Basic Watchmaking Tips - stems and screwdrivers

ACC1965
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Archer,

I apologize if these are repeat questions...

1) Would you recommend purchasing a new screw driver set vs a used set that comes up for sale? It seems like newer would be easier, but eventually they will need to be reshaped, so why not learn that skillset early on.

2) You said there are different materials (bronze, stainless steel, etc). Do you try to match the screw material for similar hardness?

Thank you.
 
Archer
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Used tools are often a very good deal, so if you can find quality screwdrivers used, then sure go for it. In many cases vintage tools in general are as good or better quality than current production.

I don't necessarily try to match the hardness, but if the screws are highly finished of very soft, I would use a softer blade material.
 
V
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Archer Archer
I don't necessarily try to match the hardness, but if the screws are highly finished of very soft, I would use a softer blade material.
Hi Al, I wanted to ask you about the use cases for the beryllium/copper alloy blades. Sounds like you'd use these for highly finished screws or blued screws. But how do you determine the softness of a screw by just looking at it?
Also, which sizes of beryllium/copper blades do you find most useful? Do you find yourself using the entire range: 50 - 300, or is there a more narrow range of blades that you commonly use, i.e. 100-160? Thanks!
 
Archer
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V vbomega
Hi Al, I wanted to ask you about the use cases for the beryllium/copper alloy blades. Sounds like you'd use these for highly finished screws or blued screws. But how do you determine the softness of a screw by just looking at it?
Also, which sizes of beryllium/copper blades do you find most useful? Do you find yourself using the entire range: 50 - 300, or is there a more narrow range of blades that you commonly use, i.e. 100-160? Thanks!
They are most useful for blued screws in my experience. But you don't know the softness of the material just by looking at it. Generally speaking though, you learn what screws tend to be soft. In my experience modern screws tend to be softer than vintage. Seiko screws tend to be softer than ETA for example.

In terms of the sizes, it just depends on what sizes are on the watches you use them on. It pretty much follows the same level of use for regular screwdrivers.
 
V
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Archer Archer
They are most useful for blued screws in my experience. But you don't know the softness of the material just by looking at it. Generally speaking though, you learn what screws tend to be soft. In my experience modern screws tend to be softer than vintage. Seiko screws tend to be softer than ETA for example.
So for servicing Seiko watches you generally prefer to use the beryllium/copper tips?
 
Archer
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V vbomega
So for servicing Seiko watches you generally prefer to use the beryllium/copper tips?
I prefer not to service Seikos...problem solved! 😉
 
Pip
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ACC1965 ACC1965
...but eventually they will need to be reshaped, so why not learn that skillset early on.
I am always a little ambivalent about this. I never got that good at reshaping screwdriver tips, struggled with keeping them exactly parallel which kind of defeats the object, used to spend ages trying. Then one of my old mentors took me to one side and said, "Look, don't worry about it. New screwdriver blades cost almost nothing." Which was a very good point, they don't cost much.
But then I was very lucky and I picked up a screwdriver shaping tool for next to nothing in a box of bits at an auction, so I like to use that now to adjust the width of the tips to the screws I am working on (mostly vintage Seiko's haha!) and to repair chipped or worn blades.
 
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