# Ball-Waltham Got At Auction



## Will Fly (Apr 10, 2012)

I picked up a Ball-Waltham RR grade watch at auction recently - swing-out case, crown wound, lever set. It's a little sticky so I'll run it for a bit and then get my watch servicing friend to give it a clean and check over. One thing I haven't noticed before on a watch is the subsidiary knurled wheel underneath the crown winder - visible in the pic below. Any ideas?


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## Roger the Dodger (Oct 5, 2009)

Nice piece Will....I've never seen that secondary wheel under the crown....does it do anything? Does it turn? Is it used to set the hands? Very intriguing...and I'll be interested to find out the answer!


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## Will Fly (Apr 10, 2012)

The secondary wheel turns. Just had a thought: as it's a swing-out case, the crown has to be pulled out otherwise the winding stem would break when the movement was lifted up from the case. I suspect the little wheel allows the whole crown section to be dismantled - I'll find out for sure when my friend takes it apart to clean it and check it over.

Cheers,

Will


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## Shiner (Mar 2, 2011)

The swing out case was often used for railroad approved watches. It was designed to be more dust proof than the standard case. The movement is attached to a dust ring that is a tight fit in the case when it is closed. Added to this it has a screw bezel and the smaller wheel below the winder contains a felt dust ring that helps to seal the winding mechanism.


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## Will Fly (Apr 10, 2012)

Thanks Shiner - very useful. I'm not overly familiar with swing-out cases, so that's improved my knowledge.


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