watch jewel conumdrum help?

[chuckee]

I found an 18s open face watch with movement #792007 which I believe was made by Seth Thomas and marked Edgemere, Chicago, ILL.
Also marked 12 jewels but as you can see in the image more than 12 jewels are present. Please give your opinion or idea.

[Kent]

I don't see where there's more than 12.
I'm figuring:

1 Roller jewel
2 Pallets jewels
2 Balance hole jewels
2 Balance cap jewels
5 Top plate jewels
____
12

Are there jewels in pillar plate for the escape and other wheels?

[chuckee]

Thank you Kent,
I neglected to mention the "Complete Price Guide to Watches" indicates 1896 as year of production and model as #8. It also states that in 1886 they started making 7, 11, 15 & 17j movements but no mention of a 12j is ever made, not even under namless grades.

[Kent]

chuckee:

Regardless of what it says in the "Complete Price Guide to Watches," I have doubts that Seth Thomas made 17-jewel watches as early as 1886. Nor, do I trust the various serial number vs. date listes to be accurate to less than three years (and I'm not even sure about that). But then, I'm not at home where I could check some old catalogs.

[rrwatch]

An 1896 catalog page illustrated in the Seth Thomas Watches 1885-1915 book by Chris Bailey and Dan Gaenger show 3/4 plate models in both hunting and open face, containing 17 jewels. Also, by this time, the Model 2 Henry Molineux was shown in 20 jewels.
I could not find any mention of Seth Thomas ever making a 12 jewel movement, but stranger things have happened, especially with Seth Thomas. Original documentation on their watch production is scarce.

[Tom McIntyre]

Mysterious jeweling is also the "norm" for Seth Thomas.

The 23 jewel Model 5 has cap jewels on the top plate pivots of the 3rd and 4th wheels and but not on the pillar plate.

The 20 jewel Molineaux is jeweled like a normal 21 jewel watch but is missing the top (visible) cap jewel on the pallet arbor. :o

[rrwatch]

Tom,
It gets even stranger. The highest quality hunting (Model 2) Henry Molyneux was made in 20 jewels, but the open face (Model 3) was made in 21 jewels.
The Seth Thomas parts list of 1904 shows two different pallet arbors for the high jeweled Molyneux, one with "conical pivot, hunting", and one with "conical pivots, open face". Although both the Model 2 and Model 3 were made in 17 jewels, the Model 2 was also made in 20 jewels, while the Model 3 was made in 21 jewels. At least this is what the parts list published by Seth Thomas appears to be telling us.