Okay, so my Bulova Precisionist watch stopped ticking. First thing I thought was, “Dang, the battery’s dead.” I love this watch, it’s got this cool sweeping seconds hand, not that jumpy ticking like most quartz watches. But that smooth motion apparently needs more juice, so the battery life isn’t as long as some of my other watches.
I did a little digging online. It seems like Bulova watches usually use silver oxide batteries. Makes sense, they supposedly last longer than the regular alkaline ones, and this watch probably needs that extra oomph. I read somewhere that different Bulova models need different batteries, though.
So, first thing I did was check the back of my watch. Luckily it is easy to read the model number. I then searched online to find out what kind of battery my watch needed. I even found a chart that listed all the different Bulova models and their battery types. Super helpful!
Armed with this knowledge, I searched for my needed battery. It turns out Energizer makes them, which is great, they’re a brand I trust. I wanted to be sure, so I actually looked for the battery on the brand’s official store and found it. I was going to buy from a small business vendor from Amazon, but found the same one on the brand’s official store, so I ended up getting the replacement battery from the official store to be safe.
Now, I’ve never actually changed a watch battery myself before. I watched a couple of videos online, and it looked doable, but I’m not gonna lie, I was a little nervous. I mean, this isn’t some cheap watch, and I didn’t want to mess it up.
Changing the Battery
- Gathering my tools: I got a small screwdriver, one of those watch case openers (it was like a tiny crowbar, kinda neat), and some tweezers.
- Opening the case: This was the trickiest part. I had to carefully pry the back of the watch off with the case opener. I was so worried about scratching it, but I managed to do it without any damage. Phew!
- Removing the old battery: The old battery was just sitting there, held in place by a small metal clip. I used the tweezers to gently lift the clip and pop the battery out.
- Putting in the new battery: I carefully placed the new battery in the same spot, making sure the positive and negative sides were facing the right way. Then I just pushed the metal clip back down to secure it.
- Closing the case: I lined up the back of the watch case and pressed it back on until it clicked into place. I made sure it was sealed tight.
And… it worked! My Bulova Precisionist is back in action, with that beautiful sweeping seconds hand gliding around the dial. I gotta say, I felt pretty proud of myself for doing it myself. Saved myself a trip to the jeweler and probably a few bucks too. Plus, I learned something new. Not a bad way to spend an afternoon!
