Tools required:

Using an India Made pantograph style Handslifter
1. Place the protective plastic sheet over the dial, the cannon pinion (the protruding tube on which the hour and minute hand sit) will go into the slot that you cut out. Turn the crown and align all hands. I assume here that your watch is not running and that you started the watch work while the mainspring was unwound. Even if you started your “hands off” project with a fully unwound mainspring, the moving while opening the watch might have rewound the spring and a clean movement could well run for an hour or two. If you do not want to unload the mainspring via the click, then simply cover the open watch and wait.

2. If you prefer the India Made handslifter (pantograph style), mount the movement into a movement holder. Make sure the movement sits reasonably tight but without squeezing any parts of the site of the movement. I could never really warm up for those movement holders, I guess I do not have enough practice. The movement always seems to find a way to slip out … but maybe you have better skills. I am just very careful and do not want to leave marks on the movement by tightening the movement holder too firmly.

3. Consider covering the claws of the India Made lifter with protective tape or polish them with an Arkansas stone. The claws from the factory might have very sharp edges and scratch your (black and glossy) dials. The biggest advantage of the India Made lifter is, that one actually controls the lifting force while pulling its handle.

The left hand simply holds the tool. The right thumb and index pull and the whole assembly moves upwards and lifts the hands off.

4. If you are working on a chronograph or a watch with registers (sub dials), remove the plastic sheet and continue to lift off those smaller hands. If the register is recessed (which is quite often the case) then I found that there was not enough space to go under the small hands with the India Made lifter.

5. The hands are off now and you place them in a safe container! Many hands have been cracked while laying on the workpad! I prefer to use RUBIS plastic tweezers for hands. Others might prefer brass tweezers. Be careful if you use steel tweezers, scratches on the side of the hands are quite visible. Especially for WIS that always seem to have a “loupe in their face”.

Removing the hands with the PRESTO handslifter
1. Place the protective sheet on the dial.

2. Check the dial for the best location to place the two white feet of the PRESTO lifter. This is very important. You do not want to press down on any decoration on the dial, I even keep them away from writing. If the paint is old, it might crack under the pressure. And this is maybe the tricky part about using the PRESTO. Without practice it is fairly hard to keep the PRESTO with reasonable pressure on its feet while squeezing it to lift the hands. I think that the PRESTO handslifter have probably a too high spring power and I really sometimes wish my lifter would be softer. I do not know, but maybe there are different spring loads available.

3. The two pictures below will show you how to operate the PRESTO lifter:

The rest step is the same as using an India Made pantograph style Handslifter.

2. Prevent drop to the ground. If your watch drops from a high position, its internal structure and precise parts will be damaged badly.  

3. Prevent sweat erosion. Sweat contains complex chemical composition, which will corrode the case and strap of your watch.

4. Prevent water. Water can easily gasify and atomize. When get into watch, the parts will be rusted.

5. Prevent buckled too tight. Too tight will be bad for your health. Besides, the strap will be easily damaged.

6. Prevent extreme temperature. Extremely high or low temperature will both effect the work of watch.

7. Prevent dismantling. The assembly of a watch is carried out under specific circumstances, dismantling can damage your watch.

8. Prevent strong shook. Although every watch has shock-proof design, strong shock will also damage the internal structure of your watch.

There exists various kinds of leather, including crocodile, lizard, cow and ostrich. The commonest is cow leather strap. As for the solidness and durability, leather strap is certainly worse than metal strap. Generally speaking, its life is only two or three years. However, if maintained carefully, it will live for a longer time.

Water is the natural enemy of leather watch. Immersed in water for a long time, leather strap would turn hard and brittle immediately, of course, including sweat of people. Therefore, you can not wear your leather strap watch when swimming. Long-term sweat soaked strap will easily be moldy, too. It is better to have watches, one metal watch and one leather strap watch. In summer, metal band watch is the best choice. In other seasons you can change leather strap watch.

The long-term exposure in strong sunlight will bleach the color of leather strap. You should avoid sun shine. At the same time, leather strap must keep a certain distance with some chemical reagents to avoid being corroded. You also shouldn’t pull strongly when wear the watch. Otherwise, it will easily break.

You should use a piece of soft damp cloth with detergent to clean the strap. Then wipe it with clean cloth sticking fresh water. Put your watch in a cool dry place. It is better to wipe watch strap every one or two months.

Self-winding automatic watches depend on the movement of the arm to operate and do require some winding, even if you wear your watch on a daily basis.

Mechanical watches typically require manual winding every day but this may vary depending on the power reserve capability of the watch mechanism.

If you wear your Automatic watch everyday, it is best to wind it once, every two weeks to keep the wheels in motion and oil fluid. Simply wind the crown (the same knob used to adjust the time and date) until you meet slight resistance.

If you do not wear your Automatic watch everyday, you should try to wind it at least twice a week to ensure continuous operation, as well as keeping the inside mechanism in complete running order.

Avoid setting the day and/or date (if your watch has these functions) between the hours of 11:00 pm to 1:00 am. The day-date mechanism is activated during the nighttime hours and could be disrupted or even damaged if set at this time.

And, always avoid wearing your mechanical watch, if you are playing a sport requiring continuous arm motion (e.g. tennis, baseball, golf), since continuous arm motion could damage the movement (unless the watch was specially designed for the sport).

It is worthwhile remembering that regular exposure to chemicals, or sea water, can damage straps, plated cases and bracelets and a solid metal or specially constructed material is recommended if regularly used in these conditions. Cosmetics and perfumes can also cause damage if directly applied to plated dials and straps.

Step 1, Wear Your Rolex Regularly
Regular wear and use of your Rolex will keep the watch in perfect running condition. By doing so, you can ensure a constant flow of lubricants in the movement. If not used on a regular basis, these lubricants may harden, causing friction within the movement. Eventually, this friction may damage the functioning of the movement. If you do not wear your Rolex regularly, make sure to wind it at least once a week. This will keep the watch gears moving, thus preventing the lubricants from hardening.

2. Cleaning Your Rolex
- Before you start cleaning, make sure the winding crown is tightly screwed onto the case.
- Since you will be using your hands to clean your watch, washing them thoroughly with soap or hand wash so you avoid transferring any dirt or grease.
- Use lukewarm water to rinse off your watch.
- Fill a bowl with lukewarm water and ammonia- free mild soap.
- Apply this soapy water all over your watch using your hands.
- Now, gently scrub the watch to clean it of all dirt particles. Your old toothbrush can be used as an ideal scrub for this purpose. During scrubbing, submerge the watch and the toothbrush into the soapy water at short intervals.
- Once you are confident that the Rolex has been cleaned, rinse the watch with lukewarm water.
- Using a clean and soft cotton cloth, gently pat the watch until dried.
- Since your cloth may not reach the links on the bracelet, you need to use a blower or hair dryer to remove the excess water from the inner surface of the links.
- To make your Rolex watch completely dry, you can also use a dry towel to remove any remaining moisture.

3. Removing Scratches from the Bracelet of Your Rolex Watch
The bracelet of your Rolex needs special care, as it is prone to scratches. This is especially true of the Oyster bracelet which features polished center links. By polishing the bracelet once every few months, you can retain the brand new look of your Rolex forever. You easily can remove the scratches from the polished center links with little effort and time expended. All you need is a good quality polishing cloth which can be picked from products designed for removing scratches from polished stainless steel and gold surfaces. Such a cloth comes soaked in a special liquid meant for polishing. These polishing cloths are inexpensive and can be used multiple times.

4. Winding Your Rolex
Rolex watches (except Oysterquartz) are perpetual which means they are self winding. On an average, Rolex watches have a power reserve of 48 hours. If not wound after 48 hours, your Rolex will stop running and appear dead. It is not a major issue, however, because you can manually wind your watch. Simply unscrew the crown to position 2 and wind it about 30 to 40 times and once you have done this, screw the crown back down.

- Winding your Rolex while wearing it on your wrist should be avoided.
- If found dead or in a non-functioning mode, do not shake your watch.
- Even after you have wound it, do not shake the watch if it does not start working. Simply, rotate your wrist gently, which will allow the watch to rotate as well and may give the rotor inside the “kick start” it needs.

All watches come with an instruction manual that should include instruction on how to care for your watch. Each watch is different so pay attention to what your watch can and cannot withstand. Refer to your instruction manual to properly set your watch, and to properly take care of it. Some watches may have special instructions that you need to know.

Water Resistant

When purchasing a watch make sure you check to see how water resistance it is. If you plan on wearing your watch while swimming make sure you buy a watch that can withstand these conditions. Waiting until you have exposed your watch to water would not be a good time to check its resistance level. You can purchase watches that are specifically made for diving and swimming.

Salt water can also cause more damage than regular water. Salt water can cause corrosion, so if you plan on being near salt water a lot you may want to check into a watch that can withstand these conditions. If your watch does come in contact with more water than is allowed, be sure to take it to someone to have it looked over. A specialist should be able to tell you the extent of the damage, and if it can be repaired or not.

Temperature

You should also try to avoid leaving your watch in extreme heat or cold for extended periods of time. If you will be staying in extreme temperatures make sure you purchase a watch that can withstand the circumstances. Extreme heat tends to shorten the battery life of a quartz watch, and extreme cold can cause the watch to stop keeping time accurately.

Shock

Another thing to take into consider is how much shock your watch will be in. If you are a runner you may want to either not wear your watch, or purchase one that is capable of withstanding this type of shock. Make sure you check before you buy the watch or wear it running to make sure it will withstand the conditions.

Avoid Contact

You should also try and avoid contact with any chemicals, solvents or gases while wearing your watch. These items may cause discoloration, deterioration, or other damage to your watch. Most watches are also not made to withstand strong electric fields or static electricity. Common household appliances do not pose a threat to your watch however.

After you purchase your watch make sure you take proper care of it. The watch and band should be cleaned by a specialist. You should also take your watch in to a specialist on a regular basis to be serviced. Your manual may have a suggestion as to how often you should do this. Just remember that your watch will last longer if you take proper care of it.