One of the questions that comes up time and again among people getting into watchmaking is:
**“Which watchmaking tools do I actually need?”**
There isn’t a single straightforward answer, because the tools you need depend entirely on the work you intend to carry out.
If your aim is simply to practise dismantling and rebuilding a loose mechanical movement, you can begin with a relatively small collection of tools. If, however, you want to service a complete watch properly — removing the movement from its case, taking off the hands and dial, dismantling the calibre, cleaning it, lubricating it, regulating it and finally casing it again — your toolkit will naturally need to be considerably larger.
Rather than buying everything at once, it makes much more sense to build your watchmaking toolkit in stages.
## STAGE I: DISMANTLING A BARE WATCH MOVEMENT
Good tools are one of the areas where it rarely pays to buy the absolute cheapest option available.
That does not mean a beginner needs to spend hundreds of pounds on every tool. It simply means choosing equipment that is sufficiently well made to do the job properly. Poor screwdrivers and tweezers can damage screws, scratch bridges, send tiny components across the room and generally make learning far more difficult than it needs to be.
Anyone intending to work professionally should consider investing in professional-quality equipment from the beginning. Hobbyists working on inexpensive or vintage movements can save money in certain areas, particularly on some of the less critical equipment covered later.
For your first practice movement, ideally start with a movement that has already been removed from its case and has no dial or hands fitted.
You will need a movement holder to keep it secure while you work. A watchmaker's loupe allows you to see the small components clearly, while a decent set of precision screwdrivers and fine tweezers will handle most of the actual dismantling. A covered parts tray is also extremely useful for keeping screws, wheels, bridges and other components organised.
With these basic items you can dismantle a simple movement and practise putting it back together.
### Basic Starter Toolkit
1. **Movement holder** — approximately **£15–£25**
2. **Covered movement/parts tray** — approximately **£5–£10**
3. **4× watchmaker's loupe** — approximately **£8–£15**
4. **Loupe headband or holder** — approximately **£4–£8**
5. **Quality No. 2 anti-magnetic tweezers** — approximately **£15–£25**
6. **Precision watchmaker's screwdriver set** — approximately **£45–£70**
7. **Optional heavy-duty brass tweezers or pin vice** — approximately **£5–£20**
For screwdrivers, useful sizes include **0.50 mm, 0.60 mm, 0.80 mm, 1.00 mm, 1.20 mm and 1.40 mm**. You may not need every size immediately, but these will cover a considerable amount of ordinary mechanical watch work.
### Don't Cut Corners on Tweezers
If there is one tool worth spending a little extra on, it is your tweezers.
Very cheap tweezers often have poorly aligned tips, weak tension or rough finishing. When you're dealing with screws and components only a few millimetres across, that quickly becomes frustrating.
A good pair of Swiss-style No. 2 tweezers makes an excellent general-purpose choice. Later, when you begin working on balance assemblies and hairsprings, you'll probably want a finer No. 5 pair as well.
### Choosing Screwdrivers
You don't necessarily need an expensive boxed screwdriver set.
Buying individual screwdrivers in the sizes you actually use can sometimes provide better value. The quality and condition of the blade matters enormously, so replacement blades are worth keeping on hand.
For most general work, **0.60 mm to 1.40 mm** will cover many jobs. A **0.50 mm** screwdriver becomes particularly useful once you progress to finer work around balance assemblies and shock settings.
At this stage, your basic kit isn't intended for removing and refitting mainsprings. You can inspect a barrel, but proper mainspring work is better left until you have suitable winding equipment.
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# STAGE II: WORKING ON A COMPLETE WATCH
Once you move from loose movements to complete watches, several additional jobs have to be considered.
You need to open the case without scratching it, remove the stem and movement, protect the dial, remove the hands without bending them and eventually reinstall everything correctly.
Vintage watches may also require acrylic crystals to be removed or replaced.
Your Stage I equipment remains necessary, but you'll now want to add several case and dial tools.
### Additional Tools
1. **Adjustable screw-back case wrench** — approximately **£15–£30**
2. **Watch case knife for snap-on backs** — approximately **£10–£20**
3. **Dial protector** — approximately **£2–£5**
4. **Presto-style hand remover** — approximately **£5–£40**
5. **Hand-setting tools** — approximately **£5–£30**
6. **Crystal lift for acrylic crystals** — approximately **£20–£55**
Case-opening tools are an area where quality can vary enormously.
A cheap adjustable case wrench may work perfectly well, but poorly manufactured examples can slip. A slipping case opener can badly scratch a case back, so practise on inexpensive watches before attempting to open anything valuable.
The same applies to hand removers. Budget Presto-style tools can be perfectly adequate for hobby use if they're properly made and adjusted. Someone regularly servicing expensive watches may find professional Swiss equipment a worthwhile investment.
A **dial protector is essential**. They're inexpensive and can prevent an expensive mistake when removing hands.
Hand-setting tools are equally useful when rebuilding the watch, allowing the hour, minute and seconds hands to be fitted squarely and carefully.
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# NEXT STEP: MAKING YOUR WORKBENCH EASIER TO USE
If you've dismantled and rebuilt a few movements and you're still enjoying yourself — despite the occasional disappearing screw or troublesome hairspring — you'll probably be ready to expand your setup.
This is where you can begin looking at balance work, shock settings, mainspring servicing and eventually proper cleaning and lubrication.
An appropriate working height also becomes surprisingly important.
Professional watchmaker's benches can be expensive, but a raised tabletop watchmaking bench can provide a good alternative for a home workshop.
### Useful Workshop Additions
1. **Tabletop watchmaker's bench or raised work platform** — approximately **£60–£100**
2. **Mainspring winders** — approximately **£25+ per set**
3. **Pithwood** — approximately **£5–£10**
4. **Pegwood** — approximately **£5–£10**
5. **Rodico or similar cleaning putty** — approximately **£5–£8**
6. **10× loupe** — approximately **£10–£20**
7. **Fine No. 5 watchmaker's tweezers** — approximately **£15–£30**
8. **Lint-free watch paper** — approximately **£5–£10**
9. **0.50 mm precision screwdriver** — approximately **£8–£15**
10. **Dust blower** — approximately **£5–£15**
### Mainspring Winders
Mainspring winders become important once you begin carrying out complete mechanical servicing.
Unfortunately, good new sets can be expensive.
For hobby watchmaking, second-hand or vintage winders can represent much better value, provided they're in usable condition.
Wristwatch and pocket-watch mainsprings cover substantially different sizes, so someone intending to work on both may eventually need separate sets.
A usable second-hand set might begin at roughly **£25–£40**, although complete professional sets can cost considerably more.
Check the hooks carefully when buying vintage examples. Wear to the hooks is common and can make otherwise attractive sets difficult to use.
### Small Consumables That Make a Big Difference
Pegwood, pithwood and cleaning putty such as Rodico are inexpensive but extremely useful.
Pegwood has countless uses around the bench, including cleaning jewel holes and removing deposits. Pithwood is particularly useful for cleaning screwdriver and tweezer tips, while watchmaker's cleaning putty can pick up dust, fingerprints and small particles.
Lint-free watch paper is another inexpensive item worth keeping on the bench.
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# STAGE III: INTRODUCTION TO MOVEMENT CLEANING
Cleaning is where watch servicing becomes considerably more involved.
There are several accepted approaches, and the appropriate method depends partly on the age, construction and condition of the movement.
An ultrasonic cleaner can be useful for suitable components, but it should not automatically be used on everything.
Older movements may have delicate plating or surface finishes which can be damaged by aggressive cleaning methods. Vintage components therefore need to be assessed individually rather than simply being placed into an ultrasonic cleaner.
Professional watch-cleaning machines are available, but beginners often start with a small ultrasonic unit.
### Basic Cleaning Setup
1. **Small ultrasonic cleaner** — approximately **£40–£70**
2. **Watch movement cleaning solution** — approximately **£30–£40**
3. **Watch movement rinsing solution** — approximately **£30–£40**
4. **Small glass cleaning jars** — approximately **£5–£10**
5. **Cleaning baskets** — approximately **£20–£35 for budget sets**
6. **Chemical-resistant gloves** — approximately **£5–£15**
7. **Hairspring/jewel cleaning solution** — approximately **£10–£20**
8. **Lint-free watch paper** — approximately **£5–£10**
9. **Second covered parts tray** — approximately **£5–£10**
A practical arrangement is to have separate containers for the cleaning solution and rinses. Keeping dirty and cleaned components separate is equally important, which is why having two covered parts trays is useful.
Budget cleaning baskets can work, but inspect them carefully. Very small watch components can become trapped in poorly manufactured mesh or gaps.
Professional Swiss baskets cost considerably more, but their construction tends to be more consistent.
### A Word of Caution
Watch-cleaning chemicals should be treated with respect.
Wear appropriate gloves, work in a properly ventilated area and follow the manufacturer's safety instructions. Some specialist cleaning products produce vapours that shouldn't be inhaled.
Never assume that a cleaning method suitable for a relatively modern movement is automatically safe for a much older one.
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# STAGE IV: OILING AND LUBRICATION
Cleaning a mechanical movement is only part of a service. Once the movement has been cleaned and you're rebuilding it, the appropriate points need to be lubricated correctly.
For beginners, the two main pieces of equipment are **watchmaker's oilers and oil cups**.
You don't need to spend a fortune to get started.
### Basic Lubrication Tools
1. **Individual precision oilers** — approximately **£3–£6 each**
2. **Set of four watchmaker's oilers** — approximately **£10–£20**
3. **Three-compartment oil cup** — approximately **£5–£15**
Different oiler designs use different tip profiles, and you'll eventually develop a preference as your technique improves.
For ordinary servicing, a small selection of good-quality oilers will handle most lubrication jobs.
Very fine lubrication work may eventually justify more specialised equipment, but it isn't necessary to purchase everything when you're first learning.
### Which Watch Oil Should You Buy?
Lubricants deserve a subject of their own.
Different parts of a mechanical watch operate under different loads and conditions, which means there isn't one universal oil that should simply be applied everywhere.
Brands such as **Moebius** are widely associated with professional watch servicing, while various alternatives are also available.
Rather than purchasing numerous lubricants immediately, first determine which movements you're planning to service and consult the relevant technical information or lubrication charts where available.
Correct lubrication involves more than choosing the right product. **The quantity applied matters just as much.** Too much lubricant can cause problems just as easily as too little.
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# HOW MUCH SHOULD A BEGINNER EXPECT TO SPEND?
You don't need to purchase an entire professional workshop before dismantling your first movement.
A sensible approach is to build your equipment gradually.
For roughly **£100–£150**, you can assemble a respectable basic toolkit for practising on bare mechanical movements.
Moving towards complete watch servicing may bring your overall investment to around **£200–£350**, depending on the quality of the case-opening, hand-removal and cleaning equipment you choose.
Once you add mainspring winders, cleaning equipment, lubricants and more specialised tools, it's quite easy for a serious hobbyist's workshop to exceed **£500**.
A professional setup can cost considerably more.
The important thing is to buy tools as you develop the skills that require them rather than filling a toolbox with expensive equipment you don't yet know how to use.
Start with a straightforward movement, learn how its components interact, practise careful dismantling and reassembly, and expand your equipment as your abilities improve.
A small collection of dependable tools that you know how to use is far more valuable than a drawer full of expensive equipment.
**More sections can then cover specialist equipment for timing and regulation, demagnetising, pressure testing, crystal fitting, balance and hairspring work, staking, jewelling, mainspring servicing and professional workshop equipment.**
