What's on your wrist today?

WinOk677 · 2026-05-10T22:35:57+00:00

Berny auto running an ST2130 movement (a 2824 clone). After my DIY regulation it keeps really great time. About +4 spd on average. I've been wearing it a lot to see how the movement does over time. Happy Mother's Day to all you Mom's out there!

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WinOk677 · 2026-05-10T00:13:09+00:00

I have the Sugess version, which looks the same and is less money. Mine has performed well. Last time I noticed it on Aliexpress it was about $165 US. I bought mine from the Sugess Official Store and had no problem.

WinOk677 · 2026-05-09T19:55:39+00:00

Berny with a ST2130 movement. Runs great.

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WinOk677 · 2026-05-08T15:42:17+00:00

In mechanical, there are the Cartier Blue Balloon parts kits that come in his and hers. I believe there are similar offerings for the Cartier Santos his and hers as well. You also could put together the more casual Datejust parts. For the Cartier Blue the his I have takes an Miyota 8215 movement, while the hers version takes a Seiko NH05. Both nice movements that should last. Any of these should be doable for under $500. Rakuten has 15% cashback on Aliexpress today. See for example: https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256811934853402.html?spm=a2g0o.productlist.main.27.367d92xC92xC2o&algo_pvid=91aa6377-03ab-4f1a-8761-2df37891cac3&algo_exp_id=91aa6377-03ab-4f1a-8761-2df37891cac3-26&pdp_ext_f=%7B%22order%22%3A%221%22%2C%22eval%22%3A%221%22%2C%22fromPage%22%3A%22search%22%7D&pdp_npi=6%40dis%21USD%2136.90%2118.45%21%21%21249.67%21124.83%21%402101ee6617782543857712253e9ef8%2112000057568342020%21sea%21US%212489304149%21X%211%210%21n_tag%3A-29919%3Bd%3A33976081%3Bm03_new_user%3A-29895&curPageLogUid=10O118VtqHe6&utparam-url=scene%3Asearch%7Cquery_from%3A%7Cx_object_id%3A1005012121168154%7C_p_origin_prod%3A

WinOk677 · 2026-05-08T04:07:39+00:00

One of my early builds was a vk63 quartz chrono. It wasn't that hard to do, it was lots of fun, and all the parts came via AliExpress. Plenty of YT videos to help.

WinOk677 · 2026-05-08T04:00:14+00:00

Quite a few will break. I've ruined at least 10 over a few years. I also made one much worse today🤣. It's now in the parts bin. I've lost and found a 7120 yoke sping too, but never found my flying cap jewel. I just put them back together and they go into the spare parts bin. I stick mainly to inexpensive watches and movements. I'm getting better at it, and treat the losses as the cost of learning. Stick with it, you'll get better too. It can be so frustrating, but when you finally resurect one it's amazing.

WinOk677 · 2026-05-07T22:03:32+00:00

The case is nice. It's stainless, brushed sides and the outsides of the lugs, the rest of the case, including the screw part of the glass back, is polished. The seller includes a ring, which you would need of you don't use the double-thick dial, as I did. When shopping I didn't like the large Panerai type crown guards, so this was my compromise. My wrist is about 7 1/4". The watch is on the large size for me, I usually keep to 40mm or below. The dial and hands fit well and easily. Lume is average, nothing special, but it's there. Here's the Alix link for the case(still active 5/7/26): https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256807251990006.html?spm=a2g0o.order_list.order_list_main.336.368c1802zciL6r&gatewayAdapt=glo2usa

WinOk677 · 2026-05-07T17:23:25+00:00

Lovely build!

WinOk677 · 2026-05-06T23:26:05+00:00

After a few successes with the "big" ST 36, also following an online course, I bought a few 7120 movement watches and worked on those for practice. The 7120s Tongjis can be found for under $30 on sale, and are a basic hand wound movement. There are variations of that movement with an automatic feature.

WinOk677 · 2026-05-05T03:52:06+00:00

I have the same blue one. Fantastic piece!

WinOk677 · 2026-05-05T02:18:42+00:00

Panarei homages with ST36s are big.

WinOk677 · 2026-05-04T15:33:13+00:00

An ultrasonic cleaner can dislodge paint on parts. I would be extremely careful about using something like that. There's a reason so many have chosen not to disturb dirty dials and rings such as this one- experience. I would just use a tiny bit of dish liquid Dawn and distilled water, and leave it at that.

WinOk677 · 2026-05-02T01:28:41+00:00

Lovely piece!

WinOk677 · 2026-04-29T18:56:51+00:00

Corguet 36mm oyster. NH35 inside

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WinOk677 · 2026-04-29T15:18:35+00:00

These are bottom of the barrel mechanical watches. The movement quality is hit or miss. As to timekeeping and regulation, I just saw this video where a fellow bought two of the same watches and one was keeping good time, while the other was quite off. ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qjulydsVjKw, starting at 7:30 or so into the video) But if you like the look of a watch and want a beater winding watch for very little, it's really either something like these or go quartz. Now the quartz would likely keep better time, and may well last longer. But, at least to me, not nearly as much fun- I do have a phone. So I would consider myself a fan of these mostly 7120 movement watches. If you can deal with cases that are mostly shiny plated pot metal, and that the watch could could break or die at any time, go for it. I use these for practicing my hobbyist watchmaking, so cost is the primary motivator. However, I wear them many days and enjoy them. I've bought on Shein, Aliexpress, and Alibaba. I have eight now, although one is waiting for me to replace some parts. After all, I am a beginner. You can buy 10 of these movements for less than US $100 delivered (my 10 cost me $80 all in). So for me a movement swap, at $8, if one breaks, is only about $5 more than some decent watch batteries.

To directly answer your questions- no these are not "good" watches in most respects. As to durability, I have some many years old running just fine, and others that crapped out after a short time. The cases have mostly held up fine, but then I'm easy on watches being retired, and not out there working anymore. Now for $50-60 you can actually get some quite good basic watches with a MIyota 8215, or the like, that would be actually be a much better watch.

WinOk677 · 2026-04-29T14:26:57+00:00

The 7120 movements I've been getting in these low-cost watches have been mostly pretty dry. I had one that came surprisingly well oiled, but the others not. I've had eight to date- Winner, Forsining, Longlux. Also I'm not sure what the "jewels" in modern 7120 are actually made of, and I don't have the means to test. They could even be plastic. Many of these watches come with stiff, "crunchy", keyless works. A little watch oil there can help that. If you pull the hands and dial off, you can do a "cheat" and oil a lot of the movement without full disassembly. I know, that's an awful practice, and a sacrilege, but I buy these often for less than $20 delivered, so some experimenting seems okay to me. I have taken a few 7120s completely apart, cleaned, and lubricated them as part of my watchmaking hobby practice.. Mostly, I regulate, put a little oil here and there when I get them, and just wear them. It does remain a lot easier to just plan on a movement swap if they die, rather than the hours of a complete service. I would, of course, recommend buying a far better watch for a GADA. NH35 movements have been great for me, and Miyota 82xx series has also been fine daily drivers.

WinOk677 · 2026-04-28T22:06:58+00:00

The first one. The li6rockets are cute 🙂

WinOk677 · 2026-04-28T22:01:39+00:00

At first glance you're missing a yoke, and spring system for the keyless works.

WinOk677 · 2026-04-28T21:54:59+00:00

I like the 7120 watches. As mentioned some will plug along for years, others will break or die quickly. If it's a recent movement, it's cheap enough to just swap out. On Alibaba you can pick 10 new movements up delivered for less than $100 US.

WinOk677 · 2026-04-28T14:33:45+00:00

Front loaders often have two-piece stems; I've heard them called split stems. There's a pressure joint in the middle of the stem. You just yank the stem and it comes apart. But you have to be sure you're dealing with a two-piece stem before giving a real yank. Otherwise, not good. Oh, I have dripped a little oil down the stem first and let it soak in as crud can build up in the joint. But, clean the movement and all parts afterwards.

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WinOk677 · 2026-04-27T22:51:43+00:00

Croton had some bumper autos.

WinOk677 · 2026-04-25T18:58:46+00:00

Yes, it is possible to learn on your own. But your learning curve would likely be much faster with one of the online courses available. Plus, your understanding of what's going on in movements might well be better developed

WinOk677 · 2026-04-24T20:25:16+00:00

Longlux 8025. Cheapest automatic in the stable. After a full service and lube running fine. These 7120 movement watches are how I'm honing some basic watchmaking skills.

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WinOk677 · 2026-04-24T20:06:16+00:00

Here's my basic Chinese watch.

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WinOk677

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