Seamaster Chronograph Pushers Question

[rw16610]

I've got a general chronograph pusher question hopefully some of you know the answer to or can help point me to resources.

For my Omega Seamaster Chronograph watches, the pushers, crown, and helium escape value all get changed at each service, this according to the service centre. These watches also allow you to use the chronograph pushers while submerged in water, all the way to the depth rating.

For other watches like my Breitling, they must first be unscrewed prior to activating the chronograph function, similar to a Daytona. Breitling told me they don't necessarily get changed at each service, as they're inspected and sometimes left on. Albeit a different system, this got me wondering for vintage watches or some other brands / styles too.

When my 2225.80 was serviced a couple years ago by Omega, they returned the old pushers, crown, main spring, pretty much any replaced part they provided me with the original which is incredible for a collector.

Anyway, directly to my question - for when these watches are vintage, would it technically be possible for a skilled watchmaker to take apart the pushers and replace any seals in them so they could continue to function as new? Also, how would the process differ from other styles of chronograph pushers?



@archer - Hopefully you can provide some details as well.

[Baco Noir]

Really good question but I have no answer. I wonder if they keep the sizes the same on multiple generations/models so they are interchangeable?

[rw16610]

Baco Noir I can confirm I've seen a frabken watch on eBay before. It was originally equipped with the same pushers (one would assume) as my 2225.80 from the factory. However, it had the aluminum sleeved pusher on one spot from the generation of watch after. I couldn't find any images of that or the listing, as it's been a while, but the eBay listing images below show the watches:










Below is the image I took of the parts Omega sent back to me when the 2225.80 was serviced:



I'm not sure if it's just faster for them to replace these pushers or if reassembly with new seals can be done. It's good that they've seemingly used the same sized pushers on different watches for many years, but no idea if the technical specifications are the exact same.

[Archer]

It depends entirely on the construction of the pushers. Some are not designed to be taken apart, and the entire unit presses out of the case, and an entire new assembled pusher is pressed back into the case. On these, there is no means to disassemble them without damaging them.

But if a pusher can be disassembled without damage, the seals can be replaced, provided you can find new seals of the correct size. This is more difficult than you imagine, because unlike case back O-rings where almost every size imaginable is readily available, these smaller O-rings come in much more limited sizes. So if the brand has used some oddball custom size, you are out of luck.

Cheers, Al

[rw16610]

Thanks for that information, Al! I enjoy learning more about the technical aspect of this hobby, especially for anything pertaining to my favourite complication.