so, i have this pocketwatch.

[mopinko]

i bumped into an old pocketwatch that belonged to my da. i thought i had lost it, so i am thrilled i found it.
it's a beat up old thing, no crystal, no hands, cant wind. i think it is the watch that he won in a sales contest in school. not sure. it could be a graduation gift, as the timing is about right, but there's no engraving. so....
anyway, it seems to be an odd duck of a watch. havent been able to find one JUST like it, but this one, in great shape, is close-


sorry, dont have a photo account, but here is a fb thread w pics- https://www.facebook.com/mo.cahill.3/posts/10158298753775810

these are the stats, based on the serial number. https://pocketwatchdatabase.com/search/result/elgin/26777423

any thoughts on getting it restored? in a way it's precious the way it is, as that's the only way i know it. it's 30 years older than i am. monetarily, i doubt it's worth it, tho as i said, it's not a common one. it is higher end. 17 jewels, 14k gold filled case, as opposed to 10k. and that fancy dial.
and i sure would love to see it run.
i would at least like to clean that dial up. what is safe to use?

what would you do?

[Phoenix61]

1. Take it to someone who repairs watches and see what it

would cost to get it running.

[mopinko]

3. what? leave the house?

srsly, i'll take it to a friend who is an antique dealer. i'm sure she knows a guy.
lots of them in chi.

mostly i'm curious about that fancy dial. they seem rare, and of all the ones i've seen, no 2 are alike.

[El Supremo]

2. Well, what I did for Grandpop's 1890's Santa Fe RR watch is fix it up...

oiled and new plastic crystal. I put it in a glass cover. He was an operator (telegrapher) for several railroads and had hocked it many times. My wife hasn't forgiven me yet for what I spent.

Yours looks like a very pretty watch. Does it have a face plate cover?

[mopinko]

4. good thing i'm divorced.

yeah, things are tight right now. so i'm not gonna do it next week.
there's at least one fried gear in there. on the plus side, tho, it didnt run for all that long. 20 yrs, max. shouldnt be that worn. right?

[El Supremo]

5. Gears shouldn't be worn much unless...

it wasn't oiled and maintained properly. But they can be replaced for not a lot of money.

[Martin68]

7. No matter how well you maintain a fine watch or clock, parts will wear out over time and

need replacement. Some repairs are easy and inexpensive, others are not.

[Martin68]

6. I have two of my grandfather's gold pocket watches and an antique mantle that didn't run.

It took me a while, but I found a person who repairs antique clocks and watches. One watch was merely a matter of getting a new key. The other watch needs a replacement for a damaged part. He's been checking at conventions and other watch repair type get-togethers where experts can share their collections of antique spare parts. If not, he can arrange for the part to be hand-made - an expensive process. Partly because of Covid I've been waiting for a year and a few months. An antique mantle clock he was able to repair quite nicely. Finding a skilled horologist is the hard part.

[mopinko]

8. there's a big one here-

https://www.fathertimeantiques.com/index.php

heard good things about them.

[Pobeka]

9. I have a similar one.

Not the same. It's been a while since I laid eyes on it. Now I'll have to go looking...

I guess if it was me, I'd be tempted to see if someone could get it running, give it a little cleanup. But that's mainly because I think pocket watches are special and cool.

I'd be worried about trying to clean it myself, not knowing what might end up getting into the watch itself and corrupting the mechanism.

Might be worth trying to determine if the ability for it to work increases its value somehow?

[mopinko]

10. def worth more if working.

not that that matters to me. it's going nowhere.
i assume anywhere i take it would clean it as part of the deal. but if i were to just love it as it is, i'd at least polish it up.

[Marthe48]

11. About 15-20 years ago, I took 2 heirloom wristwatches to a local jeweler

who cleaned and serviced them. I paid $75.00 each for his work. I don't think he replaced any parts.
One belonged to my great aunt on one side of the family, and one belonged to my great aunt on the other side. I gave one to each of my daughters for Christmas. The girls loved them as gifts. They are still using them once in awhile.

[mopinko]

12. it def needs parts, beyond hands, a crystal, and a spring.

i've found a couple places to take it to, including one in the hood.
they made almost a million of these watches, so there ought to be parts out there. not to mention other elgins that used a lot of the same parts.

[Marthe48]

13. I don't know a lot about old watches

Some of the pocket watches were inexpensively made especially for workingmen, and the quality went up from there.

I had the 2 watches restored, and about 2 years ago, had an heirloom pin repaired. There is a lot of satisfaction seeing something like that made usable for another generation. I hope you find someone who will repair it for a reasonable price and do good work.

[mopinko]

14. it's a pretty high end model.

it's top of the line guts, w a middle grade case. but you dont see many w those fancy dials.

i do hope to get it running, but i'd be happy to just have it shine.

[mopinko]

15. lol. i'm chuckling to myself.

i was thinking, yeah, shine it up, put it in a bell jar, and put it on display w my other treasures.
then-oh, but some of those treasures are miniature furniture, arranged in rooms. i can hang it on the wall!

[Marthe48]

16. Would it work as a wall clock among the miniatures?

Like a scene for forced perspective photography

[mopinko]

17. yeah close enough

[bucolic_frolic]

18. I would open the back and get the serial numbers to date the watch

There will be online indexes of serial numbers, models perhaps, I think on the Elgin site but could also be on an antique watch site. I don't remember which.

[mopinko]

19. i was able to open it.

it's an elgin 345, 17 jewels. pretty close to top of the line watch.
had a friend look at it and she thinks it's in pretty good shape.

it's interesting. you dont see that many w the fancy dial, but i have yet to see 2 the same.

[bucolic_frolic]

20. There are still people who repair and restore old watches

There was one near me in NJ, but I know he's expensive and there is always the problem of old parts. I need a crystal for example. I think the craft dies out as parts become unobtainable, prices for repair go up, so people give up. People buy them for precious metal content and toss the guts.

I've never dealt with this guy, but he might give you an email opinion.

https://gnflea.com/RobsPlace.html

[mopinko]

21. i have a friend of a friend who will probably doing for a reasonable price.

but yeah, parts. there do seem to be a lot of them on ebay. friend thought it would cost about $150 just for the crystal and hands. but i've seen parts dealers on ebay that get about $25 for a crystal.

there are still a few good watchmakers on jewelers row here, but my friend says a lot of them shut down in the plague.