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VK63A Chronograph

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WRISTBUILT ASSEMBLY INSTRUCTIONS VK63A Chronograph Make the Movement Yours. Mecha-quartz chronograph · 52 steps · ten stages Your kit's own dial, hand set and bracelet are described on the insert sheet packed with the kit.
FRONT MATTER Contents STAGE STEPS PAGE What's in your kit 3 Tools you'll need 4 Before you start 5 Your kit insert Sheet 1 Crown and stem 1–6 6 2 Fitting the dial 7–9 13 3 Fitting the hands 10–24 17 4 Removing the stem and crown 25–29 33 5 Preparing the case 30–34 39 6 Casing the movement 35–37 45 7 Stem and crown 38–44 49 8 Closing the case 45–46 57 9 Fitting the bracelet 47–50 60 10 Finish 51–52 65 If something isn't right 68 Important safety information 72 Who made this 73 WRISTBUILT PAGE 2
FRONT MATTER What's in your kit One kit, laid out. Your dial, hands and bracelet may look different from these — the insert sheet describes yours. CHECK YOUR KIT OFF BEFORE YOU START 1 Bracelet 2 Hands — hour, minute, chronograph seconds 3 Subdial hands — three 4 Movement 5 Dial 6 Case, with case back fitted — the crown is packed loose 7 Stem — Spring bars — two, fitted in the bracelet If anything on this list is missing or damaged, get in touch before you start building — not after. Our address is on the last page. WRISTBUILT PAGE 3 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
FRONT MATTER Tools you'll need 1 Movement holder 2 Plastic tweezers 3 Gasket greaser 4 Threadlocker 5 Screwdriver 6 Hand-setting pushers 7 Cutters 8 Finger cots 9 Case back ball 10 Green putty NOT IN THE KIT — FIND THESE AT HOME A tray or folded towel to work over, a small ruler to measure the stem, and a clean microfibre cloth for the last step. WRISTBUILT PAGE 4 1 4 5 2 8 9 10 7 6 3
FRONT MATTER Before you start 01 Wear the finger cots. Skin oil marks a dial permanently. 02 Work on a clean, flat, light surface with nothing else on it. 03 Work over a tray or towel. Small parts bounce and vanish. 04 Never force anything. If it resists, stop and re- read the step. 05 Take your time. No step here is improved by rushing. 06 Allow about two hours the first time. The build itself is shorter than that, but rushing is how hands get bent — the extra time is there so you never have to hurry a step. WRISTBUILT PAGE 5
STAGE 1 OF 10 Crown and stem S T E P S 1 – 6 THE CROWN IS FITTED TWICE At step 3 the crown goes onto the stem as a temporary fit, so you have something to pull the stem out by — that is what stops the movement at step 6 and what sets the time at step 52. The stem and crown come out of the movement together at step 27, the crown is unscrewed from the stem at step 28, the stem is cut at step 41, and only then is the crown fitted for good with threadlock. Do not use threadlock at step 3. WRISTBUILT PAGE 6
STAGE 1 — CROWN AND STEM 1 Set up your space Clear a flat, light surface. Work over a tray or towel so dropped parts don't vanish. STEP 1 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 1 — CROWN AND STEM 2 Seat the movement Place the movement in the holder with the side the dial will go on facing up. STEP 2 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 1 — CROWN AND STEM 3 Screw the crown onto the stem Thread the crown onto the stem by hand until it stops. Do not use threadlock yet. STEP 3 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 1 — CROWN AND STEM 4 Slide the stem in Push the stem into the side of the movement at the 3 o'clock position until it seats. Give it a gentle pull — it should not come back out. STEP 4 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 1 — CROWN AND STEM 5 Check the stem This is what it should look like STEP 5 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 1 — CROWN AND STEM 6 Stop the movement Pull the crown gently outward until the stem clicks into its outer, setting position. Leave it there. NOTE The movement runs on a cell that is already fitted, and every hand you are about to press on goes onto a turning pinion. With the stem pulled out the movement stops, so the pinions stand still while you work. That is also the position you will use to set the time at the end. Leave the crown out until step 24. STEP 6 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 2 OF 10 Fitting the dial S T E P S 7 – 9 WRISTBUILT PAGE 13
STAGE 2 — FITTING THE DIAL 7 Find the dial feet Two small posts on the back of the dial locate into two small holes in the movement. Turn the dial so its 3 o'clock sits over the stem. STEP 7 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 2 — FITTING THE DIAL 8 Lower the dial on Line the feet up with their holes and lower the dial straight down. Don't slide it. STEP 8 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 2 — FITTING THE DIAL 9 Check it sits flat This is what it should look like The dial should sit level with no gap at any edge. STEP 9 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 3 OF 10 Fitting the hands S T E P S 1 0 – 2 4 This is the fiddliest part of the build. If you'd rather watch it than read it, the full video tutorial is on our website: [PLACEHOLDER: video URL] IF A HAND HAS TO COME OFF AGAIN Taking a fitted hand back off needs specific tools. Do not improvise with tweezers, a blade or the putty — you will bend the hand or the pivot under it. Stop and get in touch, and we will sort it out. WRISTBUILT PAGE 17
STAGE 3 — FITTING THE HANDS 10 Know your dial The VK63A drives three subdials, and the movement itself decides what each one does. The 24-hour hand sits at 3 o'clock, the running seconds at 6 o'clock, and the elapsed chronograph minutes at 9 o'clock. The long central hand is the chronograph seconds. Learn those four positions now — every step from here on names a hand by what it counts. STEP 10 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 3 — FITTING THE HANDS 11 Know your hands Left to right: hour, minute, chronograph seconds, then the three subdial hands Six hands come with the kit. The hour hand is the shortest and widest, the minute hand is longer and narrower, and the chronograph seconds hand is the longest and thinnest of all. The remaining three are the subdial hands, and they are identical to one another. STEP 11 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 3 — FITTING THE HANDS 12 Position the hour hand Pick the hour hand up by its edge with the green putty and lay it over the centre pinion, pointing directly at 12 o'clock. STEP 12 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 3 — FITTING THE HANDS 13 Press the hour hand home Take the hand-setting pusher, hold it vertical over the hand, and press straight down until it seats. Stop the moment it's on. WARNING Press straight down, never at an angle, and stop the moment the hand is seated. Excess force bends the pivot underneath and that damage cannot be undone. STEP 13 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 3 — FITTING THE HANDS 14 Check the hour hand It should sit flat and point exactly at 12. STEP 14 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 3 — FITTING THE HANDS 15 Press the minute hand on Same again with the hand-setting pusher, onto the pinion above the hour hand, pointing exactly at 12 o'clock. STEP 15 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 3 — FITTING THE HANDS 16 Align both to 12 Both hands should stack cleanly and point at 12 together. STEP 16 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 3 — FITTING THE HANDS 17 Zero the chronograph The next two hands are chronograph hands, and they only have a zero if the movement is sitting in its reset state. Run the chronograph through once and reset it before either hand goes on: start, stop, reset. HOW TO WORK IT WITH NO CASE ON There are no pushers yet — they are part of the case. The two levers the pushers will press stand proud of the movement's edge at the 2 o'clock and 4 o'clock positions. Press the upper lever at 2 o'clock with the plastic tweezers to start, press it again to stop, then press the lower lever at 4 o'clock to reset. Same two levers again at step 24. WARNING A chronograph hand fitted while the wheels are stopped part-way has a false zero. It will never come back to 60, or to 12, on reset — and the only correction is taking the hand off again, which needs levers that are not in this kit. STEP 17 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 3 — FITTING THE HANDS 18 Fit the running seconds hand Take one of the three identical subdial hands and press it on with the hand-setting pusher, onto the running-seconds subdial at 6 o'clock. This hand has no zero, so it can point anywhere. STEP 18 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 3 — FITTING THE HANDS 19 Fit the chronograph minute hand Press the second subdial hand on with the hand-setting pusher, onto the chronograph-minutes subdial at 9 o'clock, pointing directly at 60. STEP 19 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 3 — FITTING THE HANDS 20 Fit the 24-hour hand Press the last subdial hand on with the hand-setting pusher, onto the 24-hour subdial at 3 o'clock. This hand is not a chronograph register and has no zero — it follows the hour hand. With the main hands at 12 it can point at either 12 or 24, so set it directly on the 24-hour marker. STEP 20 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 3 — FITTING THE HANDS 21 Check the subdials All three subdial hands should sit flat. The chronograph minute hand at 9 o'clock should rest exactly on 60; the running seconds hand at 6 o'clock may point anywhere; the 24-hour hand at 3 o'clock should still sit on the 24 marker you set it to at step 20. STEP 21 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 3 — FITTING THE HANDS 22 Fit the chronograph seconds hand Press the long central hand on with the hand-setting pusher, onto the top pinion, pointing exactly at 12. STEP 22 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 3 — FITTING THE HANDS 23 Check every hand clears This is what it should look like Look across the dial at eye level. No hand should touch another or the dial. STEP 23 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 3 — FITTING THE HANDS 24 Check the movement runs Push the crown back in. The running seconds hand at 6 o'clock should start to move. The case is still off, so work the chronograph from the same two levers as at step 17 — upper lever at 2 o'clock to start and stop, lower lever at 4 o'clock to reset. The central hand should return to 12 and the hand at 9 o'clock to 60. WARNING Do not go on until it runs and resets cleanly. This is the last easy moment. Once the case is closed, the crown threadlocked and the case back screwed down, reaching a movement that will not run means taking the whole build apart again. STEP 24 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 4 OF 10 Removing the stem and crown S T E P S 2 5 – 2 9 WRISTBUILT PAGE 33
STAGE 4 — REMOVING THE STEM AND CROWN 25 Turn the movement over The hands are on now, so this is the one moment in the build where they can be crushed. Lift the movement straight up out of the holder, turn it over, and seat it back into the holder the other way up, so the holder carries the movement by its edge and nothing touches the dial or the hands. If you have to set it down instead, set it down only on the green putty — never face-down on a hard surface. Then check the stem is pushed all the way into the movement before you go on. STEP 25 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 4 — REMOVING THE STEM AND CROWN 26 Find the release Push the release lever through this hole with the tip of the screwdriver, and keep steady pressure on it. STEP 26 / 52 WRISTBUILT STEM RELEASE
STAGE 4 — REMOVING THE STEM AND CROWN 27 Press and pull Hold the pressure on the lever with the tip of the screwdriver and pull the stem and crown straight out by hand. If the stem does not come away, press it all the way back in and try again. STEP 27 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 4 — REMOVING THE STEM AND CROWN 28 Unscrew the crown from the stem The stem and crown came out of the movement together, still joined. Hold the stem and unwind the crown off it by hand. NOTE The crown only ever went on hand-tight at step 3, with no threadlock, so it should come away with finger pressure alone. Put it somewhere safe — it goes back on at step 42, once the stem has been cut. STEP 28 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 4 — REMOVING THE STEM AND CROWN 29 Stem and crown out The stem is out of the movement and the crown is off the stem. The movement is ready to go into the case. STEP 29 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 5 OF 10 Preparing the case S T E P S 3 0 – 3 4 WRISTBUILT PAGE 39
STAGE 5 — PREPARING THE CASE 30 Unscrew the case back Press the case back ball firmly onto the case back and turn it anticlockwise to unscrew. Keep the ball flat against the back so it grips rather than slips. STEP 30 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 5 — PREPARING THE CASE 31 Leave the film on Leave the protective film on the crystal until the very last step. STEP 31 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 5 — PREPARING THE CASE 32 Lift out the gasket Ease the rubber gasket out of the groove in the back of the case with plastic tweezers. Don't stretch it. STEP 32 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 5 — PREPARING THE CASE 33 Grease the gasket Lay the gasket flat in the grease tub, set the lid on top, and twist it a few times. That is enough to coat the gasket evenly — it needs no more than a thin film. STEP 33 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 5 — PREPARING THE CASE 34 Refit the gasket Lay the greased gasket back into its groove, flat all the way round. NOTE Greasing and refitting this gasket is about how the case closes, not about keeping water out. It gives the watch no rating of any kind. Keep the finished watch dry. STEP 34 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 6 OF 10 Casing the movement S T E P S 3 5 – 3 7 WRISTBUILT PAGE 45
STAGE 6 — CASING THE MOVEMENT 35 Lower the case over the movement Take the movement out of the holder and set it dial-up on the green putty — the case cannot pass over the holder's jaws, so the movement has to come out of it here. Keeping the movement crystal-side up, bring the case straight down over it, so the movement enters through the back of the case. By hand. No tool is needed. STEP 35 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 6 — CASING THE MOVEMENT 36 Press it home Work round the edge with your thumbs until the case sits fully down. Wear the finger cots. STEP 36 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 6 — CASING THE MOVEMENT 37 Turn it over and check This is what it should look like The movement should sit level in the case, with its stem hole lined up with the hole in the case band. STEP 37 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 7 OF 10 Stem and crown S T E P S 3 8 – 4 4 THIS IS THE PERMANENT FIT The crown came off the stem at step 28 and the stem is still out of the movement. Here it goes back in to be measured, comes out again to be cut, and only after the cut does the crown go on for good, with threadlock. WRISTBUILT PAGE 49
STAGE 7 — STEM AND CROWN 38 Refit the stem Push the stem back into the movement by hand, then thread the crown onto it by hand until it stops. Still no threadlock — the crown is only on so you can measure against it. STEP 38 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 7 — STEM AND CROWN 39 Measure the cut Measure the gap between the back of the crown and the side of the case. That gap is what comes off the stem. Do not measure how far the stem stands out past the case — most of that length is threaded inside the crown, and cutting it all off leaves the crown nothing to grip. Any small ruler, or a measuring app on your phone, is accurate enough. Leave it a millimetre or two long on the first cut — you can always take more off, and reaching a flush fit in two or three passes is normal. STEP 39 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 7 — STEM AND CROWN 40 Take the stem back out Unscrew the crown from the stem and set it aside. Then press the release lever as you did at steps 26 and 27 and pull the stem out of the movement again. The stem is cut off the watch, never in it. WARNING Never cut a stem that is still seated in the movement. The shock of the cutters travels straight through into the setting parts, and the offcut and metal swarf drop into the open case. STEP 40 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 7 — STEM AND CROWN 41 Cut the stem Cut once, square, with the cutters. WARNING Measure twice. A stem cut too short cannot be lengthened and the part must be replaced. STEP 41 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 7 — STEM AND CROWN 42 Refit the stem and test-fit the crown Push the cut stem back into the movement until it seats, then thread the crown onto it by hand and check the crown sits flush against the case. Still no threadlock. STEP 42 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 7 — STEM AND CROWN 43 Apply the threadlock Unscrew the crown from the stem again and set it aside, leaving the stem seated in the movement. Then one small drop of Loctite 243 on the stem thread only. WARNING One small drop, on the stem thread only. If threadlock runs into the movement it will seize the mechanism. STEP 43 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 7 — STEM AND CROWN 44 Fit the crown for good Thread it on by hand until it sits flush, then leave it alone. WARNING Loctite 243 holds after about ten minutes and reaches full strength in twenty-four hours. Do not pull, turn or wind the crown during that time — moving it while the threadlock is curing breaks the bond and it will work loose later. Set the watch down and leave it overnight before you use the crown. STEP 44 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 8 OF 10 Closing the case S T E P S 4 5 – 4 6 WRISTBUILT PAGE 57
STAGE 8 — CLOSING THE CASE 45 Place the case back Line the case back up square by hand and set it down flat. Do not start turning it yet. STEP 45 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 8 — CLOSING THE CASE 46 Tighten it down Press the case back ball on and turn clockwise until it is firm. Stop as soon as it stops turning easily — do not overtighten. STEP 46 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 9 OF 10 Fitting the bracelet S T E P S 4 7 – 5 0 WRISTBUILT PAGE 60
STAGE 9 — FITTING THE BRACELET 47 Remove the first spring bar Slide the screwdriver blade between the lug and the end-link, press the spring bar in, and lift that half of the bracelet away. This is one step that is far easier to follow on film than in print — the full sequence is in the video at [PLACEHOLDER: video URL]. STEP 47 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 9 — FITTING THE BRACELET 48 Protect the case back Rest the watch on the putty so the screwdriver can't scratch it. STEP 48 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 9 — FITTING THE BRACELET 49 Fit the second half Same again on the other side, with the screwdriver. STEP 49 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 9 — FITTING THE BRACELET 50 Check both are locked Tug each half. Neither should move. STEP 50 / 52 WRISTBUILT
STAGE 10 OF 10 Finish S T E P S 5 1 – 5 2 WRISTBUILT PAGE 65
FINISH 51 Peel the film Lift the protective film off the crystal, and off the case back if yours came with one. Then take the finger cots off and wipe the whole watch down with a clean microfibre cloth — every fingerprint you have left on it comes off now. STOP HERE IF IT HASN'T BEEN A DAY Step 52 means pulling the crown out. If less than twenty-four hours have passed since you fitted the crown at step 44, the threadlock is still curing — stop at the end of this page, leave the watch somewhere safe, and come back to step 52 tomorrow. STEP 51 / 52 WRISTBUILT
FINISH 52 Set it and test it Pull the crown out, set the time, and push it back in. Then test the chronograph: the pusher at 2 o'clock starts and stops it, the pusher at 4 o'clock resets it. On reset the central seconds hand should return to 12 and the minute hand at 9 o'clock to 60. If the 24-hour hand now reads twelve hours out — 03 when it is 3 pm — nothing is wrong: wind the hour and minute hands on a full twelve hours and it will agree. STEP 52 / 52 WRISTBUILT
BACK MATTER If something isn't right EIGHT THINGS AND WHAT TO DO Check the headings on the next three pages for the one that matches what you are looking at. WRISTBUILT PAGE 68
IF SOMETHING ISN'T RIGHT — 1 OF 3 A hand won’t stay seated FIX Check you are pressing straight down with the pusher held vertical — a hand started at an angle will not hold. If it still will not seat, the hole in the hand or the pivot beneath it is likely damaged. Stop there. Taking the hand off again needs levers that are not in this kit, so get in touch and we will arrange a replacement part. Hands touch each other, or touch the dial FIX One hand is sitting too low or too high. Look across the dial at eye level to see which one. Correcting it means taking that hand off and refitting it, which needs hand levers you do not have — get in touch rather than trying to lift it with what is in the kit. A chronograph hand doesn’t return to its mark on reset FIX This covers both chronograph hands: the central seconds hand stopping short of 12, and the minute hand at 9 o’clock stopping short of 60. Same cause either way — the hand went on against a false zero, because the chronograph was not sitting in its reset state when it was fitted, which is what the check at step 17 is there to prevent. It is a cosmetic fault, not a mechanical one, and the watch will keep time correctly. If it bothers you, get in touch — repositioning a hand needs levers that are not in this kit. WRISTBUILT PAGE 69
IF SOMETHING ISN'T RIGHT — 2 OF 3 The crown doesn’t sit flush against the case FIX The stem is still too long. Take the crown off, take a little more off the stem, and test-fit again before any threadlock goes near it. If you have already threadlocked a crown that stands proud, a replacement stem is the safer route. The case back won’t seat flat FIX Take it off and look at the gasket. If it is twisted, pinched or riding up out of its groove, lay it flat again all the way round before you retry. Never force a case back that is sitting proud — you will cross-thread it. WRISTBUILT PAGE 70
IF SOMETHING ISN'T RIGHT — 3 OF 3 The case won’t go down over the movement FIX Stop pressing. The movement is almost always rotated: its stem hole has to line up with the hole in the case. Lift the case away, turn the movement until the two line up, and bring the case down square. There’s no date window on the dial FIX Nothing to fix. The movement carries a date wheel underneath, but our dials are made without a window over it. Nothing is missing from your kit. The 24-hour hand reads twelve hours out FIX Nothing was fitted wrongly. That hand was set to 24 with the main hands at 12, so when you set the real time it is an even chance it lands on the wrong half of the day — reading 03 when it is 3 pm. Pull the crown out and wind the hour and minute hands on a full twelve hours. The 24-hour hand comes into agreement and the time on the dial is unchanged. WRISTBUILT PAGE 71
BACK MATTER Important safety information NOT WATER RESISTANT This watch should be treated as not water resistant. Steps 32 to 34 remove, grease and refit a rubber gasket. Fitting that gasket does not make the watch waterproof. Whether the watch seals depends entirely on how you seat the gasket, the case back and the crown, so no rating can be promised. Keep it dry. 01 The parts are small and some are sharp. Keep the kit, the spring bars and the cut-off piece of stem away from children and pets. 02 The movement contains a coin cell. A swallowed cell is a medical emergency — seek help immediately. 03 Threadlock and gasket grease are chemicals. Follow the maker's own instructions, keep them off your skin and eyes, and work in a ventilated room. 04 Cutting the stem can flick the offcut. Cut over the tray, and keep your fingers behind the blades. WRISTBUILT PAGE 72
BACK MATTER Who made this SOLD BY Wristbuilt We would rather hear from you early than late. There is no question about this build that is too small to ask. WRISTBUILT PAGE 73 Version 1.0 — September 2026
WRISTBUILT You built that. Make the Movement Yours. VK63A CHRONOGRAPH PAGE 74 Version 1.0 — September 2026