Vacation Break Project: Time on Your Hands

WARNING: This is an eclectic project with a touch of whimsy. If frivolous projects annoy you, please excuse me, ignore this post, and move on.

If you’re like me, then you don’t have enough time in a single day to work on all of your projects, plans, and ideas. There’s picking the kids up from school, doing laundry, preparing meals, homework, reading the daily news, and sleep. Ugh, sleep, what a complete waste of time that is. If only I could get more time to do the things that I really want to do. Forget that “idle hands are the devil’s workshop,” stuff. I need time and lots of it. What I need is a clock that gives me all of the time that I need for project building. I need time on my hands.

TIME TO COMPLETE: 1 HOUR
COST: $16.45
DIFFICULTY: EASY, TOO EASY

PARTS (1) Casio Men's Silver Tone Bracelet Watch #MTP1165A-1C (Amazon.com; $16.45)

MISC.
Small awl
Small straight-blade screwdriver

STEP-BY-STEP

Step 1. Remove a link pin for separating the watch band/bracelet in half. A small awl works great for sliding the pin out of the link.

Step 2. Lay the watch, crystal face down, on a soft towel. Carefully and gently pry the back off the watch. There is a small pry tab on this particular Casio model. Use a small straight-blade screwdriver for carefully prying this cover up. The link adjacent to the pry tab acts as a fulcrum for raising the cover. Once the cover has been raised, slip a fingernail under the cover and remove it.

Step 3. Pull the plastic movement cover off of the watch’s movement and set it aside.

Step 4. Firmly pull the time-set stem straight out from the watch case. Set the stem aside.

Step 5. Lift the movement out of the watch case. The face of the watch is attached to the underside of the movement. Take a small screwdriver and slip it under the sweep-second hand and pop it off of its cannon pinion pipe. Similarly, the minute hand is pried from its cannon pinion center boss, and hour hand is lifted off the cannon pinion hour wheel socket. If these wristwatch component terms sound confusing, then just remember to take all three hands off of the watch.

Step 6. Return the movement to the case, insert the stem, reseat the plastic movement cover, and snap the case cover back in place.

Now wear your watch with complete confidence that you will always have enough time on your hands for completing any task. Oh and forget about using a “dead” watch. This baby is still clicking, just not ticking. —Dave Prochnow