The Brach 2003 is a very well made swiss pin lever movement,
which does not have to hide beyond better pallet lever movements.
The speciality of this movement is besides its stable construction the
way, the indirectly driven center second was realized.
center second driving mechanism
The center second wheel, which usually consists just of a thin pinion, has got
a large diameter and is additionally fixed by a friction mechanism, avoding an
fluttering run. It is driven, also unusually, by the double fourth wheel
below the movement bridge and a transmission wheel. Since the fourth wheel and the
center second wheel contain the same number of teeth, it's a 1:1 transmission.
double fourth wheel
The rest of the movement is very well made, contains bearing and cap wheels, just as
a good quality lever movement, and even the balance with its "false" screws is beared in two
rare to find Resomatic shock protections.
The length of the hairspring is adjusted by the hairspring key only, but on the balance cock,
there's a scale, where you can get an idea, at which position, the hairspring key is adjusted.
movement without center second mechanism
The center second mechanism is direcly integrated into the movement, into the gear
bridge, so that it doesn't add a single millimeter of height to the movement.
main plate
On the dial side, the minute wheel is ruby-beared - technically not really required,
but it doesn't harm, too. However, the winding mechanism is just a rocking bar winding
mechanism, and the click mechanism is very simple constructed and consists of
only of one single spring. This is a kind of predetermined breaking point, since
these springs have a rather short lifetime.
dial side view
To sum it up: The Brac 2003 is an upper class pin lever movement, being much better
made than most other simpler pin lever movements.
Technical data
Manufacturer
Brac
Caliber
2003
Number of jewels
17
Escapement
pin lever
Balance
Nickel screw balance
Shock protection(s)
Resomatic
Balance cock direction
clockwise
Hairspring stud
fixed
Regulator type
Hairspring key
Movement construction
Fork Escapement wheel, Fourth wheel, Center wheel, Third wheel Mainspring barrel transmission wheel, Center second pinion
Construction type
solid construction
Bridge shape
ski shoe, 4 gears
Winding mechanism
Rocking bar
Setting lever spring
4 holes
Features
SCI
Functions
Hour, minute, second
Beats per hour
18000
Size
101/2''' (measured: 23,0 mm)
Image in Flume Werksucher
1957 41
Factsheet
Test Results
The movement came without case into the laboratory, was disassembled completely,
cleaned and olied and got a new click spring.
Timegrapher Protocol
The timegrapher results are pretty good for such an old movement, especially for
a pin lever movement. The slowdown in the hanging positions can indicate a too weak
oling of the balance or a worn out balance staff.
