Post
by gerdson » March 2nd 2019, 1:19am
No doubt it is fascinating to watch the balance wheel and the escapement in action - it (to me) even has a relaxing effect, almost hypnotizing. However... if You want to see it, get a watch with a glass back. Constructionwise the location of the balance wheel on the main plate has for ages followed a functional (and space optimizing) design, and because of that it is not centered on either horizontal or vertical axis of the movement. Unfortunately it is also not "off" far enough from either of these axis' to appear "willingly placed off symmetry". It just looks odd. My German watchmaker once had the idea to alter a movement in such a way that he could actually have an open balance placed on the vertical axis. I don't know if he ever got to it, but he had shown me some drafts and sketches. But he also explained that fiddling with this may severely impact accuracy. We also discussed that establishing a gear/lever construction to help placing the crown and tube askew from the original stem might be an idea - in larger watch cases there would be sufficient space for such a construction.
Ardnut since 1989
In twenty years or so, the German language will be one, massively long compound word.
-- conjurer
2023 3flushes Media.^^^
