How do you repair a mechanical watch?

My father left me a mechanical timepiece - one he wore all his life and was found in my mum's drawers some time back. It is a Rotary. And until recently, I had wanted to find someone I could trust to have it restored and Sean came to the rescue.

Sean is the brand owner of MoVas watches and I had approached him to see if the watch was still serviceable. First issue Sean encountered was opening the case back. No matter what tools he used, the case back could not be opened? Normally, one would abandon the plan but not Sean. He fabricated a tool to open the case - such is his dedication.

This is a picture of the special tool Sean made just to be able to remove the case back.

And the result?

And the dial and plexi glass...

Old unserviced movement...

Unbelievably clean. Sean had it cleaned and regulated and then had it put back again. Sean had tried to clean the dial but I wanted it to be the same condition so it was left untouched. And the final product?

What a nice present from Sean - fully cleaned movement and working in good condition too.

And the case back, cleaned and nicely polished. Next thing I need to do is to find a "correct" bracelet as the one my father had was not the original bracelet.

Many thanks again to Sean for a job well done!

MoVas Oceaner II - Edition Red

MoVas launched their new range earlier this year and recently I received a piece unique Oceaner II Edition Red.

Sean is a talented individual - not only is he a self taught designer and watchmaker, he is also known in the cycling circle as the first person in Singapore to make titanium bike frames. When I saw the red edition of Oceaner II, I had already told Sean I wanted one. And so here it is - a piece unique prototype for moi!

I like the box! Creative Sean, creative. See the message on the side of the box?

First impressions - I like the style, the size and the colour. I chose red, remember?

One shake and the watch winds well and runs for quite awhile.

These are my first shots of the timepiece and I shall be taking a few more and doing a more in-depth blog. But on first impressions... I like it. Thanks to Sean for letting have the red prototype. For more information please visit the MoVas website.

MoVas - New Releases

MoVas is a Singapore brand and the owners are proud of that fact. They openly tell their fans where their watches are made and what movements go into their timepieces. Specializing in diver watches, MoVas recently re-launched the Oceaner line and also introduced the Prodiver II line.

The launch was held at the Fullerton Hotel in a private suite and some friends were invited to the party. The collection in a trunk.

Amongst all the watches on display, I liked the Oceaner II in red the most. The final dials for the Oceaner is still not confirmed as Sean is still trying out a few others. The Oceaner is rated to 30 ATM.

The Oceaner in red is still a prototype as Sean wants to make some changes to the markers. The date window is at 6 while the day indicator is at the 3 O'clock position.

Coming is three variants, the Oceaner also has a blue inner bezel. In this version, the dial is a sandwich dial as opposed to red version which uses appliqués. According to Sean, he is still not satified with the blue bezel so some changes to the colour will be forthcoming. And it will also be likely that the blue will be launched next year.

Notice how the day display is in Chinese? Interesting as not many watches has this feature except Seiko.

Then there is the regular black version. Although the picture shows crowns are not fully flushed, I was told by Sean that the final version will have them identically flushed to the crown guard.

The open case back reveals a China made movement from the Seagull Watch Company - ignore the Shanghai Watch Company rotor. The movement is pretty well decorated - perlage. The Oceaner was supposed to be launched earlier but Sean had issues with the case so it took him time to fix those issues before he re-launched the Oceaner. I can say that it is ready!

The new launch was for the Diver VI Bronze. What was on show were two variants - an all bronze case and one with black bezel.

Featuring a green dial and a similar layout as the Oceaner, the Diver VI Bronze is as chunky as it looks. Definitely a diver's watch. First the all Bronze Diver VI.

Then the black bezel version. So which one you like better? Well, I was told the black bezel version may or may not happen as Sean is still trying out various colour combinations.

Personally, I prefer the one with the black bezel. A little more contrast lends a totally new look and feel to the watch. Coupled with a matching green strap, the watch is rather pretty. More watches to come and another the Prodiver is also in the works. Stay tuned when I have more.

Fore more information, visit Sean's website at MoVas.