Hamilton M 22 Chronometer Watch. - The Mariner's Chronometer

10. Hamilton M 22 chronometer watch.
| The Mariner's Chronometer 2023-02-23, 12:30 AM
The Mariner's Chronometer

A must-have work on chronometer construction, overhaul and adjustment
10. Hamilton M 22 chronometer watch.
3 03 2014
Clicking on the figures will enlarge them for detailed study. Use the
back arrow to return to the text.
As the Second World War loomed, the United States realised that its
navy was going to need a great many chronometers. The United States
scarcely had a chronometer industry, and such as were made used parts
imported from overseas, mainly from Great Britain. However, the
belligerents had no spare capacity to produce chronometers for others,
and Switzerland, the other main maker of chronometers apart from
Germany and Britain, was in a difficult position: their German
neighbour in effect forbade them to sell chronometers to the Allies. The
Hamilton Watch Company stepped up to the mark and began delivery
of their Model 21 box chronometer with detent escapement in April
1942; By the end of the war, they had delivered nearly 9000 of these
very fine instruments. However there was also a great shortage of deck
watches, both for larger ships for transferring time from the box
chronometer(s) and for small vessels where a chronometer-rated watch
had to serve as the principal timekeeper. The Hamilton watch company
began delivery of their Model 22 watch in June 1942. By war’s end,
13,531 gimballed watches and 9780 non-gimballed watchers had been
delivered. The non-gimballed watch was in the form of a large pocket
watch in a rectangular padded wooden case, while the gimballed watch
was contained in a small three-part cubical case, like the M21
chronometer’s but smaller at about 51/2 inches on side. A total of 9,780
non-gimballed (Figure 1) and 13,531 gimballed watches (Figure 2) were
made.
file:///Users/ianrjohnston/Documents/Ian's%20Pocket%20Watches/1…eter%20watch.%20%7C%20The%20Mariner's%20Chronometer.webarchive Page 1 of 20
10. Hamilton M 22 chronometer watch. | The Mariner's Chronometer 2023-02-23, 12:30 AM
(https://chronometerbookdotcom.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/non-
gimballed-watch.jpg)
Figure 1: Non-gimballed watch in case and transporting case.
AS
NW .S.
O ,U
ILT ,PA R
M E
HA A ST
NC
19
LA
(https://chronometerbookdotcom.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/ga-
e1393796351239.jpg)
Figure 2 : Gimballed M22 watch (photo Peter Baylis)
At first sight, the M 22 watch mechanism looks like a large ordinary

lever-escapement watch of high quality (Figure 3). Its pillar plate is 2
1/4 inches (57 mm) in diameter. However several features distinguish it
from previous navigating watches: its motive power is an exceptionally
long mainspring in a going barrel; it is jewelled back to the centre
wheel; it has Hamilton’s ovalising balance; it has an Elinvar balance
spring, whose elasticity varies very little with temperature; it has a
safety setting button so that the hands cannot be accidentally set while
winding and it has a hand to indicate its winding state.
(HAMILTON
MODEL WATOR
ADJ. 2 -21 0.
TO JEWELS
• TE
MP.
MADE
US. &
IN 6
NAVY-UB.SU. POS.
(https://chronometerbookdotcom.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/ga- A
top-plate.jpg) SHIPS-1942
Figure 3: Top view of movement.
Motive power
2F17
344
(https://chronometerbookdotcom.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/power-
time-graph1.jpg)
Figure 4: Idealised power-time graph of mainsprings.
Box chronometers are fitted with a fusee so that a more-or-less constant

power is delivered to the escapement. If the balance is isochronous, that
is to say it takes as long to make a full swing whether the arc of the
swing is large or smaller, then constancy of power delivery to the
escapement becomes of less importance. As will be seen later, the
balance has design features that make for isochronism and this,
combined with the advantage of the watch being maintained face-up at
all times, meant that a going barrel was fitted, despite its non-uniform
delivery of power. Nevertheless, the M22 was fitted with a mainspring
five feet (1524 mm) long which gave a power reserve of over 56 hours,
though usually navigating timepieces were wound every 24 hours at
the same time of the day. Figure 4 shows in blue how the power
declines in, say, a pocket watch going for 36 hours. In the first few
hours, there is a fairly steep decline in power which then tends to level
off, followed by a steep decline in the last few hours. The effect of
lengthening the mainspring so that the watch runs longer is shown in
red, with a less steep initial decline, and a lesser rate of loss of power
thereafter. Another advantage of a going barrel is that there is no need
for maintaining power during winding. The spring fitted to the M22
was 4 mm wide and 0.195 mm thick, with thicknesses of 0.190 and 0.20
also being available as required.
The train
With the exception of the going barrel and its integral great wheel, the
whole train was jewelled with the escape wheel having endstones
(Figure 3). The purpose of increasing the jewelling beyond the usual
seventeen is to reduce frictional losses in the train and to further
enhance constancy of power delivered to the escapement.
The escapement
This is a pallet lever escapement, jewelled with endstones and

otherwise unremarkable in design.
The balance
It is in the balance that the M22 differs from usual practice of the time. It
uses an ovalising balance of a similar design to that of the M21 box
chronometer with a Hamilton Elinvar balance spring with Breguet over-
coil. Figure 5 shows on the left a typical pocket watch balance wheel
and on the right the M22 balance wheel and spring (the scale is in
millimeters).
(https://chronometerbookdotcom.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/escape-
wheel.jpg)
Figure 5: Ovalising balance compared with normal split balance.
Unlike an ordinary steel balance spring, one made of Elinvar has an

elasticity that decreases only very little with temperature, so that
correspondingly less compensation is demanded of the balance wheel.
In the ovalising balance, the arms are made of Invar, which expands
scarcely at all with rise in temperature and the rim is made of 18/80
stainless steel. At some temperature, the rim will be circular. With a rise
in temperature, expansion of the rim will force it into a slightly oval
shape, with the long axis at right angles to the arms, and the moment of
inertia, together with the period of oscillation, will increase. Conversely,
a fall in temperature will cause the balance to become oval with the
long axis aligned with the arms and the period of oscillation will fall,
since the distribution of compensation and timing weights tends to be
concentrated in the rim. In a normal bimetallic balance with a steel
spring, the stiffness of the spring does not decrease in a linear manner
with increasing temperature, while its change in diameter is linear,
giving the so-called “middle temperature error, but in the M22 balance,
such small changes in elasticity and moment of inertia as do occur are
practically linear, so that the middle temperature error is reduced to an
almost undetectable fiftieth of a normal compensated balance and is
opposite in sign.
There are 28 holes for temperature compensation screws around the

rim. Hamilton provided a procedure for adjusting these screws, by
checking the rates at 55 and 90 degrees and moving screws around the
rim according to a table which gave the changes in position necessary to

correct a given plus or minus change in rate in seconds per day per 35
degrees Fahrenheit. There are also four nuts for poising after such a
change and the daily rate was coarsely adjusted by the two pairs of
timing nuts, with final rating being carried out using the regulator.
The balance spring
The Elinvar balance spring itself was pre-formed and heat-treated on a

former so that all springs were pretty well identical and no tedious (and
perhaps somewhat intuitive) hand adjustment of the overcoil was
necessary for isochronism. The central collet was counter-poised to
allow for the weight of the pin and the asymmetry of the first coil. The
form of the counter-poise is visible in Figure 5. The balance stud was
pentagonal, with a hole of matching shape for it in the balance cock.
The Regulator
As in most fine watches, there is a micro-regulator to allow very small

movements of the regulator for final setting of the rate. This is shown in
Figure 6. The regulator cam and index plate move together about a
common axis and the end of the regulator is held against the cam by the
regulator spring. Each division of the index plate represents a change in
rate of about 2 seconds per day, so very precise regulation is possible.
After I overhauled the watch shown in most of the figures, it had a
mean daily rate at room temperature in summer of -1.96 seconds per
day with a mean deviation from the mean of ±0.93 seconds
Centre
wheel
Upper
endsto
Regu
cam
2F
17
(https://chronometerbookdotcom.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/regulator1.jpg)
34
Safety setting
Figure 6: M22 Micro-regulator.
4
When it was important never to “lose the time”, as for example on
railroads and for navigation out of sight of land it was usual to provide
some way of preventing accidental re-setting of the hands when re-
winding. The American railroad watches were most often lever-setting,
that is to say the front glass and bezel had to be unscrewed to expose a
tiny lever, which had to be pulled out before the hands could be set
(Figure 7), while box chronometer hands were usually reset, to
Index
Regulator
Greenwich Mean Time, at the conclusion of a voyage. The M22 had a
Regulator
safety setting button to the left of the winding button (Figure 8).
plate
spring
(https://chronometerbookdotcom.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/setting-
001.jpg)
Figure 7: Setting lever of Waltham Vanguard watch.
(https://chronometerbookdotcom.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/setting-
002.jpg)
Figure 8: Safety setting button of M22 watch.
The mechanism of the safety setting is perhaps of some interest, but to

help in understanding it a few words about winding and setting
generally may be useful. When the winding stem is in its normal
position (Figure 9) and is rotated, a square formed on it and passing
through the clutch causes the latter to rotate and, since the clutch is
engaged with the winding pinion, it too rotates with the winding stem.
Its teeth are engaged with the winding wheel which in turn causes the
mainspring arbor to rotate and the spring is wound up. A pin in the
setting lever engages with a groove in the stem. When the stem is
pulled outwards, the pin causes the setting lever to rotate, so that a
shoulder formed on it pushes the clutch lever inwards and the clutch is
disengaged, while a pinion formed on the other end of the clutch
engages with an intermediate setting wheel through which the minute
wheel and canon pinion are caused to rotate, thus resetting the hands.
The winding pinion, being disengaged from the clutch of course
remains stationary during setting. Note that when the setting lever
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moves inwards, it slips from a groove in the setting cap spring and that
the spring has a projection that nearly closes a gap between it and the
mounting base of the spring.
(https://chronometerbookdotcom.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/safety-
setting-labelled1.jpg)
Figure 9: Winding and setting mechanism.
Referring now to Figure 10, which has the safety setting lever in place, I
have indicated with a red disc the position of a pin on the underside of
the lever, which pin normally occupies the gap just mentioned. While
the pin is in position, the setting cap spring cannot move and so the
setting lever cannot rotate prior to the clutch being disengaged and the
hands turning, and the stem cannot be pulled outwards.. When the
safety setting pin is depressed, the “red” pin moves out of place, and
the setting lever becomes free to rotate as the stem is pulled outwards
(https://chronometerbookdotcom.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/safety-
setting-12.jpg)
Figure 10: Safety setting lever in place.
Figure 11, taken from the Bureau of Shipping overhaul manual may
help to make matters clearer.
(https://chronometerbookdotcom.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/winding-
and-setting-diagram.jpg)
Figure 11: Winding and setting diagram (BuShips, 1948).
Winding indicator
In an ordinary box chronometer the mechanism to drive the winding

indicator is simple: a pinion which rotates with the fusee as the clock
runs down, is simply geared to the indicator hand. As the clock is
wound it moves one way and as it runs down it moves the other.
However, matters become more complicated when there is a going
barrel, for when being wound, it is the arbor that rotates, but when
running down it is the barrel that rotates, so that no simple gear train
will suffice. Figure 12 shows the solution adopted by Hamilton.
(https://chronometerbookdotcom.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/planetry-
gear-winding.jpg)
Figure 12: Wind indicator mechanism.
As the winding wheel rotates during windup it causes the windup gear
of the planetary gear cluster to rotate clockwise and with it the
differential sun gear (lower left of diagram). Since the carrier gear is
held stationary by the near-motionless barrel gear, the upper planetary
pinion rotates together with the lower planetary pinion which then
causes the alternating pinion to rotate clockwise. The alternating pinion
is geared to the windup indicator via the reduction gear and the wind
indicator also moves clockwise (when viewed from behind, as in the
diagram) to indicate “Up”.
As the clock runs down (lower right of diagram), this time it is the
windup and differential sun gear that remain stationary while the
barrel gear rotates clockwise. This causes the carrier gear to rotate
anticlockwise and , as the upper planetary gear rotates around the sun
gear it causes the lower planetary gear also to rotate. This tends to drive
the alternating pinion clockwise, while rotation of the lower planetary

pinion about the axis of the sun pinion tends to move the alternating
pinion anticlockwise. The latter dominates with the result that the
alternating pinion moves anticlockwise and the winding indicator
moves towards “Down”.
Figure 13 shows this tiny gear cluster from two viewpoints.
(https://chronometerbookdotcom.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/differential-
gear-combined.jpg)
Figure 13: Planetary gear cluster.
Case and gimbals
The three-part case is of the usual mahogany finish but without the
brass corners and bindings. The corners are rebated and a lock is
provided (Figure 14). Note that the low serial number of 525-1941
places it in 1941, while the 1941 on the face of its larger brother refers to
the date of the contract for design rather than date of manufacture. The
unit price for the M22 in 1941 was $92.33.
(https://chronometerbookdotcom.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/case-
front2-e1393796402905.jpg)
Figure 14: Front of case (photo Peter Baylis).
Figure 15 shows the gimbals. Because of the winding stem, the ring has
to be suspended fore and aft rather than the more usual athwartships.
The reason for the large piece of brass at the front rather than the more
usual screw, as at the back, is presumably due to the presence of the
lock, which had to be bridged. The gimbals lock is conventional.
(https://chronometerbookdotcom.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/gimbals-
e1393817634988.jpg)
Figure 15: Gimbals (Photo Peter Baylis).
The back of the gimballed watch is a substantial lump of brass which

screws into the body of the case (Figure 16) while the front bezel screws
on to hold the movement in the case. Except on the repair bench, it is
unwise to remove bezel since inadvertent inversion may decant the
movement on to the floor!
MTO.WATCH
BUREAUOFSHIPS
USI NAVY
(https://chronometerbookdotcom.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/base.jpg)
Figure 16: Back of case.
“The Mariner’s
http://www.amazon.com
Chronometer”, 01034-1943
If you have enjoyed reading this post, you will I am sure enjoy reading
available
(http://www.amazon.com)
from
,
http://www.amazon.co.uk (http://www.amazon.co.uk) and from
other amazon stores. Reviews on amazon, in the NAWCC Bulletin and
in the Horological Journal have been uniformly favourable.
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Date : March 3, 2014
Categories : 10. Hamilton M 22 chronometer watch
5 responses
7 10 2016
Gene (12:48:50) :
I have one of these fine chronometers. However, I’m unsure why
Hamilton/the Navy made two versions. Seemingly, it looks to me
that the 22 is technically better than the 21.
Reply
7 10 2016
engineernz (23:07:16) :
The M22 is really just a very high quality lever escapement watch,
perhaps able to keep a steady rate over a few days, but the
advantage of the M21 is that it can be expected to keep a very small
rate over many days.
Reply
7 10 2016
Gene (23:51:18) :
I will accept that explanation, but I still maintain that the 22 is a
better, more modern design, and *should* be able to keep time as
well as, or even better than the 21.
13 02 2017
Robert Hageman (13:09:00) :
Fascinating, thank you !
Reply
13 02 2017
Robert Hageman (13:10:25) :
Fascinating, thank you !
Reply
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10. Hamilton M 22 chronometer watch.

| The Mariner's Chronometer 2023-02-23, 12:30 AM

The Mariner's Chronometer

10. Hamilton M 22 chronometer watch.

At first sight, the M 22 watch mechanism looks like a large ordinary

Box chronometers are fitted with a fusee so that a more-or-less constant

This is a pallet lever escapement, jewelled with endstones and

Unlike an ordinary steel balance spring, one made of Elinvar has an

There are 28 holes for temperature compensation screws around the

rim according to a table which gave the changes in position necessary to

The balance spring

The Elinvar balance spring itself was pre-formed and heat-treated on a

As in most fine watches, there is a micro-regulator to allow very small

The mechanism of the safety setting is perhaps of some interest, but to

In an ordinary box chronometer the mechanism to drive the winding

the alternating pinion clockwise, while rotation of the lower planetary

Figure 13 shows this tiny gear cluster from two viewpoints.

Case and gimbals

The back of the gimballed watch is a substantial lump of brass which

Date : March 3, 2014

Categories : 10. Hamilton M 22 chronometer watch

Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com.

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