How to silence the rotor on a BP nautilus

[gabro]

I used D-5 on my bearings by removing the rotor and lubricating from both sides. Alternating between spinning the rotor and applying the D-5, it completely silenced the rotor.
Using D-5 you will find the rotor still spins but no where near the speed as it would with 9010 or not lubricated at all.
I cannot imagine that the rotor would spin at the speed shown in your video if you used D-5. Possibly you applied an insufficient amount?

I have asked my watch Smith to use D5 after he applied 9010. Then asked him for 9014 as i was advised by a good member here. Then i asked him to use grease which i brought myself. Less noise but definitely not as i was hoping for

 

[Martycus]

I have asked my watch Smith to use D5 after he applied 9010. Then asked him for 9014 as i was advised by a good member here. Then i asked him to use grease which i brought myself. Less noise but definitely not as i was hoping for

...9014, D5, 9014 then grease ...

Did your watchsmith apply four different forms of lubrication atop each other or did he remove and cleaned before reapplying?

 

[gabro]

...9014, D5, 9014 then grease ...

Did your watchsmith apply four different forms of lubrication atop each other or did he remove and cleaned before reapplying?

I don't believe he has. This is the best i can't get so far


​https://streamable.com/t5c8v​​​​​​

 

[shamanblues999]

So, for those who have issues with this movement's rotor, I am sharing what worked for me. From a super loud annoying rotor noise to almost completely silent (like >95% improvement!). Many thanks to Nivka and Natas78 for their review and recs found at: https://forum.replica-watch.info/fo...782-how-to-silence-the-rotor-on-a-bp-nautilus
First, my watch is a ZF JLC master ultra thin moon, love this watch but didn't give it enough wrist time due to the super annoying noise created by the rotor. This thing was loud, I mean loud. So, short of getting rid of this watch, I decided to get it fixed. My local watch smith quoted me about $100 to fix this, so since we have all been quarantined at home, I decided to give this a try.
By no means I am a watch repair guy or an expert watch smith. But I do have some basic tools and a 'DIY' kindda attitude.
The guide above was extremely helpful, full credit to OP. The main advise is to have ALL the equipment you need, that is a safe quiet space, light, movement holder, magnifying tool, micro tools (red and black screw drivers), etc. As for the oil, this is a debate that many ppl have commented on the forum. So I will summarize here my research not only at RWI but other forums and good all google. Bottomline, you need a thick enough grease or oil to lubricate those tiny ball bearing in the rotor. Now, how to achieve it is the ?. I have to thank Nivka and Natas for their input. I ended up buying regular ball bearing grease (white lithium) from Amazon. First I thought about using Moebius D-5 (but as Natas suggested, its too thin), also Moebius 9010 and others were way too expensive (like over $40) and you really need a microscopic amount. Bottomline, I bought a generic ball bearing grease for literally less than 5 bucks and it the trick. Pics are below. Follow Nivka 's guide and you will be fine. Just be careful when you do this. A pulse of steal is required, those little screws are so freakin tiny that if you loose one in the movement, you'll be in trouble. Hope this helps others with this movement, it seems like independent of your watch, nautilus, JLC, etc, its the movement with the issue, but rest assured, its fixable! Stay safe everyone.
https://imgur.com/a/we2eEnw

 

[TurdNugget]

I love my BP v1 5711. The only negatives for me were the green tinge to the dial and the noisy rotor on the miyota movement. I saw a thread where someone oiled the rotor on their AP 15400 royal oak, which also uses a miyota movement and this inspired me to try the same.

Here's what I did with mine that made it as quiet as my eta and 21j based movements.

1. Order some oil online. I am not an expert by any means, but I've read that if you get the wrong oil or use too much of the right oil it can screw your watch. I used "moebius d5" that I got off ebay (see below). 1ml is more than enough. It is not technically the correct oil to use, but some experts chimed in that it was a little thicker so it would be less likely to spill elsewhere in the movement. Sounded perfect for a hack like me. Also, the thickness of the oil provides a little more friction so the rotor won't spin for 10 seconds after you move your wrist like mine did.

2. Remove a pin from the bracelet so you can get unobstructed access to the back of the watch.

3. Hack the movement then open the caseback. I used a sticky ball and it was easy to get off

4. Remove the three little screws in the very centre that hold the rotor in place. I used the red screwdriver.

5. Remove the rotor with a toothpick or rodicco, put it to the side and put the caseback back on (you don't need to fully tighten it, but you want to keep the dust out)

6. Flip the rotor over so you can see the underside (ie the side without the patek Philippe logo). You will see a gap with tiny little ball bearings (blue arrow) in it. That's where we want to lubricate to reduce the sound (red arrows)

7. Now we use the oil. You only need a teeny, tiny, incy, wincy bit. A drop would be way too much. Dip the tip of a toothpick in and scrape it over the edges of the bottle to remove most. Now dab the tip of the toothpick at 5 or so spots around that space over the ball bearings then spin the rotor for 30 secs using another toothpick (that doesn't have oil on it). Repeat that a few times. You can also oil the other side (green arrows) to try to get some oil in from both above and below.

8. After a few cycles of oiling and spinning, put the rotor back on, screw the screws back in (can be pretty fiddly), put the caseback on and see how it sounds. If it's still making too much noise, repeat steps 3-7 until you're happy.

9. Enjoy your quiet new nautilus.

I love you. Xoxo TURDNUGGET

 

[TurdNugget]

So, for those who have issues with this movement's rotor, I am sharing what worked for me. From a super loud annoying rotor noise to almost completely silent (like >95% improvement!). Many thanks to Nivka and Natas78 for their review and recs found at: https://forum.replica-watch.info/for...-a-bp-nautilus
First, my watch is a ZF JLC master ultra thin moon, love this watch but didn't give it enough wrist time due to the super annoying noise created by the rotor. This thing was loud, I mean loud. So, short of getting rid of this watch, I decided to get it fixed. My local watch smith quoted me about $100 to fix this, so since we have all been quarantined at home, I decided to give this a try.
By no means I am a watch repair guy or an expert watch smith. But I do have some basic tools and a 'DIY' kindda attitude.
The guide above was extremely helpful, full credit to OP. The main advise is to have ALL the equipment you need, that is a safe quiet space, light, movement holder, magnifying tool, micro tools (red and black screw drivers), etc. As for the oil, this is a debate that many ppl have commented on the forum. So I will summarize here my research not only at RWI but other forums and good all google. Bottomline, you need a thick enough grease or oil to lubricate those tiny ball bearing in the rotor. Now, how to achieve it is the ?. I have to thank Nivka and Natas for their input. I ended up buying regular ball bearing grease (white lithium) from Amazon. First I thought about using Moebius D-5 (but as Natas suggested, its too thin), also Moebius 9010 and others were way too expensive (like over $40) and you really need a microscopic amount. Bottomline, I bought a generic ball bearing grease for literally less than 5 bucks and it the trick. Pics are below. Follow Nivka 's guide and you will be fine. Just be careful when you do this. A pulse of steal is required, those little screws are so freakin tiny that if you loose one in the movement, you'll be in trouble. Hope this helps others with this movement, it seems like independent of your watch, nautilus, JLC, etc, its the movement with the issue, but rest assured, its fixable! Stay safe everyone.
https://imgur.com/a/we2eEnw

So glad you posted this update regarding the grease. I especially think that for novice watch repair folks, like me, grease will be much easier to work with. As you'd suggested I bought all my tools so I'll be ready. Also considering building a plexiglas box with arm holes to mitigate dust exposure while working on my watches

 

[OGHorology]

So many heated arguments on this wherever I look...

But at last, I found a full-proof method guaranteed to silence the rotor: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFVIuI4KzK0

On another note, has anyone given fomblin grease a shot?

 

[museguy]

So many heated arguments on this wherever I look...

But at last, I found a full-proof method guaranteed to silence the rotor: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFVIuI4KzK0

OGHorology


Thanks I needed that !

I must be a watch nerd to be laughing at videos of "how to silence a rotor"

Cheers