Elma Solvex SE review - 3rd unboxing and performance testing
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- Опубликовано: 15 окт 2024
- Unboxing:
There is added packaging by the supplier. This is not how the Elma machine is packed by the manufacturer.
Testing:
Several cleaning tests performed on a reduction wheel that has Seiko S4 grease on it. The wheel is not from a used movement that was in a watch. It’s not a brand-new movement, however it’s only been used for parts and testing but it has never been used.
Video of my 2nd delivery:
• Elma Solvex SE review ...
I ordered this same machine from Jules Borel here in the US. It arrived undamaged and packaged fine, not as well as your 3rd one. I got about 4 months of use before the heater failed. Jules Borel, who were great, offered to send me the "mainboard" which i had to replace myself. I basically had to take the whole machine apart to do it but it fixed it. Been working just fine ever since. I preclean all my watches with a brush before using the machine. Because there is no ultrasonic and it only oscillates in one direction I dont get good results without precleaning. L&R solutions. Thanks for the videos.
Well better luck this time but not perfect. From my own experience getting clean parts easily is the holly grail and I haven’t found it yet either!😕. Are you full time watch making or still a hobby?
The brushing in a glass jar is still needed to prepare the parts for rinsing machine. The cleaning solutions has to be gentle wit the parts. If you add acids you will get cleaned parts but it would also be hars for the parts. Also, the pegwood is still needed for cleaning the jewel holes. A cleaning machine is not ment to do the whole job.
All show and no go! It would be beneficial I think if the jars were heated for stubborn spots imo
These machines were never meant to completely substitute and replace manual cleaning. You should be pegging your holes, and cleaning as much as you can with pegwood or swabs before. Also, pre-cleaning your parts before putting them in the machine will prolong the life of your cleaning solutions. There are professional watchmakers with much more capable cleaning machinery than this, and they still pre-clean.
I'm glad that they sent you a satisfactory unit, even though you had to call them out online to get it. I was considering this machine, now I'm not so sure.
The dog looks pretty pissed off as well.
That’s the customs officer, they always have a serious face on them
So in fact ultrasonic, heated liquid works the best.
What we need: machine that heats, ultrasound and demagnetise at the same time.
This should come in a wooden crate from the manufacturer - with the proper padding inside to make sure it doesn't move around.
Ok, sometimes you just have to manually clean some parts. I have had to use soapy hot water to clean steel parts before now. I can’t explain it.
My ElmaSolvex is like this on odd occasions and that cost £11,500 + VAT at the time. There’s no silver bullet for cleanliness.
It must be very disappointing to spend this much money and still be unable to clean watch parts satisfactorily, not to mention the wasted time and hassle to simply getting an intact machine and jars delivered.
I would be interested to know how well the Solvex coped with cleaning off Molykote DX - I know it has a reputation for stubbornly clinging to parts, especially when it has aged, but even freshly applied.
Thank you for sharing your experience with this machine, and Elma’s customer support + packaging.
It is disappointing. I thought the parts would be nice and clean, now and again I’d have to clean the odd part manually because of old stubborn grease but that’s not the case.
I’m afraid I don’t use Molykote so I can’t comment on that. It’s probably not going to be great. I’m not sure whether you’ve watched the whole video but it couldn’t even cope with the Moebius 9501 on the Rolex mainplate and that wasn’t old grease, it was assembled, run for a few hours, few days later disassembled and it didn’t clean it.
@@HorologyToolsandEquipmen-rh9uz I did watch the whole video. I was planning on investing in a machine like this one, potentially this exact model, but now I might stick with my ultrasonic.
I could totally understand if this Elma Solvex didn’t remove old hardened and dried up oil/grease - that stuff can be like varnish and not much short of a pre clean using peg wood will loosen it, but failing to remove the Seiko grease and 9501 is less excusable.
Thanks again for sharing this.
So what I'm thinking of because I am like you not wanting to manually clean each movement put the elma suprol in a jar for ultrasonic clean that first cycle and then in the machine first bath also suprol and then rinse it will take approximately 10 min longer but gives all the results you want without really contaminating the fluids. Will try this myself and as last a bath of ipa just get everything dried off in the heater because those pesky seiko capjewels always maintain residue on them.
Don't forget to take the balance off offcourse and clean it in one dip.
@@alexanderkamerbeek9693 The pre-clean using suprol in the ultrasonic does sound like a good work around, but I’d love to find a way to avoid the simple ultrasonic tank entirely. The reason is that you will occasionally get watch parts sharing the same basket leaving a permanent ‘shadow’ of their outline on another part, usually a movement plate or bridge. It is quite rare, but is apparently due to dissimilar metals in contact, combined with the ultrasonic not moving the parts about, meaning they stay in the same position in the basket relative to each other.
I’m not so keen on one-dip or the newer less toxic replacement, b-dip. It is great for removing fresh oil if it gets somewhere, but I find it often doesn’t shift oil hardened oil very well at all.
@@mercuriall2810 never heard about the shadow, will check that out. I don't think you can get around a bit of manual cleaning with the balance wheel so maybe you'll need to clean the pivots first in some pith before getting it in the one dip/b-dip?
i got the same machine same problems constant dirty parts after cleaning i got mixed feeling about the machine ..
Sorry Elder, bad.
Looks like the machine is not fit for purpose..
It's certainly not what I expected.
Hi Sir I have an Elma machine that I use
I am a watch mechanic in Sri Lanka
I bet cousins was involved with this