Alright, let’s talk about this whole ‘Submariner Tiffany’ thing. Been seeing that blue pop up everywhere, you know? Not just on watches, but it got me thinking about watches specifically. Always liked the Submariner look, classic stuff. But that bright, kinda cheerful blue? Different vibe entirely.
So, I got this idea. Maybe I could try getting that look myself. Didn’t want to mess with anything too valuable, obviously. Had an older diver-style watch kicking around, one of those reliable workhorses, nothing fancy. Figured it was a good candidate for a little project.
Getting Started – The Parts Hunt
First challenge: finding the right parts. You’d think getting a light blue dial would be simple. Nope. Spent a good few evenings scrolling through forums, parts suppliers, the usual places. Lots of blues, but getting that specific ‘Tiffany’ shade? Tricky. Found loads described as ‘sky blue’, ‘baby blue’, ‘turquoise’… it’s a minefield.
Eventually, I found a dial that looked pretty close. The seller called it ‘robin egg blue’, close enough for me to give it a shot. Ordered that. Then needed hands. Wanted simple stick hands to match the clean look. Found a set that seemed like they’d fit the movement in my old watch. Fingers crossed.
- Searched online part shops.
- Compared dozens of blue shades.
- Finally ordered a dial and a set of hands.
The Actual Work – Tools Out
Parts arrived after about a week. Looked decent. Now the nerve-wracking bit. Never really messed with watch guts before, beyond changing a battery. Watched a bunch of videos online, looked super easy there. Yeah, right.
Here’s what I did, step-by-step, kinda:
First, got my tools ready. Needed a case back opener, some tiny screwdrivers, tweezers (the good kind, not eyebrow pluckers), and this little hand-removing tool. Also found some finger cots to avoid getting greasy prints everywhere.
Opened the case back. That wasn’t too bad, actually. Then the tricky part: releasing the stem. Had to find the tiny little dimple you push. Took me a few tries, heart pounding a bit, not gonna lie. Didn’t want to break anything.
Got the stem out, and the whole movement with the old dial and hands kinda just slid out into my hand. Placed it carefully in a holder thingy.
Removing the hands was next. That little presto tool worked okay, but the hands flew off! Spent ten minutes searching for the minute hand on the carpet. Note to self: do this somewhere contained next time.
Then had to unclip or unscrew the old dial from the movement. Found the tiny screws holding it. Got those off without losing them (miracle!).
Lining up the new blue dial was fussy. It has little feet that need to go into specific holes on the movement. Took some gentle wiggling. Screwed it down.
Putting the new hands on? Oh boy. You gotta get them lined up perfectly, especially the hour and minute hands, so they show the right time relative to each other. And pressing them on without bending them… needed a steady hand. The second hand was the worst, so thin and easy to mess up. Pushed it on super gently with a special tool.
Cleaned everything up as best I could, blew away any dust specks (or tried to). Put the movement back in the case, pushed the stem back in until it clicked. Felt good hearing that click.
Screwed the case back on tight. Wound it up.
The Result – What I Got
So, how did it turn out? Well, it looks… blue! It’s definitely got that bright, eye-catching color. Is it exactly Tiffany blue? Probably not, if you put it side-by-side with the real deal. But it captures the spirit, you know?
The hands look clean. The watch is ticking away. It keeps time. Did I scratch anything? Maybe a tiny bit inside the case back, but nothing visible day-to-day. Main thing is, I did it myself. Went from an idea to a finished thing sitting on my wrist.
It was a fun little project. Definitely learned a bit about how watches are put together. More fiddly than I thought, requires patience. Would I do it again? Yeah, maybe. But next time, I’m getting a better workspace light and maybe magnifying glasses!
