Seiko NH35 - NH35A Part 1 Service - Disassembly

[@SlickWillyTFCF]

This is a spectacular video. I built a Submariner homage with an NH35 and as I was trying to get it better than +6 sec/day and 2.7ms beat error, the balance wheel stopped and refused to keep moving. Your video helped me disassemble it to inspect the parts. Now it's time to reassemble it and see if the cat hair stuck to the escape wheel was the culprit.

[@spidiq8]

That sounds promising. Anything on the hairspring will cause you problems. Be sure you have a very clean and well lit work area for the reassembly. Glad the video helped.

[@SlickWillyTFCF]

@@spidiq8 I've got a desk specifically for watch work. This isn't my first movement, just the first Seiko.

[@SlickWillyTFCF]

When I got it back together the balance wheel still wouldn't stay in motion, and the stem wouldn't insert all the way. I took it apart again and found that the yoke wasn't properly aligned with the sliding pinion. The balance wheel just took a bit of hairspring adjustment and regulation, but it's running at about +3 sec/day with a 0.3ms beat error now. Thanks again for the time and effort put into your video.

[@spidiq8]

@@SlickWillyTFCF Great news, glad you got it sorted.

[@MrKrewie]

I honestly wanna buy one of these just for study purposes, it's quite amazing how this works

[@mohdislamkhan1128]

I have nh35 movement in my invicta grand diver watch ....feeling so awesome after watch this vdo that i have a wonderful machine...

[@silentfox8]

oh my days, you have the patience of a saint good sir, i could never do this, as badly as i want to

[@spidiq8]

I'm sure you could, like many things it's mostly practice and repetition.

[@neilmackellaig1337]

Very happy to see you doing one of these !

[@davelowey3074]

Hi, i've done about 6 of these movements i think they're well made and you can get excellent accuracy out of it, i made myself a watch a couple of years ago, looks like an explorer 1 but i needed a date so it has one, i regulated it and it's consistently about -1 or less a day, (90% of the time the train brige goes on and no messing required all falls into place) wear it all the time love it. Cheers q8 excellent video.

[@spidiq8]

They are really great. Amazing quality and accuracy for the incredibly cheap cost of them. Are you on any Facebook watch groups? I admin on a couple for watch repair and there's a great Seiko group also.

[@ecniv5991]

this helped me disassemble my own NH35, thanks!

[@gshockbabe6144]

I have this puppy inside my Invicta Pro diver and it currently runs 15 to 20 secs a day fast.I am well pleased with it!

[@spidiq8]

I do hope you mean this movement and not an actual puppy 😂

[@vitorbravo5535]

Mine gives a consistent run of 3+ secs a day!! I think i got lucky lol

[@dalepress1581]

Why do you have a puppy in your watch? That seems, not right.

[@PhatkatCollections]

great video sir. Question does the nh 35 movements use any plastic parts and if so are they subject to wearing out?

[@spidiq8]

Thank you. The movement ring. Dial ring and most of the calendar wheels are plastic. They rarely 'wear' but rather break through trying to quick change the date with the hands in the wrong position. They're a very rugged movement with decent accuracy and a great cost.

[@briandecasa5444]

I broke a small piece of the stem and is stuck in the movement. Do at what point do i stop with the disassembly to remove the broken piece?

[@EWLTANG]

Thank you for your share. It helps a lot😘😘

[@fcow007]

Excellent video. Thank you

[@TheTechieBloke]

Hi - Great walk through!! Once disassembled, what is the best way to clean all the parts prior to reassembly. I've got an NH35A that is new but doesn't regulate happily - 1 out of a batch of 5 so I assume it's likely to be excess grease/oil etc. Is the process basically the same for NH36 and NH34? Thanks!

[@spidiq8]

I use a conventional watch cleaning machine but if you don't have one and are hand cleaning then a small essence jar or similar small glass jar and a soft paintbrush with naphtha will clean the parts adequately especially being new, a rinse in isopropyl alcohol except the pallet fork and balance assembly then reassembly and suitable lubrication should see it ok. This is assuming there's no underlying cause of the poor running and it's merely lubrication/detritus/assembly problems. The others should be essentially the same the only difference being extra or lesser dial side components for calendar work and/or GMT gearing parts.

[@jayjayhooksch1]

Some have suggested that the NH35A doesn't come lubricated and will only last a couple of years. Is this true? Or, as i read from another of your comments, should I expect this movement to last 5-10 years?

[@Joerilla369]

do i have to disassemble the whole movement to remove the plastic spacer of the movement? or after the calendar wheel is removed you can strip it ?

[@SQueme]

👍It helped me a lot at the beginning to repair the broken / out of order nh35 movements i bought (in france only) 👍 6:40 ⚠ the white small date plastic pinion is glued under that plate ⚠ (easy to loose ...) 9:12 this additional "spur" gear is not "spare" (what i understood first 🤣), it is needed for the date change and is very special : it has a spring on one side to lock on the stem (if not firmly, this could cause quick date change problems btw)

[@alejandroarce8533]

Amazing !! 😊😊

[@tiburonski]

Yes that was very interesting and I was astonished to see plastic parts but still it’s a nice working movement! 👍

[@spidiq8]

Welcome to Seiko. Putting plastic gears in watches since the 1970's much to the frustration of everyone who worked on watches ever. 😁

[@Vv20vV]

Sorry if I missed it in the video or comments, but how much would a servicing cost for this movement with gasket replacement?

[@spidiq8]

Cost would depend on the watchmaker/service centre in question but the bottom line with a movement like this is that a brand new replacement would be as little as a third of the cheapest service price you're likely to encounter. They can be had from supply houses for £40-£50

[@iain772]

Was the power from the mainspring released by unscrewing the ratchet wheel?

[@spidiq8]

No, in this case (and in the case of any automatic winding watch) you remove the auto winding works then release power slowly from the crown whilst lifting the click spring. With the 7S26 and earlier models which didn't hand wind you use a screwdriver on the ratchet wheel screw to slowly release the power.

[@iain772]

got ya, i build my own watches but havent quite gotten to disassembling a movement till i was given a non running NH36 first so wanted to get a feel for it first, ive disassemlbed old 60/70s watches that had an obvious click but im used to seeing those instead i think. thanks :) @@spidiq8

[@richardsalinetrojr1957]

Wow,I have a nh35 in a diver watch that I own and was going to attempt my first servicing of a movement but with all those levers and whatnot im not sure if ill be up to the task of remembering how everything gets reassembled.been trying to learn to fix whatever I can on my own watches simply cause I love watches and how they work but im also a mechanic so just natural for me to try fixing or servicing anything I feel I maybe capable of.think doing a basic disassembly,cleaning and oiling maybe a bit out of my comfort zone on this one.can get these movements cheap so may still take on the challenge.not like im ruining a $10k Rolex movement if it doesn't go as planned so what do I have to loose?lol

[@spidiq8]

Absolutely, take it carefully. Don't force anything take plenty of pictures as you disassemble. They're a good first watch to work on. Good luck.

[@richardsalinetrojr1957]

@@spidiq8 i think I'm gonna attempt it.like I said if I screw up I not wasting a movement thats absurdly expensive so doesn't hurt to give it a shot.everyone including you say they're great movements to learn on so can't learn if I don't try it at least once.i just have to get some better tools such as tweezers and good screwdrivers cause the ones I have are junk that I got for free when I purchased a Movado from world of watches.also have to get some oilers and some oil as well.just hoping the oils I buy that another watch maker recommended(the 9010 synt-a-lube,the 8301 natural grease and the micorglas D-5 lube)are the rite ones to use on this particular movement.he said those 3 oils will work on pretty much any mechanical movement and that the average person shouldn't need any more then those 3.guess I also have to get a silicone sponge so I can lube up crown seals as well as case back seal.itll be awhile before I attempt it but will certainly take your advice on taking lots of pictures but ill also be using your videos as a guideline.thanks for message and building up my confidence for this challenge.

[@spidiq8]

@@richardsalinetrojr1957 Good for you. I'm happy to help if you need. The oils you've chosen are perfect for a 'basics to cover most movements' selection. Get yourself a decent set of drivers, stainless tweezers, brass tweezers and a red or black Bergeon oiler. The drivers and tweezers don't have to be Dumont or Bergeon but something from the cousins own brand will be better than anything you'll get from Ali express or eBay. Also get an oilstone or diamond stone for honing the edge of your driver's and the point of your tweezers and practice just picking up, manipulating and putting down parts with the tweezers in a controlled manner, honestly you can't practice enough.

[@richardsalinetrojr1957]

@@spidiq8 good deal.thank you very much for the advice.all the tools and oils im gonna buy are going to be trough esslingers so wasn't planning on getting junk.being a mechanic I always try buying the best I can afford so will be the same for my watch hobby.lol.ill lyk how it goes when I attempt a servicing in about a month or so.greatly appreciate your time.

[@spidiq8]

@@richardsalinetrojr1957 That's great. For wristwatches though. Don't go mad on a set of oilers. You'll honestly only really use the red/black handled ones. If you want to spend a bit more the Dumont tweezers are the best.

[@hanscleung4633]

My nh35 makes the same noise and feel of being manually winded - every time I either screw/unscrew the crown or adjust date and time clockwise or counter. Is that cause for concern. Shouldn’t it be smooth?

[@spidiq8]

It's normal when screwing or unscrewing the crown as you're winding it in the same action but it shouldn't in the date setting position. It should be quite smooth. How does yours feel?

[@hanscleung4633]

@@spidiq8 thank you for your reply. I still get that buzz winding feeling in the date and time setting.

[@fredericlebovici5199]

Good evening. Very excellent. Thank you very much !! Just a question (I'm a beginner)... Wich number for the tweezers you use on the vidéo ? N°2 ? N°3? Thank's i

[@spidiq8]

Thank you. I use several tweezers day to day. My general use for most parts of disassembly are AA stainless and brass though.

[@fredericlebovici5199]

@@spidiq8 Good morning. Thank's. I'm sorry but I'm not sure about AA. I have Bergeon and Dumont N°2 & 3. What is the correspondance number for AA ? Best regards !

[@spidiq8]

@@fredericlebovici5199 I'm not 100% sure if there's a number alternative but it's a commonly seen size on supply house websites. Such as here. www.cousinsuk.com/product/dumont-noaa-fine-strong-tips

[@wacamac1006]

just replaced my date wheel, never EVER doing it again good lord it took me an hour and a half and 5 separate tries and I lost a screw, oh well, finally got it working and I feel like a real watchmaker now lol. just a question, do you think me missing a screw will mess up the movement? I have 3 out of the 4 in there but the other one voided lol

[@spidiq8]

That could potentially cause slippages and jumps in the calendar wheel components, jumper spring etc. Watches rarely function well with a missing screw.

[@wacamac1006]

@@spidiq8 I found it by some miracle And was able to get it in!

[@spidiq8]

@@wacamac1006 great news and well done on your first watch adventure. They do get easier with practice.

[@wacamac1006]

@@spidiq8 my problem started when I removed the original date wheel, I didn't realize it could take everything out of place so after fiddling with the date wheel jumpers and such I finally did it, if there ever is a "next time" for me I'm definitely going to follow a video and hold the 2nd frame down into its 2 pins when I remove the disc 😂😂

[@spidiq8]

@@wacamac1006 You got it back together though and that's positive. Some would have given up. It's always a good idea to watch through a video of one is available, if not search for a service document online.

[@A.l.e.h.a.n.d.e.r]

Благодарю Вас за труд и за видео!!!👍 Скажите пожалуйста, есть ли смысл заводить этот механизм раз в неделю для профилактики, если я постоянно ношу часы?

[@spidiq8]

Once a week isn't necessary, once a month if not worn will help keep the lubrication doing it's thing but unless in a place of extreme temperature it'll sit happily for much longer.

[@GabrielSkolderblad]

Your not affraid about scratching the components when using a metal tweezer?

[@spidiq8]

Generally speaking no unless a part is typically bad for grip or likely to slip it's more about well dressed tweezers and the grip applied. Most scratches from mishandling are from poor quality tweezers or poorly dressed worn tweezers. Like the old adage about the likelihood of cutting yourself with a blunt knife is higher than with a sharp knife because you have to use it inappropriately. The important thing is to train yourself out of bad habits, things we all do like using the point of the tweezers to press setting lever release buttons etc. The other thing is, this is my own movement and the video for several people who'd asked about the NH Vs other Seiko. Had it been one I was working on I would have used my brass tweezers to handle the bridges.

[@dodopuipui1440]

Hi, does the movement (or any automatic movement) uses gold in it? I wonder if it is gold or brass? Why?

[@spidiq8]

Some very high end haute horlogerie movements user gold parts but typically things like the oscillating weight in an automatic. Brass, plated with nickel or bare is the most common.

[@dodopuipui1440]

@@spidiq8 thank you so much! I've been looking for an answer for soo long

[@axiasalsalaxia4600]

sir i want to ask about steeldive watch..they claim use this seiko nh35...isnt true or not...tq

[@spidiq8]

Yes this is true. Many homage watches use the NH35 or 36. The NH is the calibre Seiko sell for other manufacturers to use whereas theirs are branded 4R35

[@algerian1250]

how much years the NH35 can survive without problems ?

[@spidiq8]

Like most modern mechanical movements with modern synthetic oils it should run between 5-10 years before needing service.

[@christianmotos]

How do you power down the movement? It seems like it was running then it stopped.

[@spidiq8]

You need to remove the automatic winding works then you can release the click and using a screwdriver on the barrel arbor screw release the power steadily. With most movements you can release the power via the winding crown.

[@francescoluongo3284]

I just bought a Steeldive, are they proper NH35 movements or is it a high quality chinese clone of a nh35

[@spidiq8]

Proper NH35 from Seiko.

[@Barnaby_bo]

Can you use the crown from the nh35 in the nh36

[@spidiq8]

Yes you can. The only difference is date only or day date, the movements are the same.

[@Barnaby_bo]

@@spidiq8 so it's the same crown for both movements? Isn't there a difference with nh36 mechanism to accommodate the day display?

[@spidiq8]

@@Barnaby_bo The same stem for both movements. The crown will fit the stem but not necessarily the case. I.e. If you have a dive watch with a large screw down crown it might not fit to a smaller case but they're interchangeable otherwise.

[@Barnaby_bo]

@@spidiq8 thanks for the info. 👍

[@nuratthariqfikri2619]

Sorry sir, I want to ask how many parts are there in this 4r35 movement? 

[@spidiq8]

Sorry, I didn't count the parts. If you watch the disassembly through you can count them though.

[@nuratthariqfikri2619]

@@spidiq8 thankyou very much for your answer sir

[@nuratthariqfikri2619]

@@spidiq8 thankyou very much for your answer sir

[@jimmyredekop5799]

how many pieces does this movement have?

[@spidiq8]

I couldn't tell you offhand. I didn't count the parts.

[@jimmyredekop5799]

@@spidiq8 thanks for replying I was just wondering

[@LCMNUNES1962]

EXCELENTE TRABALHO 👍👍 🇧🇷

[@paulocesarbernardi270]

Essas maquinas aí são muito inferiores às antigas e perfeitas 6609 b da época de 1970 !!! Inconparaveis !!!!

[@spidiq8]

Not really. The older 6602 etc were more nicely machined and finished but performance wise they're all comparable.

[@andrew-zs2nx]

This stuff gives me a headache lol. This is modding level 100

[@mohdislamkhan1128]

Wow

[@1961UK]

I wonder if the nh35 is made in Japan or maybe China 🤔

[@harryhar8273]

From what I research its made in malaysia

[@remionthemoon]

You never showed the rotor removal …..

[@spidiq8]

@@remionthemoon It just unscrews via the large central screw as with all previous Seiko.

[@remionthemoon]

@@spidiq8 I thought there was more to it, due to the bearings around the screw. Thanks

[@micatrsic8762]

is better than ETA

[@spidiq8]

Are you asking or suggesting? The answer is no. It's a great movement for the incredibly cheap price but no, not even close to an ETA

[@staszeksowikowski9039]

Nice job. I find these movements very ugly and also reports of badly performing nh35s and 6r15 have been quite common recently. On top of that there quite a few plastic parts which always annoys me. Im just not a fan of the modern seiko movements.

[@spidiq8]

Thanks, hope you enjoyed it. These are perfectly good but you must remember they're built on an assembly line and are entry level very cheap mechanical movements which can be had for little more than a range of cheap Chinese movements. There will be the odd one which slips through and obviously Seiko are going to pay a little more attention to their own 4R variant. They aren't anything above and beyond the tried and tested 7S but they're great value for what they are.

[@Animalkisser]

Despite those three plastic wheels, it is an inexpensive but reliable, acurate, durable and workhorse movement!!!

[@Ge0rGi.]

I have 3 Seiko with 6r15 and all of them are between +2+4 sec\24h just like my Rolex explorer 2 or my sub...well my 2010 sub was-4\24 right from the start. Also you have to see the dramas about the new 3235 rolex movements on the rolex forums. People pay lots of money for rolex watches and they dont work properly ; so think twice before you are complaining about seiko movements .

[@scdevon]

I don't like plastic either, but these plastic date wheel parts work well for decades and are ridiculously easy and cheap to replace in the odd chance you ever have an issue.

[@hb9145]

@@Ge0rGi. Yes, mine keeps fantastic time. It loses a couple of seconds during day (on the wrist) and gains a couple of seconds during the night (resting with glass up). Pretty much +- 0 seconds. Even If I had a Rolex, I'd be happy with those numbers.