Screw drivers for watchs

[usadude]

Where can I obtain a decent set of screw drivers for watch work? Or does anyone have a unused set they want to sell? Thanks.

USA Dude

[usadude]

Where can I obtain a decent set of screw drivers for watch work? Or does anyone have a unused set they want to sell? Thanks.

USA Dude

[Lindell V. Riddle]

Hey Dude,

Call S. LaRose Company at 1-888-752-7673 and ask for their 2002-2004 "Keep Book" #283. You can buy a decent set for about $5.00 and there are various price points all the way up to true precision at around $80.00 so you have many choices.

It's like so many other things..."you get what you pay for"... and in tools I've found over the years that a really good tool never fails you.

Hope this helps get you started in watches, you'll find a lot to like in that catalog!

Best Wishes,


Lindell

[mikeh]

I suggest the Bergeon set on nine in the rotating stand. They ain't cheap, but in watch tools, you get what you pay for and theses are worth every penny. You can sometimes pick up a smaller set in a wooden box on ebay a little cheaper too. However, there are some fakes out there with the stand and similar box. Just make sure they're Bergeon.

You can get them from most any material house, one of which is LaRose. You can visit their website at www.slarose.com (http://www.slarose.com).

Good luck!
Mike

[BMW]

Dude:
Lindell is right on the money. Don't buy the cheap sets. Step up right away and buy the set of Bergeons or similar high-grade drivers. Since I bought my set (about 2 years ago) I haven't slipped off of a screw yet (knock on wood). It's worth it as movement scratches are pretty much inexcusable now the the value of our pocket watches is evident. A movement with a screwdriver scratch is generally sold at a large discount to what it would sell if scratchless. Good luck.

[mikeh]

usadude,

How's that for a consensus? Three of us typing at the same time saying the same thing!

This may be a first for this board! :wink:

Regards,
Mike

[This message has been edited by mikeh (edited 07-27-2002).]

[Holt]

I HIGHLY recommmend a visit to the site that Mike provided the link for; S. LaRose, when the site comes up click on "parts", then click on "Clock and watch tools", look at the "french screwdrivers".... yeah there about fifty bucks, but you will never have to buy another set. Now, they are supposed to come with extra blades, if they don't, just e-mail LaRose and they will send them to you, mine were missing and they sent me TWO sets of extra blades! I've cleaned and oiled no less than a dozen watches with my new set and they aren't even CLOSE to needing a sharpening!



------------------
Tommy
NAWCC #156317

[MikeP]

Yep, Pay the (GULP!) money and buy the Bergeon. Cheap tools of any kind are just an accident looking to happen - either the tool will break and/or it will damage whatever you are working on.

[Greg Davis]

This raises a question...

Based on the above comments, am I to understand that the expensive screwdrivers don't need to be ground to maintain the edge? Or is it that you don't use the expensive ones for the really tough jobs that might bend or chip the blade?

For my own part, I use a bunch of cheap sets that I keep well sharpened by grinding them before use (as needed). So far this has not been a problem... my blades don't slip, and I can "catch" the thinnest screw slots because my blades are razor sharp. It never occurred to me to spend $50 on a set of screwdrivers, though I would be happy to do so if it meant that I wouldn't have to sharpen them ever again. But if not having to sharpen them only comes from being careful about how I use them, I don't see any benefit worth 10X the cost.

- Greg

[mikeh]

Greg,

Sometimes I will use and old driver to remove a screw that has a bad slot, or if it's just too tight.

All I can say is you would just have to try them to see the difference. I originally started with a medium grade set and they were OK, but I did have to sharpen them more often than I do the Bergeon set, although all of them will have to be sharpened at some point.

I have learned that if you maintain a proper tip, you won't prone to slipping, and they will stay sparp longer. I now look at every tip before I start using a driver and make sure it's OK, so sometimes I'm not really sharpening, I'm just shaping it back up a little. In this case I only hit it a couple of times on the stone and I'm done.

Of course, the other thing you can do to preserve the tips is to always use the correct size, which is basically the widest tip that fits within the screw head.

Regards,
Mike