How to Set a GMT Watch
A calm, step-by-step guide to reading the 24-hour GMT hand, telling a caller GMT from a true flyer GMT, and setting home and local time.
5 min read
Serdar D. is the editor at BraveryWatch. He believes a good watch should be not just expensive but right. He gets deep into the details, then turns them into something that is genuinely a pleasure to read. He gives relaxed, useful advice through the eyes of someone who truly cares about watches.
More from Serdar D.
How to Charge Watch Lume
Charging your watch lume with the right light source is the difference between a glow you can read all night and a faint trace that fades within minutes. Here is how it works and the best method.
5 min read
How to Change a Watch Strap
The full method for changing a watch strap or bracelet at home: the right tool, measuring lug width, standard spring bars versus quick-release, and a step-by-step swap that won't scratch the lugs.
5 min read
How to Remove Moisture From a Watch
Condensation on the inside of the crystal is alarming, but most of the time you can clear it safely at home. I walk through why moisture appears, which steps are safe, what to avoid such as the rice myth, and when a watchmaker and a pressure test are the right call.
5 min read
How to Wind an Automatic Watch
How to hand-wind an automatic, keep it wound by wearing it, restart it after it has stopped, and what power reserve really means. I cover the overwinding myth and the fact that not every automatic hand-winds.
6 min read
How to Read an Analogue Watch
The hour, minute and second hands, reading minutes in fives, the date window and thinking in 24 hours. A patient, from-zero teaching guide.
5 min read
How to Read a Chronograph Watch
What a chronograph's sub-dials show, how the two pushers work, and how to read elapsed time, explained simply. I also clear up the running-seconds versus stopwatch-hand confusion that trips up most beginners.
5 min read
How to Read Chronograph Scales
A plain-language guide to the tachymeter, telemeter and pulsometer scales, with a worked example for each and an honest note on which watches actually carry which.
5 min read
How to Read a Seiko Reference Number
A calm walk through reading the reference and calibre number on a Seiko caseback, what each part broadly tells you, and how it helps you buy the right spares and spot a fake.
6 min read
The Watch Date Danger Zone
Never change the date by hand between roughly 9pm and 3am. The date gears are already engaging in those hours, and forcing them wears the teeth. Here is the safe routine, step by step.
6 min read
How to Use a Dive Watch Bezel
A step-by-step guide to reading elapsed minutes off a dive watch bezel, aligning the zero marker to the minute hand, and why a one-way bezel keeps you safe underwater and handy on dry land.
5 min read
What Is a Beater Watch
A beater is the watch you wear without a second thought about scratches, theft or loss. Here is what makes one, and why the Casio F-91W, the G-Shock and the Seiko 5 are the classic answers.
5 min read
The Best Watches Under 100
There are watches under 100 dollars genuinely worth owning, and Casio leads this tier. I set out what the budget really buys, the digital classics, the affordable analogue options, the toughest pick and who each one suits.
5 min read
The Best Watches for Women
From a minimalist dress watch to an everyday quartz, from a small case to the best value, a real buying guide built on stocked ladies and unisex models for every budget.
5 min read
Affordable Watches That Earned Their Place
Four affordable watches that earned a permanent place in history, and the qualities that keep them on the wrist today.
5 min read
What Watch Servicing Costs
A watchmaker's honest take on what drives servicing cost, how often a watch needs it, and when you can safely skip it. Cost factors, not invented figures.
5 min read
The Best Field Watches
The best affordable field watches, from a mechanical Seiko 5 to a tough quartz Casio. Legible, rugged, military-derived picks, the best on a NATO and who each watch suits.
5 min read
The Best Birthday Watch Gifts
How to choose a birthday watch that genuinely suits the person, at any budget, from a small-budget style gift to a first automatic, a milestone dress piece and a low-maintenance everyday companion.
5 min read
The Best Father's Day Watch Gifts
A gift guide that walks through choosing the right watch for dad, from a classic dress piece to a tough tool, a first automatic and a no-maintenance everyday companion.
5 min read
The Best Watch Brands for Value
Seiko, Orient, Casio, Citizen and Fossil for style: a reference guide to the best affordable watch brands, what each is known for and who each one suits.
5 min read