The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1897-09-24
DELICATE MAlNSPRlNGS.
Very Quick to Feel the Effects of Heat
and Cold.

Very Quick to Feel the Effects of Heat
and Cold.
"Mainsprings are very much like peo-
pie, remarked New York watchmak-
er recently to a writer for The Star.
''They are rs susceptible TO extremes of
heat and cold as human beings. When
the thermometer is lowering around the
freezing point or dancing away up in
the nineties the sensitive little main
spring will succumb just as easily to
freezing or sunstrol1e as man
"You see, this uncertain piece Of |
mechanism is supposed to be adjusted |
20 meet the various degrees of temper
allure, but when the changes are great |
and come suddenly there is nothing that |
can prevent them from swapping. Many |
are made in Switzerland of the very |
finest quality of steel, absolutely flaw
less Very often the matchmaker can |
detect a bad spring before putting it i'll |
watch either by it's color or the soft |
ness Of its spring These have been too |
tightly tempered in making and in |
stead of being subjected merely TO a red |
heat the fire has been brought 20 white |
heat thus weakening the strength of
the metal
1.-THE finest watches that are handled
by reliable dealers in the United States
are put through cooking and freez-
ing process before they are sold, for
the purpose Of testing their reliability
in all temperatures The watch is first
placed in little metal box, which is
made alright Then strong gas fame
is turned on the undersurface Of the
box and is kept there for one or two
hours, so that the watch is so hot at the
end Of that time that it could not be
touched with the bare hands.
From this it is Immediately taken
and put into another metallic box,
which is buried in vessel containing
ice. There the costly watch is allowed
TO freeze for an equal length of time,
when its treatment ceases and the eX-
animation is made If during this eX-
cessive test the watch has licked mer
rily on without deviating a fractional
part of a second it is put back in the
case and marked guaranteed for two
! years. The handspring is the first piece
| of mechanism that succumbs to the test.
| If it survives, nothing need be feared.
"Mainsprings are, however, about
the only part of watch that jeweler
cannot successfully diagnose. They can
guarantee any OF the numberless little
| wheels or pivots or balances that go TO
| make up the anatomy of the watch, but
! the handspring has as yet baffled the
J most sl1illful makers of watches of all
countries IL is not so much the severe
extremes of the weather that prove fatal
! TO the spring as it is the process of
J changing from heat to cold, or vice
| versa.
Many people who have been the
| possessors of new watches but short
time often come to me much annoyed,
declaring that they have paid large
price for their timepieces and the main
! spring has broken after only a week
| use.
- That is nothing, / tell them. We
| jewellers have them snap in our cases
! before the watch has even been shown
| for sale. Others imagine that they
might have wound their watches too
| tight, but this does not harm it. It is
rather the jerky, hurried winding that
will eventually tell on the temper of the
metal Besides, every good stem winder
has stop placed i'll the stem which
prevents the winding of watch too
tight.
The cost of new handspring is
small. 1t is the putting them III, the
labor expended. that costs. 1t costs from
| $l2 TO SIS to put handspring i'll the
finest Swiss watch, while in cheap
American make it costs only from 90
cents to 81.
"A gentleman purchased $3.50
watch from me about II year ago and
shortly after he left New York on u
tour around the world He returned
about three weeks ago, brought his
watch back TO me and paid me this
compliment: Here's watch, said he,
that | paid you $3.50 for year ago,
and while was travelling around it lost
three minutes. You guaranteed it, and
want you to make it good. The watch
was placed in my window with this
card beside it:
- This watch lost only three minutes
i'll year in tour around the world /;
price, $275
did you sell it?''
"Yes Within two days Wash
ington Star