My Tool Kit
Details on the tools I purchased to learn watch building skills at a fair price — by no means the best quality, but a solid starter kit.
Key facts
- A beginner watch-building kit needs magnifying glasses, tweezers, screwdrivers, hand removers, hand pressers, a movement cushion, a dust blower and vinyl gloves.
- Wearable magnifying glasses with 4x to 25x magnification and an LED light are more useful than a small handheld loupe.
- Digital calipers let you measure parts before assembly, because a 0.1mm difference can stop a watch going together.
- A plastic food bag over the dial protects it while you lift the hands off with a hand remover.
- Cutting pliers trim dial feet and the stem, and long nose pliers hold the stem while you change the crown.
I will provide details on the tools I purchased on my adventure — by no means are these tools of the best quality, they are tools I have bought at a fair price to learn watch building skills. I am sure as this goes on I will end up upgrading these. So I am going to start by calling these beginner tools and once I learn more I will add more.
Beginner tools for watch building
Magnifying Glasses - I start with these because I think they are a must have, the set I purchased has a range of magnification starting at 4x up to 25x and also a LED light which makes the difference. I originally picked up just small magnifying loupes but being able to wear them makes a lot of difference.
Digital Calipers - A great tool that is easy to measure any watch parts to make sure it will go together. A small difference of 0.1mm can make a huge difference in watch making.
Tweezers - I purchased a set of these on Amazon and they are different tip sizes for picking up different parts. They work well and are better than a cheap tweezers I picked up. I soon noticed having a decent set of tweezers makes it a lot easier.
Hand Removers - Cheap and cheerful but does the job, hand remover tool that is easy to remove the hands. I place a plastic food bag over the dial and then use this tool to remove hands.
Hand Pressers - Simple set of 3 hand pressers of different sizes to apply hour, minute and second hands to the movement. These have different size holes on the end and you can push the hand onto the movement.
Dust Blower - Easy to use dust blower, it allows you to blow away specs on the dial and inside a watch case before putting the watch together.
Cushion for Movement - This just offers a place to put your movement on when you are placing the dial and hands. Allows you to move without having to keep picking up. Also once you have dial and hands you can put watch case over the top and flip.
Screwdrivers - Small screwdrivers that are good enough for taking the screws out of the movement or attaching the movement to the watch case.
Cutting Pliers - Used to cut the feet of dial. You can also use these to trim other parts. You can trim the stem with these too.
Long Nose Pliers - I used these to hold the stem to be able to change the crown and trim the size.
Vinyl Gloves - Just purchased from a local store but can be bought on eBay. These are a must for handling parts and movements.
Frequently asked questions
What tools do I need to start building watches?
A basic starter kit covers magnifying glasses, digital calipers, tweezers, small screwdrivers, a hand remover, a set of hand pressers, a movement cushion, a dust blower, cutting pliers, long nose pliers and vinyl gloves. Inexpensive versions are good enough to learn on, and you can upgrade later.
Do I need a loupe or magnifying glasses for watch building?
Some form of magnification is a must. Wearable magnifying glasses with a range of about 4x to 25x and a built-in LED light make a big difference compared with a small handheld loupe, because both hands stay free.
How do you remove watch hands without damaging the dial?
Place a plastic food bag over the dial to protect it, then use a hand remover tool to lift the hands off. A cheap hand remover does the job.
How do you fit hands on a watch movement?
Use hand pressers, which have different sized holes on the end to push the hour, minute and second hands onto the movement. A simple set of three sizes covers the usual hands.
Why should I wear gloves when building a watch?
Vinyl gloves are a must for handling parts and movements. They are cheap and easy to buy from a local store or online.
