Making A Balance Staff By Hand

[Ashton_Horologist]

Hi Guys, this isn't actually a Rolex, it's an old English chain fusee pocket watch, but the principle for all watches is the same. I thought I would share the process of making a balance staff for a watch for which parts are no longer available as that is a hotly debated topic for vintage Rolex right now.

Hope you enjoy.

I recently had a very old English chain fusee pocket watch come in. The watch needed a new balance staff because of a broken pivot. Due to parts not being available, I had to make one with my lathe.

Here is the lathe that I use. It is an 8mm G. Boley watchmakers lathe with a variable speed motor.

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Before we can start on the new staff, the old balance staff must be measured so we know what size to make the new staff. I measure and draw a rough sketch.

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Next, I use 2mm blue steel and mount it in a lathe collet. This is how our balance staff will begin its life.

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I start to turn the steel down to size in the different sections.

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More turning on the lathe.

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We can see that the staff is starting to take shape.

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Now we are really getting somewhere. The first pivot has been turned and the undercut has been turned so that it can be riveted onto the balance.

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Once the one ended has been completed, the other end must be turned. We need to turn the staff in one sitting otherwise the workpiece won’t be true.

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More shots of the balance staff.

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More shots of it starting to take shape.

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A few more.

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I now start to turn the bottom pivot.

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It’s crucial to go very slow and carefully at this point.

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The pivot is almost there. A few more turns and it will be ready to part off.

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Once parted off, the pivots are cut to size to make sure it fits between the plates. I will then mount it on the balance and polish the pivots.

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Here is the staff next to a Canadian 10 cent coin for scale.

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[JustinK]

Wow, nice work!

[Brew]

Very cool, Ashton, almost like magic given the size you're working at.

Do you think fabrications like this are something 3d printing may facilitate?

[dhknola]

Wow, very cool and impressive!

[1665fan]

Awesome

[Mark020]

Originally Posted by dhknola

Wow, very cool and impressive!

[77T]

Very informative sequence - I had 2 questions

The blued steel I presume is a hardened version of high carbon steel. Was SS an option or not preferred?

Is the completed balance going to be mounted into a jeweled setting with (or without) shock absorption?


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[Ashton_Horologist]

Originally Posted by 77T

Very informative sequence - I had 2 questions

The blued steel I presume is a hardened version of high carbon steel. Was SS an option or not preferred?

Is the completed balance going to be mounted into a jeweled setting with (or without) shock absorption?


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Yes, blued steel is carbon steel that has been hardened and then tempered to a blue color. Nothing inside of a watch movement is ever made of stainless steel. This is a question I get asked constantly. Any steel is carbon steel. Stainless steel is difficult to work with and not needed inside a movement.

The balance will be mounted in a jeweled setting but it is not shock protected

[Styles Bitchley]

I love posts like this. So amazing to see what watchmakers are able to do. A true art form.

[joli160]

That's a tiny piece to have in a lathe. Very nice job and again a very nice post from you. Thank you for sharing

[Tom1675]

Wow. Thanks for sharing this, great work.

[214270Explorer]

It is nice to see that there are still REAL watchmakers out there.

[Phrank]

Wow, and here I was looking forward to a thread about tightrope walking....

[Robert Higgins]

Thank you for posting this!

How long did it take from start to finish?

[othertbone]

Interesting

[zapokee]

Now THAT's how you do it.

[Andad]

Had I not seen this I would not have believed it Ashton.

Great work.

PS. You really do need a belt guard.

[Ashton_Horologist]

Haha. I think I’m ok without a belt guard. No watchmakers lathes have belt guards, it’s just a piece of plastic tube. If you get into a toolmakers lathe they come equipped.

[Pacha]

That, is very impressive! Wonderful demonstration, thank you.

[miamiclay]

Thanks - I’m around a wood lathe often, so this is fascinating. Amazing that whole piece is only 6.7mm long. I assume you check the diameters with calipers as you go? What is the acceptable amount of runout, or is *any* measurable runout forbidden?

Can we see the tools you use at the lathe?

And as long as I’m being so bold as to make requests ...

If you were so inclined, I bet I’d not be alone in enjoying a video of that lathe in use!

[Tools]

Originally Posted by Ashton_Horologist

Haha. I think I’m ok without a belt guard. No watchmakers lathes have belt guards, it’s just a piece of plastic tube. If you get into a toolmakers lathe they come equipped.

I'm not sure that I could find or fit a piece that tiny on my 12x36 lathe.

[waspy1]

Thanks for that!


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[Paul H]

I am so impressed by this undertaking and so glad to see that such an artisan is willing to share the production process with us. Such a refreshing change. I would as well like to see the tools used in the creation of the balance staff and see the installation of the staff in the watch.