Deep Dive Into The Vintage Timex Mechanical Movements (M24 and others!) 

I just pulled out my very first watch from a box in the shed.. a Timex time teacher kids watch from 1986.. it had not run for 30+ years, I wound it up and flicked it with my finger, and it just goes.. and still keeps time pretty precise.. pretty impressive after so many years..

Trying to find the movement for my first watch, circa 1973 Snoopy Tennis Yellow. I ran across this video and appreciate it. Very informative.

Re crown and stem: a small dab of loctite does the trick

The advertisement analysis was a nice touch

The secret is practice. I am a fan of m21s and m22s and while i thought it is impossible to put the plate back on again at the very first time a bit later (~ 7-8 movements in a year or so) it does not seem to be too difficult anymore. It usually goes back in its place for the first try. The root cause of my initial failure - apart from the lack of practice - was that I did not read the service manual which is available for download from different places. About the dial tabs, I read the following advice I followed and can testify it works: "Timex dials are held on by tabs that bend over the movement plate--Bend these as little as possible, and you can usually remove the dial while only bending two tabs. (If you have to remove the dial again, try to remember to bend other tabs the next time)" Lighter fluid can work, it does not make things worse however regardless what cleaning solution you use none of them is as good as a full strip down, without a full strip down you cannot examine all of the parts and cannot clean all of the parts properly. With the dirty M21s and M22s I found that I need to clean every wheel pinions manually because the dirt is so stubborn and hard that neither my National watch cleaning machine or my ultrasonic cleaner would remove it / or running it down in lighter fluid. ~ half of the movements, those ones which could run long enough and did not stop because of broken mainspring or by any other cause have worn pivot holes to a different extent and the v-conic balance staff is not really v-conic any longer (just like the one can be seen on your video). I am trying to figure out what would be the best way to re-sharpen them. (screw head polisher, jacot tool, lathe? - dunno yet) I recommend to join online forums there are many experienced and friendly watchmakers out there who are happy to help, i am only a hobbyist. By the way timex mechanicals only need a service in every 70 years so if you live for 250 years you only need to service it 3 times in your life. ;) Thank you for the video.

I would love to see a video of exactly how YOU would service a vintage timex movement. Not any out there to view even on RU-vid.

I still remember the days,they were so cheap,when the crystal was scratched,you would chuck it,and buy a new one.they were everywhere,everybody had them,they worked! A marvel of mass production

Timex was a product of it's era. The customers were simple folk who needed timekeeping but didn't have the money for anything fancy. I was one of them. In the 60's, American consumers became more sophisticated and the market for quality time pieces started growing. I remember getting a Bulova Accutron. My first flagship watch.

Thanks for the video about the old Timex movements, not a lot of videos about these movements. Liked.

Thank you very much! you are one of the best!

Thanks for the video. I have had two M24 movements open, and they really are tedious to re-assemble with the open-plate design. One of the pieces had the dial glued on, the other lost two of the dial tabs on reassembly...exactly as you describe. They are do-able, if you have time - but I wasn't able to get either movement running satisfactorily because of worn balance pivots, worn or bent pins on the pallet forks, excessive wear on almost all pivots and bushes and unavailability of spares. Iconic watches of you can get one that isn't worn out, but not really a proposition for service, repair or overhaul.

I have a caravelle with the 11DP movement, they are RIDICULOUSLY reliable, this one has gone 25 years without a service and is still running +/- 30 SPD

I have a Timex Viscount with M109 movement made in 1979. It runs around +12 spd. The watch has never been serviced. I found the service manual, but I won’t get it serviced since it’s technically running as good as expected.

Like your work, please keep it up. PS my first watch was a Timex 1969? I still have it and will one day get it going again. Cheers

Great video! I dismantled 3 ladies / boys Timex watches, dated 1975, 1978 and 1983 this week. Unserviceable, and they are cool with that. Kinda sad, as they made so many different designs, those few iconic / super-popular iterations just die - even if you replace the movements with new versions, the dial tabs will not survive more than 2 or 3 new movement changes.

I have several Vintage Timexes. I also own a minty 70’s wind up Caravelle that i baby. In the late 90’s and early 2000’s i was buying up any old timex wind up and automatic watches that I could get my hands on for cheap. I even have an NOS wind up from the early 70’s that I never wore. Still has the original plastic leather strap. I just turned 41 today, so back then I was in my early 20’s, and used to talk to the old timers and they told me that they were so cheap and had no jewels, and that they were not really meant to be serviced to repair regular wear. So basically, once you wore one out, that was it. Also when breaking something like the main spring, you were just expected to throw it out and just get another one. Not planned obsolescence by any mean. They were made really well but so cheap that they weren’t worth blowing more money on it for repairs.

Timex was like hold my beer and thus the m24 movement

I have a Timex day date with a TV shaped case with radiating coarse brushing on the bezel. . It has Timex at the top and water resistant at the bottom. I don't know what movement is in it, but it keeps pretty good time. I have listened to its tick and it seems to be the same as my Raketa watches which are 18000bph, so low beat. The Raketa 2628 h movement is built for rough conditions and are superior in every way to the old Timex watches. The recent reissue of the 33mm Timex Marlin is a Seagull St6 handwinding movement which Is a basic tough little movement, easy to service and cheap to replace with a new movement which are readily available.

I have several timex watches made in the 60s and 70s. Really strong 💪 watches. If it gets stuck, it's probably because it's dirty, or the spring in broke.

Nice video. Very informative. Any idea where I could go to get a Timex identified? I have one I picked up from an estate sale with none of the usual markers from after 1963 and in fact, very few other markings of any kind. A single 5 digit number on the exterior, separated into 2 digit, three digit format (03 L06)and a single three digit code (203) metal stamped or engraved directly onto the movement. Other than that, all of the other usual markers are missing.

Subscriber #97 reporting for duty sir!

These watches are essentially the same basic principals of the Ingersoll dollar watches of the 1910’s to the 1940’s and later. I enjoy working on the Ingersoll watches.

I have my Dad's old Timex from the late 60's-early 70's. It's not a fancy watch, but I wouldn't mind getting it fixed to wear it a little. Do you have a place you recommend to service a Timex of this era? It still runs when I wind it, but the day and date don't seem to change very easily.

thanks Chris. Working on a 50s viscount now. It's a pandora's box because I have no experience with these movements and I fear I wont be able to get it back together once cleaned.

It is possible to fully strip down and service timex movements including mianspring and balance wheel. I do it all the time. Problem is no sourcing replacement parts if you dont want to rely on donor movements.

I have two Timex's that use the M116, famous for its self-destroying click spring. Any tips on finding a replacement? Neither watch will hold a wind. I've found several movements that have ther right form factor, but the hour/minute/hand tube diameters are different.

Yeah that is the main theme swiss movements like the caravelle is serviceable.

I think replacement dials were available for cheap (obviously).

Dude - great video but the volume is low. Subscribed!

timex you just need to go slow and apply light pressure without bumping the balance, other than that its easy.

I had the crown come off the stem on a M108 movement. I carefully soldered it on and it's good to go. I wish I could find some info on servicing the movement.

I dont see what tool i need to remove the plate

I would like to know if the stem being damaged cause the watch to not wind? Have one and it clicks one way alot and if you wind it the other way it clicks after five twists.

How did you get the crown off the Timex stem? I had mine in a vise but I was worried I was going to damage the stem when pulling. A lot of vintage Timexes have worn dow crowns, so the ability to replace these would be useful.

If I lost my watch as a kid I'd be glad it was a Timex and not a Rolex.. Did you hear about the woman who had two dogs, one named Timex and one named Rolex? They were watchdogs. (drum roll)...................

Can this kind of Timex movement be regulated? It's hard for me to see if there's no regulator to move or if it's on the dial side.

I have the vintage military Timex windup watch. It doesn’t come to a stop when I wind the crown, and I can feel that something springing back inside. Any idea would be helpful. Thanks

Still running like new. 1979 timex automatic.

I have an automatic that was stuck. I say was because I soaked it in silicone spray. Now it's super fast. Do you have any idea how to get the works out of the case? It's a 1980 model. I'd like to soak it in naptha like it calls for but I wanted to get the mainspring unwound before I went father.

Looks like an ETA 1081 in that caravelle

Do you have any M24 movements for sale?

You see them running after 70 YEARS?!! These must be the ones that were kept for special occasions. Because real world EVERYDAY USE I thought they barely made 10 years...

12:25 REALLY BRO? You HAVEN'T heard of loctite? People use the stuff rebuilding engines and all. I have already seen watchmakers using it on crowns and stems. There's some strengths that will allow you to get stuff off and others that basic lock nuts and bolts together for life. It's not some rubbish, it's been around for DECADES and is OFTEN quoted in car repair manuals. And yes, gets used on crowns and stems too.

Wow, some ads attacking other watch makers are very disgustingly arrogant.

Because of terrible problems with British built Timex in the 70's I have steered clear of the brand but recently I picked up an almost pristine Sovereign Electronic which inside is a Timex M42 (day date) and after a gentle clean and a fresh Renata AG13 in there, the watch is astonishingly good. I abs love this 70's proto "meca-quartz" of mine so maybe I am not so hard on the brand as I was although on my wrist tonite is my Soviet Sekonda Slava tank automatic, Sekonda became quite popular in Britain primarily because of the terrible Timex output and because the British built Timex were seen as a bit dire, the corporate head office just closed the factory down.

I guess balance swap is not viable... I have such a nice-looking one but the whole hairspring is sitting offcenter.

I have a 60's Timex , And a Elgin Swiss FLS 117.....I don't no how to clean em or anything...so I will take em to a watch man...I am afraid 2 mess with em, being a lady I simply don't no how.😀💯💯💯👌🏾

Timex is Nightmare to Work on..ROFL

I REALLY believe that these were made as THROW AWAY watches. They're the Chrysler of watches. Cheap pretty junky American manufacturing. Built to sell not to last.

Yes, it is a total crap movement from a watchmakers point of view, but the marketing was phenomenal. The timekeeping was not so good either. But is was cheap and easy to obtain.

Hello, i put my hand on a 79 Marlin Calendar and the watch doesn’t start, le crown is blocked with a push back force when I turn to wind it, what’s the issue and may u know people selling old automatic system to replace mine Ty 🫶