*Guys, for clarity... For some illogical reason I stated 1300 oil for the capstone on the voiceover recording. As most of you will already know from my other videos It is 9010 oil that is used & should be always used. (and was used). If you enjoyed the video please do me a favour and hit a like for me 👍🏼 Feel free to drop a comment below. HB Merch available at horology-biology.creator-spring.com/ Latest HB Watch Restoration videos ua-cam.com/video/REEytWgxFvc/v-deo.html Latest HB Watches and More videos ua-cam.com/video/oUNHTov5Bnw/v-deo.html
I would love a change to win a omega watch. So I did what you asked. Not expecting to win as i have never had that much luck in random win contest’s :) anyway love the channel and I will be following anyway!
Instead of scoffing that this $17 watch is inferior to a $17,000 rolex you should be marvelling at how amazing it is that it's been made for such a stunningly low price. It's not supposed to be a high-end marvel of horology. It's just a watch, and for what it is it's very impressive
@@bustatronjust like your cell phone, your electronics in general, your shoes, your clothes, chocolate, and most mass produced things you use in every day life.
That would be giving people false expectations. It's basically nonfunctioning out of the box. It's magnetized, dirty, not lubricated, nor calibrated. If all you want is a piece of jewelry that moves, there you go.
Exactly right Francis. I really do recommend very cheap watches like this for people to practice on as the fundamentals are the same in much more expensive watches. Thanks for watching 👍
Whereas someone like me, would buy all the needed tools and cleaners and lubricants etc. Buy the watch. Begin to very carefully take it apart... then realize I failed entirely to grasp beforehand what a monumental undertaking it is to even take it apart without catastrofically breaking it in the process. Then if I managed to take it apart, I would then realize I failed entirely to properly document the process of taking it apart so I would have NO CLUE how to put it back together again and ultimately it would be a pile of parts collecting dust. Yet another tribute to the pile of things I have failed at more times than I care to count.
I would love to have one of theese cheap ass watches but swap the internals from a fancy watch with damage to the frame just to troll people, i'd keep the sphere and arrows tho, everything else visual would be from the cheap one. Thoose who wouldn't know wouldn't care, but the ones who do would freak out XD
Bought these just to practice disassemble a mechanical watch and later assembled it. Killed one, the other one never runs right to begin with, but I made it worse. And had some success on the third one. I mean if you'e interested in watch making, its a good start. From what I learned, I repaired my mom's wedding watch and she love it. Its worth all the headache seeing my mom so excited on wearing that watch again. 😊😊
Hi I’ve just found your channel. I’ve watched a few of these type of videos from other watch repair guys. This is the first time I’ve seen someone buy the cheapest automatic watch on Ali express which I found very interesting . I look forward to watching more of your videos
I think of myself as a technical guy, but there are 2 things in this world which I never understand no matter how much videos I watch. Automatic gearboxes and mechanical watches. I know how rockets work, engines, 2 stroke, 4 stroke, 2 stroke diesel, Wankel, anything. But these two are alien technology to me. Thars why i'm so fascinated and watch as much as I can.
Everyday is a learning day when it comes to working on watches. For the record automatic gear boxes go over my head. I think each gear has it's own clutch no?
@@HorologyBiology There are a number of different automatic gearboxed, with there being at least 5 completely different technologies even behind it. Same how a watch is a watch, it can be quartz, mechanical, automatic, springdrive and what have you :)
I've bought about 9 or 10 of these Fngeen watches in various styles both automatic and quartz. The most I paid was under $25 for an automatic. For the money you can't beat one. Yes they're cheap but they've all kept perfect time and if I bang it against something and it breaks, it's not the end of the world. I can't remember the last time I wore any of my old good watches.
I bought one of these fngeen automatic watches. The quick set date adjuster does work but you need to set the time to beginning of the change to next date. I bought the watch for use, and *expected* to have to lubricate amd tune it. Nice to see your vid. Thanks! ❤😊
That's a bizarre quickset function, however I do believe I made it function correctly once I'd finished it, seems to work ok now. Thanks for watching 👍
Inspired with your video I bought the same watch, had exactly the same issues (quick date setting - non working...) Serviced it and now it's working fine. Thanks for the video.
For someone whose just learning to work on watches, I think for $17 it’s a good practicing watch, I mean for $17 who cares if you mess it up, at least you get to learn on it :)
When I bought my first few automatic watches I bought a fngeen and it was a decent enough watch for not much money, think it was like $16 and to be honest they serve as a great learning tool. I gave it away as I never wore it, the band was horrible on it but the watch actually ran well.
I’ve never fully disassembled a watch, just some minor fixes on some rather large pocket watches, that said, I think this watch would be great practice for someone looking to get into the hobby. Would give you a feel for scale and how watch mechanics work.
It's the perfect watch to learn on as the fundamentals are the same and the price tag is very very low for all those expected mistakes that will be made
Just discovered your content! Reminds me of a couple years ago with my quartz Seiko Flightmaster that had an issue with the stem and crown unable to push all the way in. The watchmaker I took it to quoted me $180 to replace the 7T92 movement (more than the value of the entire watch). I tried messing around with it myself and ended up completely destroyed the watch unfortunately as I took it apart without any idea on how to put it back together. Now I feel motivated to give it another shot and check my bag of parts to see if I can try it again
You'll get a movement off of eBay. I replaced the module in my Tissot T-race after it failed right out of warranty. Be careful with the stems for the hands though, I did manage to break one of the sub dial posts.
Considering $17 is someone’s daily wage in China, this watch exist for a reason. And the fact it didn’t put a Rolex label on is a tell sign that this is a watch for a certain demographic.
BS 😁 Average monthly salary in China is over $4000. You would be hardly pressed to find anyone to work for less than $50 daily. Watches like this are mostly made automatically. Accept the simple fact that China is now FAR more industrialized than the West.
10 seconds a day for a $17 watch is incredible mate! I reviewed one of these early on in my channel and was shocked that I could get an automatic watch for such a low price! Thank you for the video, really enjoyed it
haha that's a coincidence. I watched your video (subbed also). Sorry to hear about your mashed cash back removal tools. As I'm sure you probably already know now it's a snap back case. I did another video a few months back servicing the Sewor skeleton watch from Amazon and the case back was also the same so I kinda had a clue about this one. Quick question, is your tattoo on your inside wrist for Amsterdam? Cheers HB
@@HorologyBiology That's crazy! Yeh, one of those live and learn moments haha. I still have that thing lying around in a draw somewhere! It is actually, I got it on my first lads holiday when I was 19
One an inflation calculator, if you purchased this same watch in 2024 for $17, then in 1990 it would have been $7.11....For the amount of intricate parts involved in the watch, you couldn't buy one screw for the amount you paid for the watch. I don't know how they make, assemble, make the band and then package and ship if for $17...That is INSANELY cheap for even a battery operated quartz watch with everything before considered.
@@RodrigoLourenco-hd3vyNope...actually in China for a ammount of 1000$ worth of goods you need to pay in USA for similar ammount 7000$. It is ridicilous cheap and US dolar is not anymore so important. So 17$ sounds cheap but you can buy a stuff or food for that kind of money in China...
I love watching watches being taken apart , cleaned and reassembled. It is fascinating! My grandpa was a watchmaker and my grandma was a jeweller and I loved visiting them in Sydney looking at the fantasia lamps and lava lamps and clocks! I love collecting watches and have an Omega seamaster. The one like James Bond wore but black. Thanks for your videos they are fantastic!
This would be a good watch to practice with. Been cleaning watches for a few months now and looking for something more complicated to work on but not one that matters. For $17 that doesn't matter 😂
I can't believe they're able to even make half the parts of a watch with such a price, let alone sell an assembled one! The cleaning and oiling definitely made a difference, and that gives me hope for the Seagull movement i have ordered as a stand-in for my own watch project! 👍
Had anyone else noticed that the cheap crappy brands always use display backs but half of the prettiest movements in haute horology are covered with a casebavk
Also while this is obviously a throwaway watch, there's an issue with the £100-500 price point Chinese watches. Let's say you buy a £250 Seiko 5 Sports in the UK. The expectation is the service cost will be more than the replacement and it'll get binned once it dies. Therefore, there's an emphasis on making the watch last as long as possible without a service. In China, I had my Orient watch serviced for £14, including return postage from the watchmaker to my girlfriend's family's house. If a service is £14, that means everything gets designed for maximum specs and a 5 year service interval, rather than for reliability and running 20 years without a service but lower specs at the price point (eg Seiko 5).
£14 for a full service on a mechanical watch! How do they live!! I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall to see exactly what goes in (or doesn't) to a £14 service.
Seiko movements arent designed to last 20yrs with no service but 5-10yrs (its all about the oils, the gears/jewels should last almost forever if maintained) .... also a chinese watch thats priced $100 -$500 will have a Seiko or Miyota movment. However when getting over $250ish you could also have either a swiss movment or the pt5000 chinese clone (which nowadays is actually good). So your $125 chinese watch could have the same exact movement as your Seiko 5. Regardless if the watch is chinese brand or Seiko or Citizen. Its almost always going to be cheaper to just replace the movement than it is to service it.
Put it in a fancy watch shop in a well to do place next to the Rolexes Pateks and Omegas and those with more money than sense would pay 5k for one .Its all about marketing
Did watch repair in the late 70's. After investing $4K in the chems and tools, and parts, the one thing I forgot to buy, was a 4X8 mirror to hang in the back of my shop. I had a vacuum tubed Vibragraph, with another swiss made device called a Gradoscope for calibration work. I was an industrial clocksmith by trade, 34 years. Why the mirror? So I could observe myself slowly starve to death. Soon after, I rented space and opened a small but well equipped machine shop. I did fantastic with it. As a hobby, watch restoration is a challenge separating your butter knife mechanics from the fine mechanical neurosurgeons.
Thanks for sharing Dave. I can imagine that $4K in the 1970's must have been quite a large amount of money. The mirror tho :( Time management is something I also need to address myself and stick to it. The day should not end at midnight, I think you catch my drift. Thanks for watching 👍
Thanks for your reply HB. BTW, I hope you don't have any pets or high dust issues in your place. Their dander's or an unclean environment will destroy your work.
The work and the oil cost more than the watch itself. If they have done this in the factory when they have assembled it, then that would have been a great value product. Please do Tevise next.
Very cool video. It's amazing they're only charging $17. First time watching. Definitely will look for more as it is always fascinating to watch people work on watches. Keep up the great work
I can't work your accent out at all. I get hints of Yorkshire & Teesside at times and then certain slices of almost Scandinavian and even some USA type curves on particular words lol Totlaly blagged, nonetheless.. Excellent content man, as detailed as Marshall Sutcliffe. 👌🏼
Thanks for watching. I'm originally from the UK but I have lived in NL for nearly 20 years hence the mismatch. It is what it is 😑 Thanks for the feedback and hey, I do chronographs 😉
Are those real jewels?? Why wouldn’t they have even the slightest bit of oil? Honestly it seems like the tolerances of the watch are not bad, I can only imagine how amazing this watch would be if the manufacture spent twice as much money on it!
Good video. I've heard speculations about ali express watches not lubricating the movements on the principle that bad lube can stop the watch whereas no lube makes the watch work initially and then die a little ways in (after the return period). I've also seen a watchmaker video for a more high end Ali Express watch (Sugess) where pushers installed were too small to reliably activate the movement and would end up making the movement stick. He had to machine new pushers to make the watch work and he also said it was badly lubricated (it did have some lubrication). It seems like you need to at least buy a microbrand so that THEY require certain quality standards out of the Chinese manufacturers or else they seem to cut corners to the point where the watches look nice but aren't. I'd be interested in seeing how some of the other Ali brands fare under your servicing.
Great comment! I definitely believe corners are cut for financial reasons and also I also agree that some of this will be because they have zero intention of you owning this watch in a working condition for a long time. They logically would know that the servicing costs would not be worth it and it would be more logical just to buy a new one. Hence lining their pockets further. Thanks for watching
Never thought that it would be so interesting to see a service for the cheapest automatic Aliexpress watch, but it was very illuminating. You hace a new sub. Best regards
You know, a lot of people might call this “cheap Chinese junk” etc. but I find it incredibly impressive that this knife is possible at this price. For that reason alone I like it. China’s manufacturing capabilities are very impressive.
hiya! just wanted to say that this channel pretty much sparked my interest in watches along with "wristwatch revival" on youtube. Keep doing the good work!
I actually got this movement in a watch from Aldi (a budget supermarket here in the U.K.) that a family member gave me as they knew about the hobby. It was massively overlubricated and was burred beyond belief, but a decent clean helped it surprisingly! Amazing how something so fine can be machined at such a scale now.
I just wanted to say that I live in Texas and there's an Aldi around the corner from my house lol it's interesting to hear such a thing. But I also never expected them to sell a watch, either. The Aldi over here does have a section of non-grocery "stuff", but I'm certain I've never seen a watch. Anyway, that made me chuckle a bit.
A friend of mine buys replicas and the first thing he does is strip it and clean it, he said that once they are clean and timed up they are very reliable, I bought one from him 5 years ago and it’s still running ok.
Reminds me of the pocket watch I got from that same website once. The mechanism that held the lid closed had a gaping hole around it to allow it to move to secure and release the lid which meant there was also a direct path for any dirt and lint to enter into the core of the watch. After not even a week of use, the watch got defeated by a single fiber of pocket lint and never ran again.
@@HorologyBiology never understood why they didn't spend 5 cents extra to seal off the clasp mechanism from the rest of the watch. Wouldn't have minded paying those 5 cents extra. XD
What I can say is that they make SO many different products and all are available for rebrand so I can say with a VERY high likelihood of probability, if you're reading this in the USA, UK, Spain, Canada, France or Italy, you have one or more of their products in your house. Very likely even a watch of theirs.
Wish i could service and overhaul like this. Then i could buy so many cheap watches without a worry about them breaking down since i could fix them myself. That's actually a really fun way of enjoying watches.
Being an expat living in Thailand, moat everything here is made in China. I have numerous Swiss and Chinese watches. Most of the more expensive Chinese watches are as nice as my Swiss watches( Ball Engineer, Mido, Omega, and Rolex). I really rarely wear a Swiss watch because of the negative response from other expats.
Thanks for the video. I know they are a lot of work and I appreciate your effort! The lack of lubrication and debris is something I have seen on several Chinese watches like this. I also found that these cheaper watches also do not like to be manually wound very much. Maybe with proper lubrication that would not be as much of a problem. Not bad for $17 though. If one wanted to do a full service, it should work well. Too bad that they used dial adhesive.
Thanks for watching John 👍🏼 I think you were kind with the 'dial adhesive' 😂 I think it was just a sticker. Agreed concerning the lack of lubrication, if they spent more time on this and including it then they would run a lot better and of course longer.
looks a lot like dg2813, specially on dial side after the plate is lifted. but... this has bidirectional winding and I couldn't see the horrible big bridge with the little spring under. maybe it has finally been improved?
Fngeen and Bergeon - two of the most hallowed brands in horology! 😊 I was surprised to see the volume of scratches under the train bridge... almost like a watch gremlin had gotten stuck inside the movement and wanted to get out!
@@HorologyBiology ah that's a good point - and that was also a great video. The HB channel has the most unique and accessible horology videos I have come across.
would you recommend this for a first timer to pull apart and put back together again? fir the price if you did something wrong well at least it was cheap?
Actually quite impressed with how it performed after your service! Might have missed it, but any idea what movement it is? Guess it's a clone of a miyota or something? My fingers are crossed for the Omega Seamaster giveaway - a perfect everyday vintage watch!
*Guys, for clarity... For some illogical reason I stated 1300 oil for the capstone on the voiceover recording. As most of you will already know from my other videos It is 9010 oil that is used & should be always used. (and was used).
If you enjoyed the video please do me a favour and hit a like for me 👍🏼 Feel free to drop a comment below.
HB Merch available at horology-biology.creator-spring.com/
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I was about to comment on that!!!
@@MyRetroWatches I bet you were lol
Liked and subscribed :) Fgeen Good content! Keep up the good work mate! / Oskar from Sweden
I would love a change to win a omega watch. So I did what you asked. Not expecting to win as i have never had that much luck in random win contest’s :) anyway love the channel and I will be following anyway!
Good content, so, I'm here. Waiting for Omega :).
Instead of scoffing that this $17 watch is inferior to a $17,000 rolex you should be marvelling at how amazing it is that it's been made for such a stunningly low price. It's not supposed to be a high-end marvel of horology. It's just a watch, and for what it is it's very impressive
It was most likely made with slave labor.
@@bustatronjust like your cell phone, your electronics in general, your shoes, your clothes, chocolate, and most mass produced things you use in every day life.
That would be giving people false expectations.
It's basically nonfunctioning out of the box. It's magnetized, dirty, not lubricated, nor calibrated.
If all you want is a piece of jewelry that moves, there you go.
@@oakmen4604 watches are massively overpriced
@@bustatronjust like the iphone you are typing this comment from
For $17 you could buy that automatic just for practicing your watch mending skills. Great to watch, something different. Cheers Horology
Exactly right Francis. I really do recommend very cheap watches like this for people to practice on as the fundamentals are the same in much more expensive watches. Thanks for watching 👍
Whereas someone like me, would buy all the needed tools and cleaners and lubricants etc. Buy the watch. Begin to very carefully take it apart... then realize I failed entirely to grasp beforehand what a monumental undertaking it is to even take it apart without catastrofically breaking it in the process. Then if I managed to take it apart, I would then realize I failed entirely to properly document the process of taking it apart so I would have NO CLUE how to put it back together again and ultimately it would be a pile of parts collecting dust. Yet another tribute to the pile of things I have failed at more times than I care to count.
@@sideswipe147lol. You’ve described my journey exactly 🤣. I have a lovely disassembled Raketa
I was thinking the same thing. Buy three and get one going again.
I would love to have one of theese cheap ass watches but swap the internals from a fancy watch with damage to the frame just to troll people, i'd keep the sphere and arrows tho, everything else visual would be from the cheap one. Thoose who wouldn't know wouldn't care, but the ones who do would freak out XD
Bought these just to practice disassemble a mechanical watch and later assembled it. Killed one, the other one never runs right to begin with, but I made it worse. And had some success on the third one. I mean if you'e interested in watch making, its a good start. From what I learned, I repaired my mom's wedding watch and she love it. Its worth all the headache seeing my mom so excited on wearing that watch again. 😊😊
Beautiful! Glad these cheap watches gained you some serious skills!
Learning watchmaking is a good reason to get this watch
Hi I’ve just found your channel. I’ve watched a few of these type of videos from other watch repair guys. This is the first time I’ve seen someone buy the cheapest automatic watch on Ali express which I found very interesting . I look forward to watching more of your videos
Thanks for watching it. I have many more high end watch video to chose from :)
I think of myself as a technical guy, but there are 2 things in this world which I never understand no matter how much videos I watch. Automatic gearboxes and mechanical watches. I know how rockets work, engines, 2 stroke, 4 stroke, 2 stroke diesel, Wankel, anything. But these two are alien technology to me. Thars why i'm so fascinated and watch as much as I can.
Everyday is a learning day when it comes to working on watches. For the record automatic gear boxes go over my head. I think each gear has it's own clutch no?
@@HorologyBiology There are a number of different automatic gearboxed, with there being at least 5 completely different technologies even behind it. Same how a watch is a watch, it can be quartz, mechanical, automatic, springdrive and what have you :)
It was the same for me as well almost magic until I started servicing them then you sorta understand the simplicity of them.
Timing grapher dont lie. Work shows when you do it right. Your effort on a cheapy is much appreciated.
Thanks for watching 👍🏻
Seems like a decent watch for a beginner to practice taking a watch apart and putting it back together again.
Exactly
I'm in awe... not for your ability to take it apart, but for putting it together again and it works - better!
haha thanks
Lubrication is amazingly useful.
This is actually a good watch if you ever want to learn about watch servicing or just curious about the inside of a movement.
Exactly that. Thanks for watching 👍🏻
"FNGEEN" isn't a name, it's the sound someone makes when choking on a grape.
hahah that's a new one
I got Fngeen when I visited a brothel, luckily some antibiotics took care of it. No more redness and itching
@@henrylee8510 🤣
sounds like a noise I made on my ring camera when I fell down my porch steps drunk.
@@henrylee8510Lulz.😂
I know it’s a “Cheap” watch but it’s still fun watching you take it apart and work on it.
Exactly that
Because of your Amazon video, I'm actually getting that watch and I'm going to try my hand at the hobby for the first time.
That’s great to hear. Best of luck 👍🏻👍🏻
@HorologyBiology I do not have proper tools and equipment, but I am so excited to get involved. Thanks
I've bought about 9 or 10 of these Fngeen watches in various styles both automatic and quartz. The most I paid was under $25 for an automatic. For the money you can't beat one. Yes they're cheap but they've all kept perfect time and if I bang it against something and it breaks, it's not the end of the world. I can't remember the last time I wore any of my old good watches.
9 to 10 😅 Damnnn you went all out for sure. Fngeen master 💪 Thanks for watching
I bought one of these fngeen automatic watches. The quick set date adjuster does work but you need to set the time to beginning of the change to next date.
I bought the watch for use, and *expected* to have to lubricate amd tune it. Nice to see your vid. Thanks! ❤😊
That's a bizarre quickset function, however I do believe I made it function correctly once I'd finished it, seems to work ok now. Thanks for watching 👍
I’m glad this video blew up a bit you deserve it dude. Fresh content.
Thanks so much 👍
Inspired with your video I bought the same watch, had exactly the same issues (quick date setting - non working...) Serviced it and now it's working fine. Thanks for the video.
Glad it helped and thanks for watching
For someone whose just learning to work on watches, I think for $17 it’s a good practicing watch, I mean for $17 who cares if you mess it up, at least you get to learn on it :)
exactly..
Totally! Great to practise on.Thanks for watching 👍
When I bought my first few automatic watches I bought a fngeen and it was a decent enough watch for not much money, think it was like $16 and to be honest they serve as a great learning tool. I gave it away as I never wore it, the band was horrible on it but the watch actually ran well.
That's almost 6% increase due to inflation. Very fair pricing.
At least it got you into watches 💪🏻💪🏻 thanks for watching
I find this video relaxing to watch after a hard days work.
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for watching
First video I saw of yours and it’s got me hooked! Well done for creating such cool content!
Awesome! Thank you!
Loving the content dude! I like that they put cool features for such a low price point.
Thanks very much 👍
17 Dollarfür eine Uhr. Erstaunlich!👍 Es zeigt mir wieder, dass die Luxus Uhren völlig überteuert sind.
Thanks for watching
Use the correct size for screws and you won’t risk stripping heads.
Other than that, I really enjoyed the relaxed detailed run through of this piece.
Thanks for watching 👍
I’ve never fully disassembled a watch, just some minor fixes on some rather large pocket watches, that said, I think this watch would be great practice for someone looking to get into the hobby. Would give you a feel for scale and how watch mechanics work.
It's the perfect watch to learn on as the fundamentals are the same and the price tag is very very low for all those expected mistakes that will be made
these are so great for learning watchmaking. mess up? no harm done.
Makes me appreciate my cheap ~$100 automatics. Thanks for the video.
Thanks for watching and enjoy what you wear 👍
Just discovered your content! Reminds me of a couple years ago with my quartz Seiko Flightmaster that had an issue with the stem and crown unable to push all the way in. The watchmaker I took it to quoted me $180 to replace the 7T92 movement (more than the value of the entire watch). I tried messing around with it myself and ended up completely destroyed the watch unfortunately as I took it apart without any idea on how to put it back together. Now I feel motivated to give it another shot and check my bag of parts to see if I can try it again
Thanks for watching 👍🏻 you should have another go for sure 👍🏻👍🏻
You'll get a movement off of eBay. I replaced the module in my Tissot T-race after it failed right out of warranty. Be careful with the stems for the hands though, I did manage to break one of the sub dial posts.
sub 10s/d for a 17$ watch is crazy fineee
Considering $17 is someone’s daily wage in China, this watch exist for a reason. And the fact it didn’t put a Rolex label on is a tell sign that this is a watch for a certain demographic.
Exactly that
BS 😁 Average monthly salary in China is over $4000. You would be hardly pressed to find anyone to work for less than $50 daily. Watches like this are mostly made automatically. Accept the simple fact that China is now FAR more industrialized than the West.
If you believe that pal you bekieve anything.@@aleksazunjic9672
10 seconds a day for a $17 watch is incredible mate! I reviewed one of these early on in my channel and was shocked that I could get an automatic watch for such a low price! Thank you for the video, really enjoyed it
haha that's a coincidence. I watched your video (subbed also). Sorry to hear about your mashed cash back removal tools. As I'm sure you probably already know now it's a snap back case. I did another video a few months back servicing the Sewor skeleton watch from Amazon and the case back was also the same so I kinda had a clue about this one.
Quick question, is your tattoo on your inside wrist for Amsterdam?
Cheers
HB
@@HorologyBiology That's crazy! Yeh, one of those live and learn moments haha. I still have that thing lying around in a draw somewhere!
It is actually, I got it on my first lads holiday when I was 19
I thought as much 👍🏻 I had to drive to Amsterdam this morning
@@HorologyBiology Probably one of my favourite cities to visit. It's got so many nice spots to visit
This video makes me appreciate the craftsmanship behind watch servicing even more.
Thanks for watching
If it gives me the time and day, it is an excellent watch.
One an inflation calculator, if you purchased this same watch in 2024 for $17, then in 1990 it would have been $7.11....For the amount of intricate parts involved in the watch, you couldn't buy one screw for the amount you paid for the watch. I don't know how they make, assemble, make the band and then package and ship if for $17...That is INSANELY cheap for even a battery operated quartz watch with everything before considered.
You went deep on this lol. Thanks for watching :)
I know how: slavery.
@@RodrigoLourenco-hd3vyNope...actually in China for a ammount of 1000$ worth of goods you need to pay in USA for similar ammount 7000$. It is ridicilous cheap and US dolar is not anymore so important. So 17$ sounds cheap but you can buy a stuff or food for that kind of money in China...
At $17, it's basically disposable. Could be used as a piece of costume jewelry to wear with your Halloween costume, then bin it - or not.
lol good point
I love watching watches being taken apart , cleaned and reassembled. It is fascinating! My grandpa was a watchmaker and my grandma was a jeweller and I loved visiting them in Sydney looking at the fantasia lamps and lava lamps and clocks! I love collecting watches and have an Omega seamaster. The one like James Bond wore but black. Thanks for your videos they are fantastic!
Your childhood must have been fun for sure been around watches and clocks 🙂 Thanks for watching 👍
This would be a good watch to practice with. Been cleaning watches for a few months now and looking for something more complicated to work on but not one that matters. For $17 that doesn't matter 😂
Exactly that as the fundamentals are the same as most mechanical watches. Good to learn on for cheap as mistakes will be made 👍
Great video. Don't know much about watches but appreciate all the work and effort you put into making this video. Thank you!
Glad you enjoyed it!
looks like a standard Chinese movement with date complication and auto winder, might be better than you think.
👍🏻👍🏻 Thanks for watching 💪🏻👍🏻
The amount of effort you put in your videos is astounding. Keep up the great work! Learned so much from you since I’ve started watching your videos!
Thanks a lot and thanks for watching
I can't believe they're able to even make half the parts of a watch with such a price, let alone sell an assembled one! The cleaning and oiling definitely made a difference, and that gives me hope for the Seagull movement i have ordered as a stand-in for my own watch project! 👍
Yeah it’s surprising for sure. Good luck with the Seagull 👍🏻👍🏻
Had anyone else noticed that the cheap crappy brands always use display backs but half of the prettiest movements in haute horology are covered with a casebavk
I have seen some serious gems of movements in my time hidden behind closed case backs. Such a shame but a nice surprise for me when I crack them open
Amazing stuff, so cheap and not bad for that price! Great video! Good luck with the channel!
Thanks so much!
Recently discovered your channel and found out that I love seeing watches disassembled and rebuilt. It is pretty fascinating.
Thanks for watching and welcome aboard
Great job on the service on this semi-joke of a watch! Thanks, HB for the chance to win a gorgeous watch!
Thanks for watching 😊
Also while this is obviously a throwaway watch, there's an issue with the £100-500 price point Chinese watches. Let's say you buy a £250 Seiko 5 Sports in the UK. The expectation is the service cost will be more than the replacement and it'll get binned once it dies. Therefore, there's an emphasis on making the watch last as long as possible without a service. In China, I had my Orient watch serviced for £14, including return postage from the watchmaker to my girlfriend's family's house. If a service is £14, that means everything gets designed for maximum specs and a 5 year service interval, rather than for reliability and running 20 years without a service but lower specs at the price point (eg Seiko 5).
£14 for a full service on a mechanical watch! How do they live!! I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall to see exactly what goes in (or doesn't) to a £14 service.
Seiko movements arent designed to last 20yrs with no service but 5-10yrs (its all about the oils, the gears/jewels should last almost forever if maintained) .... also a chinese watch thats priced $100 -$500 will have a Seiko or Miyota movment. However when getting over $250ish you could also have either a swiss movment or the pt5000 chinese clone (which nowadays is actually good). So your $125 chinese watch could have the same exact movement as your Seiko 5.
Regardless if the watch is chinese brand or Seiko or Citizen. Its almost always going to be cheaper to just replace the movement than it is to service it.
Put it in a fancy watch shop in a well to do place next to the Rolexes Pateks and Omegas and those with more money than sense would pay 5k for one .Its all about marketing
Thanks for watching
I've been following your channel for a while now and I'm so happy to see this video blow up and get so many more people exposed to your content.
Thank you very much. I must admit it has been a surprising week for me 😀
Did watch repair in the late 70's. After investing $4K in the chems and tools, and parts, the one thing I forgot to buy, was a 4X8 mirror to hang in the back of my shop. I had a vacuum tubed Vibragraph, with another swiss made device called a Gradoscope for calibration work. I was an industrial clocksmith by trade, 34 years. Why the mirror? So I could observe myself slowly starve to death. Soon after, I rented space and opened a small but well equipped machine shop. I did fantastic with it. As a hobby, watch restoration is a challenge separating your butter knife mechanics from the fine mechanical neurosurgeons.
Thanks for sharing Dave. I can imagine that $4K in the 1970's must have been quite a large amount of money. The mirror tho :( Time management is something I also need to address myself and stick to it. The day should not end at midnight, I think you catch my drift. Thanks for watching 👍
Thanks for your reply HB. BTW, I hope you don't have any pets or high dust issues in your place. Their dander's or an unclean environment will destroy your work.
Lol, Nice. I have an old Invicta sub that just stopped like 9 years ago. I should just open it up and learn.
Go for it!
its looks more gooder now , much gooder. The goodlierness is maxsploding outwardley.
The work and the oil cost more than the watch itself. If they have done this in the factory when they have assembled it, then that would have been a great value product. Please do Tevise next.
Thanks for watching :)
Very cool video. It's amazing they're only charging $17. First time watching. Definitely will look for more as it is always fascinating to watch people work on watches. Keep up the great work
Thanks very much, glad you enjoyed
Love the colour of the dial. Impressed you got a decent result from it, nice one
Thank you! Cheers!
I can't work your accent out at all. I get hints of Yorkshire & Teesside at times and then certain slices of almost Scandinavian and even some USA type curves on particular words lol
Totlaly blagged, nonetheless.. Excellent content man, as detailed as Marshall Sutcliffe. 👌🏼
Thanks for watching. I'm originally from the UK but I have lived in NL for nearly 20 years hence the mismatch. It is what it is 😑 Thanks for the feedback and hey, I do chronographs 😉
It occurs to me that this would be a good watch for beginning watch repair types can practice.
Exactly, you’re totally right
Are those real jewels?? Why wouldn’t they have even the slightest bit of oil? Honestly it seems like the tolerances of the watch are not bad, I can only imagine how amazing this watch would be if the manufacture spent twice as much money on it!
They are very very thin for jewels. Looking very much like thin plastic
The watch that kept on giving and all for $17. What a bargain!! Super Fresh!!
Regards from the UK!!
💪🏻💪🏻 Thanks for watching 👍🏻
Always appreciate your fresh perspectives!
Many thanks 💪🏻💪🏻
The cursor on the left side up is the easter egg
😅😅
That really is a nice dial on that F'n Jean watch! Great video.
Thanks for watching!
Genuinely amazed by what a difference a decent service made to that +/- day accuracy!
Thanks for watching 👍🏻
Good video. I've heard speculations about ali express watches not lubricating the movements on the principle that bad lube can stop the watch whereas no lube makes the watch work initially and then die a little ways in (after the return period). I've also seen a watchmaker video for a more high end Ali Express watch (Sugess) where pushers installed were too small to reliably activate the movement and would end up making the movement stick. He had to machine new pushers to make the watch work and he also said it was badly lubricated (it did have some lubrication). It seems like you need to at least buy a microbrand so that THEY require certain quality standards out of the Chinese manufacturers or else they seem to cut corners to the point where the watches look nice but aren't. I'd be interested in seeing how some of the other Ali brands fare under your servicing.
Great comment! I definitely believe corners are cut for financial reasons and also I also agree that some of this will be because they have zero intention of you owning this watch in a working condition for a long time. They logically would know that the servicing costs would not be worth it and it would be more logical just to buy a new one. Hence lining their pockets further. Thanks for watching
Never thought that it would be so interesting to see a service for the cheapest automatic Aliexpress watch, but it was very illuminating. You hace a new sub. Best regards
Aw thank you so much ☺️
You know, a lot of people might call this “cheap Chinese junk” etc. but I find it incredibly impressive that this knife is possible at this price. For that reason alone I like it. China’s manufacturing capabilities are very impressive.
I haven't been so well informed of the freshness of anything since the '80s.
Embrace it! Thanks for watching 👍
hiya! just wanted to say that this channel pretty much sparked my interest in watches along with "wristwatch revival" on youtube. Keep doing the good work!
Great to hear! Thanks for watching and supporting the channel 👍🏻👍🏻
I actually got this movement in a watch from Aldi (a budget supermarket here in the U.K.) that a family member gave me as they knew about the hobby. It was massively overlubricated and was burred beyond belief, but a decent clean helped it surprisingly! Amazing how something so fine can be machined at such a scale now.
I just wanted to say that I live in Texas and there's an Aldi around the corner from my house lol it's interesting to hear such a thing. But I also never expected them to sell a watch, either. The Aldi over here does have a section of non-grocery "stuff", but I'm certain I've never seen a watch. Anyway, that made me chuckle a bit.
Oh wow! Aldi branching out into watches. We have it here also but I’ve never seen watches there
Really enjoyed the video. Good enough for $17. Brand name is pretty damn fresh.
What you have now is a great running watch that you can work on your car or do construction with on.
Thanks for watching :)
work on your car? please "watch" out you dont get stuck or electrocuted :D
@@miellamborghini7003 I don’t own a ev 🤣😅🤪😜😆😁😅😘
Did I see the spring bar fly off😂
To the moon 🌙
@@HorologyBiology 🤣🤣🤣
0:19 something just flew away
Spring bar to the moon
Oh, I'm going to be watching this channel a lot. I find this fascinating.
Welcome aboard! glad you enjoy my content 😀
This is an excellent video for learning a wonderful practice! Bravo and thank you!
Not to worry if you break a watch part. All spare parts cost only £17.
😅 fair point
A friend of mine buys replicas and the first thing he does is strip it and clean it, he said that once they are clean and timed up they are very reliable, I bought one from him 5 years ago and it’s still running ok.
Thanks for watching, I personally cannot stand replica watches though. Nasty business
Why not buy a CLEAN watch instead? (hint hint 😂)
Watching the process was very fun and the end result - going from a rate of 100+s/day to ~5 - was extremely impressive.
Thanks for watching 👍
Great video, nice to see something can be done to help even the cheapest of watches!
Thanks for watching
Quality guy doing a quality video with a cheap watch and complain and complain 😂
The struggle is real!
Reminds me of the pocket watch I got from that same website once. The mechanism that held the lid closed had a gaping hole around it to allow it to move to secure and release the lid which meant there was also a direct path for any dirt and lint to enter into the core of the watch. After not even a week of use, the watch got defeated by a single fiber of pocket lint and never ran again.
A big open hole on your watch is not the one!!
@@HorologyBiology never understood why they didn't spend 5 cents extra to seal off the clasp mechanism from the rest of the watch. Wouldn't have minded paying those 5 cents extra. XD
What I can say is that they make SO many different products and all are available for rebrand so I can say with a VERY high likelihood of probability, if you're reading this in the USA, UK, Spain, Canada, France or Italy, you have one or more of their products in your house. Very likely even a watch of theirs.
Thanks for watching 👍🏻
@@HorologyBiology I didn't really, I just recognized the name from work.
If ya break that pivot...lol...it'll cost ya $17 dollars to replace it.
haha all broken parts would be same price yeah lol
Like A FORD PROBE in France.... 20 000$ for the car..... but all parts cost 5000 $ minimum
+10 is way better than my 700$ citizen 😂
Oh damnnn
Where are you from dude? Your accent sounds like North east England & Dutch with a bit of German.
Finally someone that gets it! Originally from the UK but have lived in NL for nearly 20 years. Thanks for watching 👍
Giving back to your fans 💛 love to see the positivity!, 😁😁
Thanks for watching
Wish i could service and overhaul like this. Then i could buy so many cheap watches without a worry about them breaking down since i could fix them myself. That's actually a really fun way of enjoying watches.
Give it a go. Thanks for watching
This is the kind of content, keep me visiting youtube, great work..keep it up😊
Thanks a lot 😊
Being an expat living in Thailand, moat everything here is made in China. I have numerous Swiss and Chinese watches. Most of the more expensive Chinese watches are as nice as my Swiss watches( Ball Engineer, Mido, Omega, and Rolex). I really rarely wear a Swiss watch because of the negative response from other expats.
Wear what you enjoy and in good health. Don't listen to anyone else about this. Thanks for watching :)
@@HorologyBiology now I actually enjoy the Chinese and the USSR watches the most
Yeah, Seagull has some nice watches, or the higher-end hommages like San Martin, Sugess and so on.
Thanks for the video. I know they are a lot of work and I appreciate your effort! The lack of lubrication and debris is something I have seen on several Chinese watches like this. I also found that these cheaper watches also do not like to be manually wound very much. Maybe with proper lubrication that would not be as much of a problem. Not bad for $17 though. If one wanted to do a full service, it should work well. Too bad that they used dial adhesive.
Thanks for watching John 👍🏼 I think you were kind with the 'dial adhesive' 😂 I think it was just a sticker. Agreed concerning the lack of lubrication, if they spent more time on this and including it then they would run a lot better and of course longer.
Is this a cheap Chinese dg 2813 movement
I found no markings on this so you probably know more than me. I was surprised how functional it turned out. Thanks for watching
looks a lot like dg2813, specially on dial side after the plate is lifted. but... this has bidirectional winding and I couldn't see the horrible big bridge with the little spring under. maybe it has finally been improved?
It is indeed a DG2812/Calibre 2813 movement@@SuperDojdoj
Fascinating video! I enjoyed your commentary 🔥
Much appreciated!
Fngeen and Bergeon - two of the most hallowed brands in horology! 😊
I was surprised to see the volume of scratches under the train bridge... almost like a watch gremlin had gotten stuck inside the movement and wanted to get out!
🤣
I actually think they are just part of the machining (or lack of it) it was similar on that Amazon Sewor watch a few months ago 👍🏻
@@HorologyBiology ah that's a good point - and that was also a great video. The HB channel has the most unique and accessible horology videos I have come across.
These videos are great! Thank you!
You're very welcome!
would you recommend this for a first timer to pull apart and put back together again? fir the price if you did something wrong well at least it was cheap?
Yes absolutely. You are not risking much in case or when you accidentally break a part
Actually quite impressed with how it performed after your service! Might have missed it, but any idea what movement it is? Guess it's a clone of a miyota or something?
My fingers are crossed for the Omega Seamaster giveaway - a perfect everyday vintage watch!
Thanks for watching. A few people have given there opinions on which movement it is in the comments. I'm not exactly sure what the cal is.
How you define “cheap plastic “ could you elaborate???
well, theres fine plastic, and luxury plastic
thank you and done the rules!!!
Would love to see more videos on affordable watch servicing like this.
Thanks for watching
Would you ever consider doing a video on a new budget watch vs an older premium watch?
Never say never 👍🏻 Thanks for watching 👍🏻
The beat error is a common issue, excited to see how you tackle it.
Thanks for watching
Great video. I always wondered what was inside these cheap mechanical movements
Thanks for watching!
In your defence IF you did break it, $17 could correct the situation lol
Would it have been possible to upgrade the jewels?
Replacing the jewels would have defeated the point of the video 👍🏻👍🏻 had to keep it original. Cheers for watching