Sure, we can talk about watches all we want, but can we say we know how to remove a watch cyclops? Tick Talk is a blog by a certified watchmaker and he tells the story of Cyclopsi in real life.

There are two kinds of people in the world, those who like a cyclops and those who don’t. I often see people on timezone wanting to know how to remove the cyclops from their watch. And then other people come into my shop and want me to put one on their watch. I have one customer who brings in every new watch he buys and has me install a cyclops.

Cyclops Removal [Tick Talk]

One man asks the ultimate question: How can I hide my watches from my wife?

My wife has made a deal with me that allows me to purchase a watch every two years, my last watch I purchased was only a few months ago. I have been wanting to buy Sinn U1, oh so bad . Good thing is that I control the finances, so as far as her finding out about the purchase I could keep that a secret, but here are the problems, since it is a Sinn, I would have to purchase it through an online AD, and when using a credit card they will ship to billing address, but even if I get it delivered to another address, how do I put it into my collection without her finding out since my collection, is pretty out in the open, and of course she would find out if I was wearing the watch in her presence. Sometimes I wish I was single, and didn’t have to worry about the significant other getting on my case about my watch obsession.

How to hide a new watch from your wife - [Watchuseek Watch Forums]

Great thread on PMWF about blued screws. Some screws have the slot “silver” and the rest of the screw. Visit for the answer to the riddle.

What I expect is >>

Good thread on WuS about airport watches.

Just a general question about airport security. How do you all handle the special watches you don’t want marred or scratched rolling around in those little plastic tubs? Maybe I’m just being a little ‘anal’ but i’ve seen some of those things come rolling down the exit side, with content flipping and flopping all over, or even worse, a 50 lb bag landing on top of it.

About Airport Screening [Watchuseek Watch Forums]

WuS has a great discussion of the NATO strap and it’s origins. NATO straps are traditionally nylon straps with a basic buckle and some have a “skunk stripe” down them for effect. These guys sell a few great ones.

The strap that collectors call “NATO” (not to be confused with the Rhino, Waterborne, or Maratec Zulu straps) is based upon the standard watch strap issued by the British Ministry of Defense (MOD). Called the “G10″ by members of the British military because of the form used to requisition the strap (and other items) from inventory, the reason it got its “NATO” name is because the strap has a NSN or NATO Stock Number which identifies this type of strap. Incidentally, the actual military spec strap comes in only one color (Admiralty Grey) and one width (20mm). The hardware specs have not changed (chrome plated brass), though at least some of the straps currently issued have stainless steel fittings. And there are actually TWO NATO stock numbers for the straps: Army/Navy (6645-99-124-2986) and RAF (6645-99-527-7059). …

History of the “NATO” Strap [Watchuseek Watch Forums]

Forums are a goldmine today. A lot of people assume that automatics move as smoothly as butter. This is not the case. Sweep second hands “tick” but they tick up to 8 times per second, making them look like they are moving without stopping. Remember - these are still gears and gears have teeth. Even the most beautiful Rolex still “ticks” a little. If it’s ticking once per second, then you’ve got a quartz or a big problem.

How smoothly should a ETA 2834-2 movement sweeping hand move? - Watchuseek Watch Forums