The Accucell ...

Oct 31, 2013,19:12 PM
 


.... is a good recommendation, Anthony. Availability may be an issue, but it does reduce the voltage to the 1.35V target (range: 1.32 - 1.41 V) of the original circuit. Some watches will run fast with the 1.55V 387S battery, but if they are running accurately it is unclear from, what I have read, what the risks are to the coil. The movement can also be modified to reduce the voltage from the 387S battery. The cost of the Accucell is a little higher, but if you have easy access to it, why not for a little piece of mind.

Thanks for the suggestion.

Andrew

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Bulova Accutron battery change

 
By: AndrewD : October 31st, 2013-01:37
The Accutron Spaceview 214 originally used a #387 1.35V mercury cell but this was discontinued due to the dangers of mercury. The replacement battery is a 387S 1.55V silver oxide battery. The 387S is actually a 394 but with an additional plastic spacer to...  

Have you used the accucell?

 
By: tick tock doctor : October 31st, 2013-03:44
Hello AndrewD, The accucell has a circuit coupled to the power cell that drops the voltage to 1.35 , back to the original mercury battery output. The accucell usually last about 6 months compared to 1 year. But, safer for the coils and circuit blocks deli... 

The Accucell ...

 
By: AndrewD : October 31st, 2013-19:12
.... is a good recommendation, Anthony. Availability may be an issue, but it does reduce the voltage to the 1.35V target (range: 1.32 - 1.41 V) of the original circuit. Some watches will run fast with the 1.55V 387S battery, but if they are running accura... 

Engineering

 
By: AndrewD : October 31st, 2013-19:16
I will revisit the SpaceView with some more pictures. Plus it is probably time for an Accutron photo-thread again. I agree that the engineering in the movement is phenomenal, particularly considering it was developed in the late 1950's. An emphatic way of... 

It gets more comments than ...

 
By: AndrewD : October 31st, 2013-19:19
... most and has a retro cool vibe that I like. Still very enjoyable to wear, accurate, the hum is a talking point and it wears larger than its 34mm due to the open architecture. I will be wearing it more in our summer. Regards Andrew

i've always used 394 batteries Andrew without any issues

 
By: G99 : October 31st, 2013-15:52
bearing in mind i've owned over 40 tuning fork watches over the years. down to just one now as you know. i must admit that mine has developed a problem which needs fixing. i wore it to Mo's do and slept in it. in the morning it was making a funny noise an...  

That's reassuring to hear ...

 
By: AndrewD : October 31st, 2013-19:23
Thanks, Graham, That's reassuring to hear about your experience with the 394/387S battery. Sorry to hear about the 'funny noise'. Could it be that you don't remember what happened to it for a reason? Wish I could have been at Mo's too. Andrew

Sorry Andrew, i dont really...

 
By: G99 : November 1st, 2013-02:55
Sorry Andrew, i dont really remember whether i remember what happened too it :) i was, if anything, very refined on the night so its a mystery. best Graham On 1 Nov 2013 02:23, "www watchprosite" *Alert from:* www:watchprosite > *Posted By:* AndrewD (regi... 

Does yours need to tune?

 
By: Kong : November 1st, 2013-10:18
That's a nice piece of Accutron. Do you find the timing inaccurate with the additional 0.2V? Reminded me of some previous analogue cameras, having metering issues with current batteries. Kong

The accuracy has been excellent

 
By: AndrewD : November 1st, 2013-14:04
Hi Kong, The accuracy has been excellent, better than 5sec per week, but Accutron's running fast on the modern 1.55v batteries is definitely described by owners. It has been postulated that it depends on the condition of the coil and wiring. The analogy w...