Curious minds wonder how watches work, what inside them. Or you may just want to replace battery to save money. Here is what you need to reveal the secret of a watch.
1- You need the proper tool to open a particular caseback. First type is snap-on caseback. This type is simply pressed on to be seated on the case. So you need a prying tool like this.
Pressure fit or snap-on casebacks have an indentation or teeth like below. You just need to find it and place your prying tool there.
And you just need to force it out. Do not be scared you can not hurt it. How to close it? Well simply place it back on push it with your finder until you hear a fairly loud “click”. Be careful about the gasket.
2- Most common type is screw-in casebacks and they provide a good level of water proofing with proper gaskets. Here is a submariner type screw-in caseback.
You need a wrench tool like this.
Since screw-in casebacks are not easy to open and requires quite a force you need some clamp like below to hold the watch.
Now you can put the wrench on the caseback and open up your watch.
3- Most common casebacks are screw in and comes with grooves for removal by a adjustable wrench like the one below. You can replace the tips and adjust the size based on the type and size of the grooves on the caseback.
After properly sizing you just place it on the caseaback.
Of course you need a clamp again. Pro-tip; place a cloth on the clamp to save the delicate parts of your watch. Aluminium bezel insert are very easy to scratch.
Where to find these tools? It is an easy task. If you go to “largest” shopping websites and search for “caseback opening tool” you will see all three type of the tools on the first page. You may need to search for “submariner caseback opener” for the submariner style caseback wrench, because it is not very common on most watches.
