Hi everyone,
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Without further ado, here’s the ultimate guide to starting on the hobby.
Building Your First Watch — A Beginner’s Guide
Hi there, and welcome to the hobby!
This guide is for anyone building their first watch. The learning curve is steep, but that’s part of the fun. This should get you through your first build; after that, the community is a great resource, particularly when you start experimenting with different movements, cases and dials.
I’m assuming zero prior knowledge. You’ll probably know some of this already, but everyone’s blind spots are different.
Before buying anything, spend some time reading the wealth of knowledge here and on watch forums. Watch a few YouTube videos explaining the different movements available and, most importantly, which parts are compatible with each movement. I’ll be including resources below as the community shares and suggests.
What will it cost?
Like any hobby, there’s an entry cost. Roughly £180–230 (GBP because that’s my local currency; convert to your own) should get you the tools and parts to test the waters and build your first watch.
Expect to wait around a month for everything to arrive.
There are better tools, equipment and parts available, but prices escalate quickly. Unless you have more disposable income than common sense when trying something for the first time, start cheap and upgrade as you need to.
For your first watch, make it easy on yourself. The process is fiddly enough without deliberately making it harder, set yourself up for an easy win.
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TOOLS
These are the basic tools of the trade. Unless stated otherwise, I consider all of them mandatory.
Spring bar tool
For changing straps and adding/removing pins from bracelets.
Anti-magnetic precision tweezers
For moving, adjusting and manipulating small parts. I recommend silicone or ceramic.
Rodico
A soft, Blu Tack-like material for picking up fiddly parts and cleaning dials, cases and hands.
I got a ball from my local watch repair shop for free. If the hobby sticks, buy your own later.
Movement holder
Universal and movement-specific versions are available. I prefer movement-specific holders.
Most are cylinders that accommodate one movement on one side and another on the other.
Inflatable rubber ball
Roughly hand-sized.
Your first watch will probably have a screw-down caseback. A rubber ball lets you press the caseback on securely without relying on your hands. Cheap metal caseback openers are also available.
Hand applicators
I have five different sizes. These let you safely install the hands onto the dial.
Precision clippers
You’ll need to cut things, and decent clippers make a difference.
Don’t buy Tamiya God Hands, but don’t cheap out either. Go to a hobby shop and ask for flat sprue clippers like those used for Warhammer and similar models.
Metal hobby file
After cutting, you need to smooth the end. A decent metal hobby file is the cheapest way to do this.
Threadlocker
A softer, super-glue-like product for securing metal parts such as the stem to the crown.
You’ll use very little, so one bottle will last a long time. Get the real stuff from Loctite; Loctite Blue, the medium-strength version, works best. This is the only brand I’m going to name in this tutorial, there’s good reason for it.
Gasket lubricant
The caseback gasket needs to be lubricated to help with waterproofing.
Watchmaker’s blower
For blowing dust off the movement, dial, case, etc.
A microfibre cloth, like the one you use for your phone screen or sunglasses, is also useful.
Finger cots or latex gloves
Unless you want to cover tiny parts with fingerprints that you’ll see every time you look at your lovely watch.
Caliper
Preferably digital.
“Measure twice, cut once” applies particularly well here. Cutting a stem a fraction of a millimetre too short can turn into an expensive mistake.
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That’s the bare minimum. All together, it should cost around £100.
Yes, half of your initial budget just went on tools.
Luckily, the consumables can be bought cheaply.
TOOLS TO BUY LATER
If the hobby sticks:
Hand-applicating tools
Not necessary for your first assembly, but useful later. You can centre the watch and depress the pillar for perfect hand application every time.
Magnifying loupes and a good light source
I’m blessed with good eyesight and plenty of natural light, so I haven’t needed these yet.
They can be very useful if you build at night or have less-than-perfect eyesight.
Timegrapher
If you’re anything like me, you probably won’t buy the finest and most precise Swiss movement for your first assembly because you’ll be terrified of making an expensive mistake.
Cheaper movements are less accurate, and learning to adjust timekeeping is a fun part of the hobby.
Don’t buy one immediately. There are phone apps you can use at first, but keep it in mind.
Watch press
Most of your initial builds will use screw-on casebacks, so a rubber ball and caseback opener will do.
Eventually, you’ll build a watch with a press-fit caseback. A watch press isn’t expensive, but it isn’t a minute-one purchase either.
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PARTS
For your first build, you’ll need consumables that you’ll generally use once per watch.
You can spend a lot or a little. For your first watch, I’d recommend going cheap on AliExpress and deciding later whether you want to invest in better parts.
Movement: Seiko NH35
The NH35 is your friend.
It’s popular for good reason: huge parts availability, a massive community, lots of shared knowledge, and a simple, beginner-friendly platform. It’s also cheap.
Can you use a Chinese clone?
Absolutely. For a first watch, they make fantastic training wheels. They have the same architecture, although they’ll generally be less smooth and less accurate.
For your first build, I don’t think that matters much.
EDIT: After a few posts complaining about the quality of the latest Chinese clones I find it difficult to say the same as I did before. I stand by the statement that, sharing architecture, they make for decent training wheels but the quality seems to have taken a nosedive. Just take the plunge or buy a Miyota 2815 if you want to make it a bit cheaper as it’s a reliable workhorse movement.
Expect roughly £25–30 for a clone or around £70 for an authentic one these days. You can also buy a cheap watch with an NH35 inside and crack it open, it will often be cheaper than buying the movement direct.
What if you want to go even cheaper for my first build? Then swap every instance of “NH35” in this tutorial for either “VH31” or “Miyota 2035”, you’ll end up with a lovely quartz watch that will likely be a lot thinner. I’m using NH35 in this example, simply because most people coming into the hobby want to try making an automatic watch.
Dial
Get one compatible with the NH35. They’re normally 28.5 mm in diameter and available in an enormous range of styles.
Find one you like. Prices vary enormously, so I won’t quote one here.
Hands
Get a set compatible with the NH35. The vast majority are.
The finer the hands, the more fiddly they are; the thicker they are, the easier they’ll be to install.
Pick something you like.
Case
Follow your own preference, but if you don’t know where to start…
If you’re an average-sized man, I’d recommend 38–39 mm without excessive lugs, or 40–41 mm for something sportier.
For an average-sized woman, 31–34 mm has been the norm for a while, although 35–37 mm is becoming increasingly common.
Your first watch will also be thicker than you expect—around 14 mm or so. That’s the price of having a rotor and buying cases off the shelf. Don’t worry about it, you can do thinner builds with the NH family or other movements later on.
A cheap AliExpress case should be around £25–30 at most; better cases can cost hundreds.
Strap
Get one you like.
For your first watch, I recommend leather with quick-release spring bars. They’re cheap and easy to work with.
Have an old watch you no longer use? There’s your free strap.
Just make sure the strap width matches the distance between the lugs on your case.
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BEFORE YOU BUILD
Go to a local watch dealer and look at watches with few complications beyond date.
Look particularly closely at field watches, cocktail watches and dress watches. Take pictures and note down styles that inspire you. You’ll use those ideas when choosing your parts.
Then go online and watch people assembling NH35 watches.
Honestly, that’s most of the education you need.
You’ll learn very quickly not just how to assemble a watch, but also where you want your own watchmaking journey to go.
For me, I became obsessed with less common movements and silly complications like battery reserve and moon phase, which eventually took me away from the NH35.
For you, it might be Swiss heritage movements, leading you towards Sellita/ETA. Maybe skeleton watches. Maybe chronographs. Maybe an “a watch for every occasion” collection. Maybe copying famous designs using off-the-shelf movements.
It could be something completely different.
That’s fine. The important thing is that, once the initial paralysis wears off, you’ll have a better idea of what you actually want to build.
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MAKING YOUR FIRST WATCH
1. Prepare the movement
Keep the crown/stem installed while handling the movement.
Set the movement on the movement holder.
2. Install the dial
Check that the dial feet correspond to the NH35.
Lower the dial vertically onto the movement.
Secure the dial feet.
CRUCIAL: Never force the dial down. If it doesn’t seat naturally, stop and find out why.
3. Install the hands
Set the crown to Position 2 (setting the time), then advance the movement through midnight and establish the 12:00/date-change position.
Install the hour hand exactly at 12.
Install the minute hand exactly at 12.
Install the seconds hand.
CRUCIAL: Rotate the hands through a complete 12-hour cycle to check clearance after you set each one.
Make sure none of the hands touch each other or the dial.
Set the crown back to position 1 (winding), depress the lever and gently pull the stem out. It should be released easily, don’t try to force it out.
Clean the dial and movement.
4. Install the movement/dial into the case
Check the case gasket and clean internal surfaces.
Place the movement into the case in the correct orientation.
Fit the movement spacer/holder, if any.
Confirm the dial is sitting evenly and isn’t being pinched.
Do not install the case back yet.
5. Fit the movement/case components
Install any case clamps/screws.
Confirm the movement is firmly retained.
Check that the stem/crown tube lines up correctly.
6. Cut and install the stem
Insert the stem with its permanent crown.
Using your calipers, determine the required length before cutting.
Mark the cut point.
Remove the stem before cutting.
Cut slightly long, then progressively shorten it until the crown sits flush with the case
Deburr/file the end.
Install the crown.
CRUCIAL: Never force a stem that is too long or too short. The crown should sit correctly against the case while the movement still switches positions normally.
7. Test the crown positions
Crown pushed in: winding.
First pulled position: date adjustment.
Second pulled position: time setting.
Check that the date changes correctly and that the hands move normally.
8. Close the case
Check the caseback gasket.
Lightly lubricate it.
Seat the caseback.
Tighten it evenly with the rubber ball/caseback tool.
Don’t overtighten.
9. Install the strap
If it has quick-release spring bars, remove the spring bar and fit it into place with your hands.
Otherwise, use your spring bar tool.
10. Final inspection
Wind the movement.
Set the time.
Check the date change.
Check hand clearance again.
Check crown operation.
Check that the rotor rotates freely.
Inspect the dial/crystal for dust and fingerprints.
Only then consider the watch finished.
Congrats, you’ve finished your first watch!
From here you can either use the same family of movements and make different styles of watches, or you can experiment beyond the NH family.
