Welcome to the Dark Side of Modding
Now, many of you know about the joys of building your own watch, modding, or simply being able to perform some basic repairs. YouTube instructions are readily available, and it is actually a very straight-forward process. What is less talked about are the pitfalls, these pitfalls you become victim of, if not careful. Shall we take a peek?
It's not me, it's you. (Quality of Components)
Now, there are plenty of ways to mess things up, but you will have to realize that sometimes you are dealing with faulty or low-quality components.
You will notice in the picture above that the 12 o'clock marker is crooked. This was also supposed to be a no-logo dial. Did I use the dial? Yes, because I wanted to mod that day. Looking back it was a waste of time, because nothing I did would make it "right".
I recently tried to install an seconds hand for about 45 minutes, until I tried a different one that I was able to place in three minutes. Sometimes components just don't work. The only way to avoid unnecessary wait time is to have a back-up supply.
Trying to make it work when they clearly won't
Notice anything about this hour hand? Well, it wasn't shipped in a hard container, and I didn't inspect it thoroughly enough. During my very first modding attempt, I tried to correct a slight vertical curve while it was already installed. The results speak for themselves. I put the watch together anyhow, and it festered in my watch case for a little bit, before I was ready to overhaul completely. In summary: It is unlikely you can fix on the fly what was wrong from the start.
Dial Protection (Taking Shortcuts)
Okay, what you see here is a rather nice dial, some specs of dust, but also a series of scratches. This is a matte dial that was rather sensitive to scratching, but it was my own foolishness of not using a dial protector that caused this damage. This was about $40 down the drain.
Good on Paper
You do everything by the book, and everything should fit. And it does, but obviously there was still a variance unaccounted for. Look at the minute ring and how the numbers are cut off. We are talking a fraction of a millimeter here. The question becomes: "Can you live with it?"
The School of YouTube
There is plenty of excellent content on YouTube, but the issue is that an aspiring modder has a hard time discerning what is right and what is not. I remember somebody using a kitchen knife as a tool when working on a watch. The other aspect is that risks are often poorly explained. Plenty can go wrong when regulating a watch, and if you slip off the regulating lever onto the balance wheel and hairspring, the results could be ... well, hairy. I remember exactly one YouTuber who admitted he had to seek the services of a watchmaker after a modding attempt, and I give him credit for that.
What are your experiences, is there anything I forgot? (I'm sure there is.)
I'd say my biggest frustrations are:
I also ran into 4. and 5., just forgot about it. Sometimes these scratches seem to be some form of machining mark, but in the end this is more or less a semantic difference. Yes, the hands can be very tight, sometimes vertically with raised markers that are pushing the limit.
I don't think I've hand anything fall off yet. Keeping my fingers crossed. 😉
some of my friend that do watch mod tend to use professional help as they didnt have proper tool, steady hand, and most of the aftermarket part are expensive.
some of my friend that do watch mod tend to use professional help as they didnt have proper tool, steady hand, and most of the aftermarket part are expensive.
Yeah, I can see that. There is plenty of stuff that goes well, and I'm wearing what I mod on a regular basis. I just want to call out some of the pitfalls that may occur. (No need for somebody to do the same mistakes I did.)
Bezel removal!! It just sucks!!!
I used to do a lot of modding. If it can go wrong it will, from pinching a crystal gasket, to cutting a stem too short. Sometimes what you consider the simplest thing can be the trickiest.
Here's my tip for setting a seconds hand in a video I made years ago. https://youtu.be/kammiYRYdB0
I used to do a lot of modding. If it can go wrong it will, from pinching a crystal gasket, to cutting a stem too short. Sometimes what you consider the simplest thing can be the trickiest.
Here's my tip for setting a seconds hand in a video I made years ago. https://youtu.be/kammiYRYdB0
I normally just lift the seconds hand onto the post, and just press. I think I've tried with too much Rodico in the past, which made it tricky. But in any case, let me try this with the next build. Thank you!
Tried @Tunokies trick today, but to no avail, meaning that the seconds hands simply tilted and did not slip over the pinion. I thought it was me, then took another seconds hand, and had it installed within 30 seconds. I've ordered a replacement hand, because I will change it eventually.
At least the watch was easy to regulate:
Screw driver tip broke off.
vostok date spring flew across the desk never to be found agai.
I freaking love days like these.
but in the end it’s all just fun!
so keep it on!
cheers!
Screw driver tip broke off.
vostok date spring flew across the desk never to be found agai.
I freaking love days like these.
but in the end it’s all just fun!
so keep it on!
cheers!
Well, I know how that feels. A bridge that was under tension, and I didn't realize. A screw goes flying off the desk, never to be seen again. But you are right, it is about the fun of changing things up, and to be an active part of what your watch becomes. These setbacks are in a sense just "battle scars".
Here is another good one: I'm modding a watch, all goes absolutely fine, and I'm happy with the results. The seconds hand goes on smoothly, and runs just fine. I case the watch and put it on the timegrapher to see if the spd has shifted.
But oh my, the amplitude is very low, and what have I done? It runs at about -30 spd? After I realized that amplitude drifted for unexplainable reasons did I ask myself the question: "Was the watch simply running from the movement when I picked it up, or did I wind it all the way?"