

all are functional or they wouldnt be in there.

Apprarently not Steve. Some manufacturers use Jewels in places where they have absolutely no useful function except to increase the jewel count. There is a very useful TZ article on that topic.

[cody p]

Apprarently not Steve. Some manufacturers use Jewels in places where they have absolutely no useful function except to increase the jewel count. There is a very useful TZ article on that topic.

true, but i don't think rolex is one of those manufacturers.

[pyromaniac2112]

Thank you very much Tools. :cheers:

[JJ Irani]

true, but i don't think rolex is one of those manufacturers.

Correct!! All 31 jewels are fully functional in any Rolex movement.

JJ :thumbsup:

[stevemulholland3]

thats right!!
my ROLEX would not do such an inherently deceptive practice!!
if they did not need them then they wouldnt be there!
you can count on that my niz...

[buz-lh]

thats right!!
my ROLEX would not do such an inherently deceptive practice!!
if they did not need them then they wouldnt be there!
you can count on that my niz...

My niz?:rofl:How many jewels does it take to be "my niz"?

[Alcan]

Here you go, the 100 jewel Waltham. A few aren't functional. :chuckle:

[escudoturbo]

Like many things it becomes a game of 'one-up-manship' ask anyone conned into buying a 5.0l Mustang thats slower than a 1.6l Civic, or even those that know it's slower but still need that badge.

[Perdu]

Funny Al, that was exactly the watch I was thinking of when I made the comment. None of the jewels on the rotor come in contact with anything. Most others are in places where they do nothing.

[red wrx]

What is a jewel?? The purple things inside the movement?

[JJ Irani]

What is a jewel?? The purple things inside the movement?

They are actually synthetic rubies, ruby red in colour. They act as "bearings" between the several moving parts of the watch.

JJ

[Rolesium]

Hmmm...

Sorry to resurrect this old thread, but I'm wondering thus:

My Sub has a Cal. 3130, which (I'm fairly sure) has 31 jewels, and no date function.

My DJ has a Cal. 3135, which also has 31 jewels, and has a date function.

What's that 31st jewel for, in the 3130 non-date movement? (I'm assuming the date uses one jewel as a roller)

-James

[Vanessa]

Actually, the date adds 8 more jewels to your 3135, but it's not mentioned by Rolex because they are not functional AT ALL TIMES.
So the basic time keeping requires 31 jewels to be functional in a Rolex.
Hope that explains it!

[Rolesium]

Actually, the date adds 8 more jewels to your 3135, but it's not mentioned by Rolex because they are not functional AT ALL TIMES.
So the basic time keeping requires 31 jewels to be functional in a Rolex.
Hope that explains it!

Oh, if I read that right, there are 39 total jewels, including the non-functional (except once a day :biggrin:) date jewels, in the 3135. Thanks for explaining that - I always wondered :thumbsup:

[abigsecret]

Vanessa talks about it on these two threads:

http://www.rolexforums.com/showthread.php?t=67974&highlight=31+jewels
http://www.rolexforums.com/showthread.php?t=68584&highlight=31+jewels

:cheers:

[Rolesium]

Good stuff! Thanks!

[Nods]

It was nice to see that 100 Jewel watch again. Stupid watch but some how mildly amusing.:clap::clap:

[Skutt50]

This guy counted 40 jewels in a 3135 movement:

http://www.clockmaker.com.au/watchmaker/3135j.html

[directioneng]

I recall a thread that asked about a jewel that was situated on the perimeter of the date wheel. It seemed that this jewel only came into play when the date mechanism changed and the date wheel pushed against it - was this correct?