Tool for opening Aquaracer

T
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I have a WAY1110 Aquaracer I wear everyday, I purchased it new from authorised Tag dealer in 2016 however the battery is now low (second hand jumping 4-5 seconds)

Due to my location offshore sending it to a dealer to change or Tag isn’t very practical so was going to do it myself. Can anyone recommend the best tool for opening it without scratching the back - there seems to be two or three different types but all look a bit cheap and nasty. I don’t mind spending on a proper tool as I also have a Formula 1 chronograph I will be needing it on at some point

Thanks
 
Mr_Orange
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Bergeon will make a suitable tool. It won't be cheap but, IMO, it's not worth sacrificing on the quality of your tools when you consider the price of the watch.
 
Aquagraph
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Pitfitter446 Pitfitter446
Aquagraph has one, sure he’ll be in at some point with advice.

Mine came as part of a kit that cost £5 on eBay. It's perfectly adequate, but I don't think it's what he's looking for somehow. I just found a bergeon tool but it has the same basic functionality and could just as easily scratch the back as mine as it is hand operated and could easily slip. However there is a tool that comes in a sort of press which might be better?
 
Aquagraph
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Oh right, the top one... sorry to sound like a thug, but I don't see how it's going to be 40x better than mine and I actually bought a second one that looks like that thinking it would be better than the cheap two pronged one I had, but it was so much harder to use that I gave up with it eventually. The issue is that it's hand held and so liable to slip, whatever you pay. But those pillar mounted ones are silly money. I would say the best thing you can do though is get a watch cradle, it makes it so much easier to hold your watch and hold it steady while you work on it. That was more of an issue for me than getting the pins to stay in place.
 
Mr_Orange
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I wasn't saying it was better. I was merely pointing out that there are options from $5 handheld tools up to more expensive thingamabobs. Your choice 😀.
 
Aquagraph
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Mr_Orange Mr_Orange
I wasn't saying it was better. I was merely pointing out that there are options from $5 handheld tools up to more expensive thingamabobs. Your choice 😀.

I wasn't implying you were, I think the price rather implies it is though.😉 I'm sure it's a much better made tool and feels smoother in operation and all that, but to me any hand held tool has limitations. It's like a brush, you can do all sorts of things to the handle and the bristles but at the end of the day it's still just a brush. But I think, and I hate to say this, but these companies know if you have a £10,000 watch then you're not going to use a £3 strap tool or a £5 back remover.... because it's not 'expensive' enough. If you'd told me the Bergeon tool was £50 instead of £5, then maybe fair enough, but it's nearly four times that. I'd love to see them justify the pricing. Same can be said about watches of course...
 
Mr_Orange
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It should be noted that Bergeon is the Rolls Royce of watch tools. There are other more reasonable tool manufacturers.
 
Mr_Orange
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Well, I have a set of Bergeon screwdrivers, a casing cushion and a loupe.
Edited:
 
Aquagraph
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I have a £5 casing cradle, a loupe and a crappy set of tools off eBay. But they're fine for working on my £300 Sels. Obviously if I was ever going to take the back of my Carreras (which I wouldn't since they don't have batteries) I would immediately buy a Bergeon! 😜
 
T
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I looked on eBay and they all looked cheap, I ended up using a pair of decent internal circlip pliers to open the back up, worked perfectly and case back was completely unmarked. New Renata 395 battery cost me £1.45 delivered, I used silicon grease on the O Ring (which was in perfect condition) when caseback replaced.
 
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