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Escapements used by McCabe |
| Apart from the duplex, the firm were conservative in selection and use of
escapements. That is, they used only well established and well developed types.
The escapements used were the verge, cylinder, duplex, Savage two pin lever, table roller lever and spring detent. Notable exceptions to this list are the rack lever, which was never popular with London makers, and more surprisingly Massey levers. It may be that the small fee due to Massey dissuaded them from using it. No examples of watches marked "Patent" (indicating a fee had been paid) have been seen. |
| Escapement | First Known | Last Known |
|---|---|---|
| Verge | 1775 - No. 431M | 1834 - No. 14186M |
| Cylinder | 1781 - No. 1095M | 1830 - No. 13641 |
| Duplex | 1785 - No. 1930M | 1868 - No. 06099 |
| Spring Detent | 1807 - No. 6183 | 1876 - No. 08079 |
| Savage Two Pin | 1832 - No. 13616 | 1868 - No. 06016 |
| Lever (SS) | 1839 - No. 16109 | 1878 - No. 08946 |
| "M" indicates re-case or movement only. | ||
| In the second half of the 18th Century Irish makers seem to have used cylinder escapements in their work in far greater proportion than in England. Although James used the cylinder escapement in his watches he seems to have favoured the duplex from an early date. The escapement was patented in 1782 by Thomas Tyrer of London. The earliest known example by McCabe is movement 1930 produced circa 1785. A number of authors credit McCabe with refining and developing the duplex, which is supported by the late 18th Century examples by McCabe known to have jewelled impulse pallets, a particularly rare feature. The duplex escapement was still used in the 1870s, being favoured for watches with complications. |
| The firm did not adopt the lever escapement for some time. The Savage two-pin lever escapement appears to be the first type used, the earliest known being the one in this catalogue hallmarked 1832. The latest, is a jewelled type hallmarked 1868. Most of the examples however date before 1840 when the table roller lever was adopted. The earliest example of a table roller lever appears to be 16109, hallmarked 1839. Two of the "lever" movements in the Ilbert collection (No.12981 - c. 1829, and No. 15039 - c.1837) were examined. The work in No. 12981 is typical of McCabe's best duplexes and the SS is missing from the front plate. In all probability this watch was converted from duplex to lever. No. 15039 is an enigma, the SS is missing from the front plate and it does not appear to have originally been a duplex. One possibility is that the escapement was originally a Savage two pin with a later conversion to lever. This type of conversion is easy to make and difficult to detect. |
| The majority of the table roller levers are in three quarter plate movements. All but the earliest one of the full plate examples are signed only "McCabe" and said therefore to be "second line" watches. Rarer are an unusual calibre with recessed balances. Of the limited number of levers examined after number 16213, all (bar one which is possibly converted) have been marked "SS". |
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