# What Is A "beryllium Balance"



## Hedgehog (Oct 29, 2007)

Happy Friday All!

Found this in my newbie quest to start a basic collection (thanks to those who have helped me to spend money so far!).



















I cannot find anything about "Argonaut" as a brand - but most of all can anyone tell me what a "beryllium balance" is - I thought watches as a hobby would not require any physical extersion or contortions
















Its a Buler branded movement, if that gives any clues - but any info would be gratefully received.

Many Thanks!

Hedgehog


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## USEDMODEL (Mar 26, 2005)

This is an alloy of beryllium, copper and iron. With such properties as hardness, low thermal expansion, resistance to deformation and damage, immunity against magnetic fields and stability this alloy has become perfect for making balance wheels for watches' mechanisms. It is also resistant to corrosion and oxidation; it is rather inert chemically. It is extensively used by many watch brands in their mechanisms.

To read up on the different types of balance wheels read this article.

Different types of balance wheels

Hope this helps


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## DaveE (Feb 24, 2003)

IIRC, Certina made a watch called the "Argonaut". Buler were a name in their own right (I have a train wreck of a Buler diver somewhere) and like Bulgari, had the annoying habit of using a "v" rather than a "u" in their name.


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## blackandgolduk (Apr 25, 2005)

DaveE said:


> IIRC, Certina made a watch called the "Argonaut". Buler were a name in their own right (I have a train wreck of a Buler diver somewhere) and like Bulgari, had the annoying habit of using a "v" rather than a "u" in their name.


The Certina Argonaut that I have was rated to 220m but is more of a dress watch TBH. The movement is a beautiful piece of work and was used in other Certina Chronometers. I'll take some pics tomorrow...

I've seen these Argonauts before, but as far as I know they're not related to the Certinas. Could they have been a jeweller's trade-name as Swiss Emperor was? I should say that the one in this thread is a beaut!


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## Hedgehog (Oct 29, 2007)

Thanks for your replies Folks.

Managed a couple of shots of the movement (please excuse the quality)...........




























I wondered if this was some kind of a hybrid - the date window (shown in the original post) is somehow "too far in".

Any comments appreciated!

Thanks and a good weekend to all

Hedgehog


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## blackandgolduk (Apr 25, 2005)

Nowt wrong with those pics!

I'd say the reason that the date looks far in is because the movement spacer (between the movement and the case) is quite large. The font on the date wheel is the same as on the dial, so I's say it was all original.


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## Nalu (Nov 28, 2003)

IWC ref. 3519 (aka the AMAG Ocean Bund) has beryllium alloy components in lieu of steel ones in order to achieve it's anti-magnetic properties. There are some drawbacks to the use of beryllium, chief among them that during the manufacturing process workers must be protected from inhalation of the resultant particles. Beryllium inhalation can cause 'berylliosis', a granulomatous lung disease.


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