Open a Tag Heuer Aquaracer 300 case back

[LazyTimegrapher]

1 hour ago, VWatchie said:

As repairers and enthusiasts, we always want to see the movement or we simply want to figure it out well in advance of the inevitable service that will happen sometime in the future! 

Well, I felt like a Master Watchmaker and owner of the world! Seriously! Then after six months or so I slowly started to realize I had only scratched the surface. After another six months, I knew for sure I had only scratched the surface. Nevertheless, working on watches is a wonderful way to waste your time! 

That’s helpful to know. Watchmaking does seem like a bottomless abyss of knowledge. I’m not sure I agree that it’s a waste of time, but it’ certainly seems like a fun thing to learn how to do. As you see from my other post, I have a pretty ambitious vision for this watch.  Whether I’ll ever be capable of realizing it is another question. Either way, I don’t think it can’t hurt to try (very slowly and carefully that is).

[LazyTimegrapher]

Do posts always have to be approved or is there some qualification or something after which approval isn’t required?

[LazyTimegrapher]

As it turns out that other article was in fact correct. See the attached images. When I removed the metal ring, I found six screws in the groove below them.

 

I suppose that concludes the mystery of how to open this watch.

 

I’ve decided (for now) to heed the advice of my wife and those of you here who say it’s a bad idea to open this brand new watch and mess with it given that I have no experience repairing watches.

 

I suppose the final question I have for you all is what process should I undertake to gain the skills required to have confidence to work on this aquaracer. The first thing I wanted to do with this watch was attempt to regulate it and slow it down a bit. However, I also have ambitions of swapping out what I suspect is a standard grade SW200-1 with a top grade version. I also think it’d be really cool to figure out how to give this watch a display case back.

 

What things should I make sure to do first before graduating and allowing myself to tinker with this aquaracer?

 

Thanks again for everyone’s help!

[RichardHarris123]

Your first few posts need approving, not sure of the number after that no approval needed. 

[tomh207]

The easiest way to tell what grade the movement is by inspecting it with special reference to the balance. Standard and elabore as a pair share the same balance which has different shaped spokes compared to the ones used in top and chronometer. It could be standard, elabore or top, unlikely to be chronometer grade as that is often marked on the dial. 
 

Tom

[VWatchie]

12 hours ago, LazyTimegrapher said:

I’m not sure I agree that it’s a waste of time

I didn't mean that literally but you could of course not know that. I was thinking of Jerry Seinfeld who recently said: "The secret of life is to waste time in ways that you like".

12 hours ago, LazyTimegrapher said:

I'm not sure  where I read it, but I do believe I read that they used the lowest grade. I could be wrong though, so if anyone finds better information on the movement, let me know.

If true, it is shameful considering the price. I do not think it is true. On the contrary, I think they are using Sellita's premium grade but it would be interesting to have it confirmed or denied by a reliable source.

12 hours ago, LazyTimegrapher said:

I really like the Tag Heuer aquaracer

So do I 

Edited June 18 by VWatchie

[LazyTimegrapher]

I probably will open the watch eventually and when I do I’ll post pictures of the movement. It should be possible to figure out what grade it is once I’m able to take a look at it.

 

Given the positional variation and the daily rates I’m seeing at full wind, it’s hard to believe it’s a top grade movement though. I’ve seen others talk about SW200-1 movements claiming very high accuracies that are often significantly better than COSC standards.

[tomh207]

Considering that at a base level the difference between the top grade and chronometer grade is just one has gone through the chronometer certification process and the other hasn’t. So would be easily capable of chronometer like performance 

 

Tom

[eccentric59]

18 hours ago, LazyTimegrapher said:

What things should I make sure to do first before graduating and allowing myself to tinker with this aquaracer?

 

Get a decent set of basic tools. Read books about watchmaking, watch videos, or better yet, take Mark's courses.

Ruin your first movement, service your second and repair your third. By that time, you should know enough to know what you don't know and what you're not comfortable doing. 

[LazyTimegrapher]

4 hours ago, eccentric59 said:

Ruin your first movement, service your second and repair your third. By that time, you should know enough to know what you don't know and what you're not comfortable doing. 

Wise words of advice. That sounds like a reasonable plan. Thanks.

I do plan to take the watch fix courses. Probably at least the first three. I’m not really a chronograph person but level 4 does sound interesting whenever it’s ready.

[LazyTimegrapher]

I did a little research online in forums and it looks like the Caliber 5 is a standard grade movement. 
 

see pictures in this thread 

https://www.watchuseek.com/threads/can-you-help-me-about-the-grade-of-tag-heuer-calibre-5-movement-grade.4911629/

And also on caliber corner

https://calibercorner.com/tag-heuer-caliber-5/

None of the images appear to have a glucydur balance wheel. At least as shown in this thread 

 

https://www.watchuseek.com/threads/luxury-and-normal-watches-using-same-movement.1934121/page-8

 

whenever I open my aquaracer I’ll post an image of the movement and balance wheel. However just given that it’s daily rate ranges from +4 to +20 in different positions (see my earlier post for all the different positional rates) it makes sense that it is a standard grade. 

it’ll be a fun project to eventually swap the movement with a top grade sw200

[VWatchie]

2 hours ago, LazyTimegrapher said:

I did a little research online in forums and it looks like the Caliber 5 is a standard grade movement. 

Interesting! It may be just as you say but I think we can be pretty sure that Tag Heuer doesn't just throw the movement in without first ensuring that everything is working properly. I expect their quality control to be rigorous. Anything else could lead to disaster as long as they wish to be able to charge as well as they do.

[Logichara]

If the typical screw-down method isn't working and there are no visible screws under the bezel, it might use a different mechanism like a snap-on case back. Have you considered using a case knife or a case back removal tool designed for snap-on backs?

[LazyTimegrapher]

I haven’t opened the watch yet, but I did find the screws under the bezel spring. I tried to show the screws in the images above. I just haven’t worked up the courage to open the watch yet.