# 1962 Bulova Accutron alpha repair?



## Prototopian (Sep 26, 2016)

My gradfather left me his Bulova Accutron in his will for when I graduated college. Sadly he passed away 2 years before I walked across the stage so he could not give it to me himself. I want to have it serviced but because of it's unique movement, it's age, and it's irreplaceable nature as a family heirloom I want to make sure that I get it serviced by the best watchmaker possible.

Right now, it's condition is functional. I found a small repair man about an hour away from me who worked as a QC tech for Bulova in the 80's. He was able to get it working properly again, because at first it was losing time just sitting on my desk. The problem that I have with it now is that the second hand will stick sometimes if I am not very careful with the watch. Any jerky movements can cause it to lose a bit of time, and I'm not just talking about being rough with my arm/wrist but even driving over a pothole in the road can do it. When I am at work the only watch I have access to is my wristwatch, and if the accutron loses time during my shift I have almost no way of knowing becuase I have no way to compare it against another clock. I would really like to have the watch serviced or restored to the point where it does not lose time in this manner and so that it can serve its functional purpose in keeping time.

Having said all of that, does anyone know of a reliable service or watchmaker that can work on this movement? I am located in Virginia, pretty much equal distances form Washington D.C. and Richmond.

For anyone interested, here are some pictures of the watch: Imgur: The most awesome images on the Internet


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## simpletreasures (Apr 22, 2012)

I know there are very few watchmakers that do Accutron repair, and even less recommendations. After a little research I found.....

Watch Repairs USA
100 N Centre Ave, Suite 304
Rockville Centre, NY 11570

Walk-in appointments are not available at this time.

Phone: (877) 239-6197 Toll Free
Hours: Monday-Friday, 10am-4pm EST

They seemed to have decent reviews, but as always "do your homework" before handing your watch over to just anyone.

Their website is.........Contact Us - Watch Repairs USA


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## minuteman62 (Jul 18, 2015)

For that watch with a dial I wouldn't have any issue sending it to:

Ernie Goldman and his company name is "Starfindings" He is on the web and also on ebay. Located in NYC. I have used his ebay repair listing several times and the average turn time was10-15 days. He has restored 1/2 dozen of mine and overall a fairly fast proper service. There are others but for me I recommend him first. This is the last one he restored for me a couple months ago.


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## simpletreasures (Apr 22, 2012)

I found this recommendation on another watch forum, seemed highly recommended.

Accutron Repairs by Star Findings - The place to go for Accutron Watch Repairs, Jewelry Findings, Finished Jewelry, and More! Specializing in the Winged Anklet. Bring back a touch of yesterday when 'Rock & Roll', 'Elvis', 'The Beatles' and the 'Twist


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## ArchieGoodwin (Jun 17, 2012)

First off Prototopian, congrats on your graduate status. Your grandfather would be proud of you. I compliment you on your desire to have this wonderful, meaningful heirloom repaired, and to wear it as well. To many of the younger generation (can't believe I'm saying this, at 50 I still feel like a youngster) scoff at anything unless it is the most recent technology. Besides that point, many wouldn't even "feel" the connection you have with your family member's timepiece.

On to the watch - I would recommend Ernie at Starfindings, along with Martin Marcus of accutron214.com. There are others - Rob Piker, Ludmil (in Bulgaria), Paul from Welcome to Electric Watches! - Electric Watches (I'd like to try him soon) as well, and Rob Berkavicius in Thailand (? Like to try him as well).

Good luck, fantastic and desirable Accutron model, and wear it in good health, with fond memories of your grandfather. He'd of liked that very much.

Eric


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## tayloreuph (Mar 9, 2015)

ArchieGoodwin said:


> First off Prototopian, congrats on your graduate status. Your grandfather would be proud of you. I compliment you on your desire to have this wonderful, meaningful heirloom repaired, and to wear it as well. To many of the younger generation (can't believe I'm saying this, at 50 I still feel like a youngster) scoff at anything unless it is the most recent technology. Besides that point, many wouldn't even "feel" the connection you have with your family member's timepiece.
> 
> On to the watch - I would recommend Ernie at Starfindings, along with Martin Marcus of accutron214.com. There are others - Rob Piker, Ludmil (in Bulgaria), Paul from Welcome to Electric Watches! - Electric Watches (I'd like to try him soon) as well, and Rob Berkavicius in Thailand (? Like to try him as well).
> 
> ...


I've used Rob Berkavicius for 218 repairs. But Thailand is quite a ways away from the East Coast. His turn around time is 6 weeks or so, depending on what needs to be done. Prices are reasonable, and the work is good.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## odd_and_vintage_fan (Dec 4, 2014)

All I have to add to the wonderful advice you got above is I had a similar issue with an Accutron 218 that I'd bought where the seconds hand would suddenly stop or stutter. The index wheel had gotten grime on it through the years. The problem went away with a service by an Accutron specialist and it's run well in the year since. I hesitate to name the repairer since the primary thing they had going for them was price at the cost of customer service, and their price has since gone up.


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## BenchGuy (Sep 23, 2012)

Your 214 is an heirloom piece. You need competence in service/repair as well as confidence in shipping.
I would probably not return to the repairman you used.
As far as a work watch...I would not use grandfather's watch in this environment...especially if there is any risk of mechanical damage...if for no other reason than reducing wear on the 14K gold case.
Unfortunately there are a lot of "experts" out there who aren't.
Best of luck, BG


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## journeyforce (Apr 20, 2013)

Hello,

Nice watch. First off I agree with Bench Guy. Unless you are working at a desk all day, you might want to get yourself a another watch for work wear and save this one for nice occasions. Accutrons can be a bit fragile.

Just out of interest if you shake the watch is there a slight rattle? That might indicate that the battery was replaced without the spacer causing it to move and break contact. That might be your time loss issue.

My watchmaker works on Accutron watches. They are called the watch Pocket and they are located in Silver Spring MD. It is family owned and run. The owners (Eugene and Matt) are both certified watchmakers. They are listed in the NAWCC database.

Detail

Eugene works on Accutrons and other tuning fork watches. I just bought a nice gold filled 1969 Accutron 218 from them this past weekend and it is in fabulous shape. This one had to be indexed when it was serviced as it was running very fast.it seems that they still offer Accutron training classes at watchmaking school. Right now he is servicing a Accutron 666 diver.

Give them a call and see what they can do for you


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## solidsnake73 (Oct 15, 2011)

PTRC, Inc. Contact the PTRC, Inc. Watch repair specialists


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## ArchieGoodwin (Jun 17, 2012)

Regarding the recommendation in post #10, to PTRC, from user solidsnake73, I contacted them via email and their response was -

"Hi Eric,
We receive many watches to repair, including the Accutron watches. Because of the scarcity of parts, we actually send our Accutron watches to Palmer Jewelry in Indiana. You could try contacting them for service. ........"

Eric
_________



solidsnake73 said:


> PTRC, Inc. Contact the PTRC, Inc. Watch repair specialists


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## minuteman62 (Jul 18, 2015)

Never heard of Palmer Jewelry either.


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## bobandshawn (Nov 21, 2013)

There are literally about four good service guys for these. Good luck! I seem to remember a "Bob" several years back. mybob.net?


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