Amateur repairers of clocks and watches grow in number every year as they discover the delights and challenges of the horological hobby. Often an initiate will begin with one of the classic books on the craft for the professionals, published by NAG Press. This time, however, this book is for amateurs.The author, Anthony Whiten, was bitten by the horological bug and communicated his enthusiasm to others with the result, as he says, that he was asked so many questions he had to write this book! If the reader does not have the right tools or they are too expensive to buy, the author describes how to make alterations out of simple and easily obtainable materials, or how to avoid the necessity for the tool at all. He also describes how to dismantle and assemble movements, what may go wrong with them and how to set faults right. He tells you how to oil the right parts and how to restore cases in all stages of decay. The book is illustrated with over 270 line drawings specially drawn to the author's specification. These range from step-by-step demonstrations of how to do things, to diagrams of movements identifying each part and its position in the movement - a great help at the 'gulp and shut the case' stage. Tony Whiten is not a professional, but many who are will find his comments both stimulating and inspirational. The amateur will find a sympathetic guide because the author has been through all the agonies of learning by hand experience. He hopes that this book will help others to avoid making some of his worst mistakes and encourage them to tackle bigger and better problems in the future.

A full history of the Rolex Oyster Perpetual Submariner watch. The first ever book authorized by Rolex.

For the first time, Rolex has authorized a wide-ranging account and full history of the Rolex Oyster Perpetual Submariner watch, in the first of a series taking a deep dive into the watches of the iconic brand.

Oyster Perpetual Submariner: The Watch That Unlocked The Deep, written by author, editor, and watch expert Nick Foulkes, is published by global design authority, Wallpaper, which brings its sharp, cinematic eye to the project, creating new and original photography in collaboration with Rolex to run alongside testimonies from renowned witnesses to the Submariner's illustrious 70-year history, including marine biologist Sylvia Earle, photographer David Doubilet, and aquanaut Dr Joe MacInnis – further highlighting the role this iconic timepiece continues to play in the exploration and protection of the marine environment.

A general list of Watch and Clockmakers. Contents Include: Conventions - Abbreviations - List of Names with Alternative Spellings - List of Watch and Clockmakers - List of Initials and Monograms - List of Place Names - Maps

An updated and revised edition of this practical guide--the book the author wished he had on hand at the start of his 20 years cleaning and repairing pocket watches Using as examples six of the most typical types of watch from a period spanning the late 18th century to the early 20th century, the author takes the intelligent enthusiast through the cleaning and repair process, step by careful step, using photographs of excellent clarity, and in lucid language, characterized by his own friendly and helpful tone. He aims to equip the reader with a sound basic knowledge not just of the process but also all the tools and materials as well as their sources.

Contents Include: Early Time Measures and Modern Watches A Watch Movement and How to Take it Apart Examining, Cleaning and Putting Together Repairs and Adjustment Glossary of Terms, Tools, Materials, Parts and Processes Used in Watchwork

Originally published in 1914, this book aims to give practical advice to anyone wishing to clean, repair and make all kinds of clocks. Alongside the very detailed and precise descriptions, there are many illustrations that deal with everything from chimes and the description of striking works, to hints on clock making. Contents Include Introduction Cleaning a Skeleton Clock Repairing a Skeleton Clock Special Tools and Processes Other Pendulum Timepieces Pendulums Portable Clocks English Striking Clocks French and American Striking Clocks Quarter Striking and Chiming Clocks Turret Clocks Making Clocks Altering Clocks Electric Clocks

This beautiful and exciting book presents the most stunning and important Omega watches. A range of over 100 marvelous photographs, informative text, and technical details document more than 60 years of fascinating wristwatch design of one of the world's best known and most popular Swiss wristwatch manufacturers. Among the memorable wristwatches included here are the Speedmaster model that went to the moon and the James Bond edition that served on Her Majesty's Secret Service. The rest of the models covered include, first, the historical models, and the Legend Collection, Seamaster, Chronographs, Olympic Collection, and Elegant Watches. Technical information provided for each watch includes the reference number, movement, functions, case, remarks, and the estimated value in the year the model was produced. This book will be a joy for all who appreciate fine craftsmanship.

First compiled in 1929 as a pioneer work by the late G.H. Baillie, this directory of watchmakers and clock makers of the past soon established itself as the standard reference source and has been used ever since by watchmakers and clockmakers, collectors, dealers, museums, historians, and libraries the world over. The list of makers has more than doubled, having been thoroughly updated and revised by Brian Loomes in this twenty-first century edition, and now contains information on about 90,000 makers working between the late 16th and early 20th centuries. As well as the makers and retailers of clocks and watches, the list includes makers of scientific instruments, sundials, and barometers. Working dates include dates and places of birth, apprenticeship, freedom, marriage and death, as well as movement between different locations, and monograms. It is a unique and essential work of reference.

Hundreds of Westclox (R) electric clocks introduced between 1931 and 1970 are displayed in over 720 images. This impressive book also covers Westclox store displays, after-market automobile clocks, and weather instruments. Many of the over 200 store displays pictured feature impressive Art Nouveau, Art Deco, and Mid-Century Modern designs. Although Westclox did not introduce its first electric clock--the "Big Ben Electric"--until 1931, it nonetheless proved to be an innovator in electric time keeping. This book contains extensive information on those innovations and the men behind them. It also provides documented evidence of the designers of dozens of models. In addition to Henry Dreyfuss, readers are introduced to lesser known designers such as Max Schlenker and Ellworth Danz. An extensive history of the company is presented, drawn largely from the pages of Tick Talk, Westclox's employee magazine. Westclox's expansion into overseas markets, acquisition of other companies such as the Sterling Clock Company, and merger with Seth Thomas to form General Time are all discussed. Marketing efforts ranging from Westclox's earliest Saturday Evening Post ad in 1910 to its sponsorship of the Today Show in the 1960s are also included. Endnotes, a bibliography, indices, and values in the captions round out this impressive presentation for collectors, designers, and historians.

Dealing with a complicated watch used to be a rare job for the watch repairer, but with the popularity of the automatic, it is almost commonplace. Furthermore, the increased interest in calendar work, alarm watches, and chronographs will undoubtedly bring more and more complicated work into the workshop. This book deals with complicated work essentially from the repairer's point of view. The action of each mechanism is briefly and clearly described because understanding this is essential to proper servicing, repair and testing for functioning. Dismantling and assembly instructions are given, as well as oiling charts and - most important - hints on fault-finding and their rectification. Another essential feature of the book is that it deals with all complicated work - from the relatively simple automatic to the triple-complicated watch with chronograph, calendar and repeater work, and the very complicated clock watch. Exceptional care has been taken in the preparation of diagrams, which have been drawn from actual movements in various stages of assembly, so that the reader can actually work with the book illustrations beside the watch itself. As always with books by Donald de Carle, instructions are easy to follow and there is no reason why anyone well versed in ordinary work and able to use watchmakers' tools should not become a specialist in complicated watches and their repair.

The watch has a long and fascinating history, from a fifteenth-century status symbol of the rich and powerful to the mass-produced everyday timepiece of modern times. This book describes the main technical developments across a 500-year timespan, from the beginnings in Germany and France, through the golden age of English horology in the 18th century, to the development of modern factory production in America and Switzerland. It also sets out to give the general reader and collector a grasp of the key technological developments in watch and sets the lives of the inventors and artisans in the context of the social and economic history of their times. With over 290 photographs and 3D diagrams, this book includes an extensive listing and history of watch brands and manufacturers to assist in identification along with a useful glossary of terms.

The repair of clocks calls for a variety of skills and crafts, few of which can be 'picked up' by bench work alone. In the horological trade, it is technical practice that the 'prentice hand' is first tried out on clocks, before attempting repair work on watches. Clocks have the advantage of possessing sizeable and robust parts and of being easier to handle. But there the advantage for the repairer ends. The sizes, shapes, complications and even the nationalities of clocks appear to be without end. Every movement has detail difference and, naturally, the defects when due for repair, are as varied. In this book, the author has dealt with the usual faults likely to develop in each type of movement in general use; from the lordly grandfather to the humble alarm. All the tools and equipment are described and illustrated, together with the ways of using them. The craftsman's most important and valuable tools of all - his skilful fingers - are shown in use in the clearest manner. As is usual in N.A.G. Press textbooks, the drawings have been specially made from parts under working conditions. A glance through the book will show their usefulness and clarity. Over 400 line drawings are used throughout and the reader is left in no doubt of what he is asked to do in following the author's clearly written technical and practical instructions.

For more than a century, Rolex has stood apart as the most legendary brand of watch in the world. A Rolex conveys many things: a luxury timepiece, a tool of power for movers and shakers and the symbol of passage into adulthood. New labels pop up, styles come and go, but the brand at the top never changes. Ever the record setter-the Daytona that had belonged to Paul Newman was auctioned by Phillips in New York in October 2017 for $17.8 million- it comes as no surprise that Rolex is the most collected watch brand in the world. The Vintage Watch Company is the only store of its kind in the world, with a devoted client base of devoted Rolex aficionados, from royalty to sporting legends to stars of the silver screen. Throughout, father and son, John and David Silver have been carefully cataloguing and amassing one of the largest pictorial records of vintage Rolex watches in the world. Published to celebrate the company's 25th anniversary in late 2020, the book contains a unique pictorial collection of vintage Rolex watches that have passed through the shop during the past 25 years. More than 1800 watches have been photographed and are described in detail in the book. From early Rolex pocket watches to the world's first wristwatches, elegant in their simplicity yet revolutionary in their impact, to the very first Submariners, iconic Daytonas and jewel-encrusted Crown Collections, the mesmerizing archive of vintage timepieces charts the extraordinary rise of an extraordinary brand. Choose from the First Rolex Submariner, later coined the James Bond, or the Early GMT-Master made for Pan Am transatlantic pilots. Read about the First Explorers made famous by the 1953 Everest Expedition or the later Explorer II worn by Steve McQueen. Marvel at Early Vintage collections, from the Officer's Pocket Watch to the Ladies' Diamond; from the Oyster and the Stella & Stone collections, to the Sport Collection. This book is a perfect gift for all lovers of luxury retail as well as passionate collectors of Rolex watches who will want to read about the models they own.

The British Museum watch collection is unsurpassed anywhere in the world, and tells the story of the watch which spans an incredible 500 years. Within the collection are examples ranging from sixteenth-century early stack freed watches made in south Germany to exquisite decorative watches of the seventeenth century. Everyday watches from the eighteenth century and precision-made chronometers from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries are included, as are examples from the modern era. All the major makers of Europe and America will be represented, including Thomas Tompion, whose reputation stretched far and wide even in his own time, and the Swiss-born Abraham Louis Breguet, who lived and worked in Paris supplying the best that money could buy to the crown heads and aristocratic families of the western world. In contrast to the high precision of the horological giants, the Museum has a growing collection of wristwatches, including those with automatic winding systems. There are also extensive collections of pin-pallet lever watches made for the mass market during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries by companies such as Waterbury and Ingersoll. The collections are brought up to the minute with the inclusion of early examples of electro-mechanical watches and the quartz revolution.

"...a beautiful book, filled with captivating images and explanatory text which never gets too dry or too technical..." - Revolution Despite the functional obsolescence of the mechanical wristwatch (our phones and computers tell more accurate time) the early 21st Century has seen a boom in the development, production, and appreciation of all things horological. Whether it is presented to the collector as an alternative investment, as a feat of micro-mechanical technology, or as a showcase of artisanal mastery, the mechanical wristwatch has never possessed more forms, functions or facets than it does today. The Wristwatch Handbook is written from the epicentre of a renaissance, a place in time between the Quartz revolution and the rise of the smart device - where the mechanical wristwatch is the antidote to the microprocessor and the permanent buzz of your inbox. From the multi-axis tourbillion, to the split-second chronograph, to the sidereal sky chart, The Wristwatch Handbook covers it all and does so with more than 470 rich illustrations from over 90 of the World's leading brands. The book is separated into two sections. The first section provides the reader with a comprehensive understanding of the mechanical movement. Its chapters explore power, transmission, distribution and regulation illustrating the basic concepts before considering the innovation and complexity that takes place further toward the cutting edge. From the fifty-day power reserve, to the constant force mechanism, and the 1,000Hz mechanical escapement, section 1 will allow the reader to understand and appreciate what is happening beneath the dial of their watch. Section two allows the reader to take this understanding and apply it to the vast range of complications (functions) that exist in modern horology. Each chapter showcases a distinct category of complication. For example, the regatta timer, pulsometer, and monopusher chronograph join a host of others in a chapter entitled 'Recording Lapses of Time'; The power reserve indicator, dynamograph, and crown position indicator are featured in a chapter for 'Power and Performance Indication'; The moon phase indicator, annual calendar, and planetarium can be found in the 'Astronomical Complications' chapter. Once the functional categories are exhausted, the final three chapters explore whimsical complications that have little regard for practical function, novelty time indication, and the 'super-complicated' watch - a rare breed of timepiece that houses an intimidating host of complications featured throughout the book. Upon completion of The Wristwatch Handbook the reader will be able to identify even the most exotic complication from across the room, and be able to share their appreciation and understanding of what makes it so useful and compelling. The Wristwatch Handbook is "brand agnostic", using only those watches that most aptly illustrate the given subject-matter. As a consequence the book places equal emphasis on the classic and the cutting edge, on watches produced in large volume or exclusive runs, by industry-leading technology or at the hand of a master. In doing so the book provides an unparalleled range of watches from over 90 brands, allowing the reader to determine for themselves which brands, complications, and styles they will build their collection from.

The first detailed discussion of the greatest timepieces from the exceptional collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art Among the world's great technological and imaginative achievements is the invention and development of the timepiece. Examining for the first time the Metropolitan Museum's unparalleled collection of European clocks and watches created from the early middle ages through the 19th century, this fascinating book enriches our understanding of the origins and evolution of these ingenious works. It showcases 54 extraordinary clocks, watches, and other timekeeping devices, each represented with an in-depth description and new photography showing the exterior as well as the inner mechanisms. Included are an ornate celestial timepiece that accurately predicts the trajectory of the sun, moon, and stars and a longcase clock by David Roentgen that shows the time in the ten most important cities of the day. These works, created by clockmakers, scientists, and artists in England, Germany, France, Italy, and the Netherlands, have been selected for their artistic beauty and design excellence, as well as for their sophisticated and awe-inspiring mechanics. Built upon decades of expert research, this publication is a long-overdue survey of these stunning visual and technological marvels. Published by The Metropolitan Museum of Art/Distributed by Yale University Press Exhibition Schedule: The Metropolitan Museum of Art (10/26/15-05/22/16)

This introductory guide and valuation of the world's most legendary wristwatches includes more than 200 photographs that trace the trends of man's favorite toy - and his only socially acceptable piece of jewelry - for more than 100 years. The finely detailed photos reveal the beautiful and fascinating fashions in wristwatch style from 1879 to the modern era. From the prolific collection of renowned auctioneer and wristwatch expert Stefan Muser, the most legendary models from every era are described and pictured. Brands include Omega, Patek Philippe, Longines, Cartier, Rolex, Vacheron & Constantin, Ulysse Nardin, Orlys, Vulcain, IWC, and Movado. Values range from interesting and trouble-free entry-level wristwatches to exceptionally rare pieces for ambitious collectors.