Watch strap adjustment

[Binky]

I have just bought a watch mail order and I need the strap made smaller. It is the metal kind where approx. four links have got to be taken out. Does anyone have any idea on how to do this or how much a jeweller would charge to do it? There is no instruction leaflet. Thanks.

[almcd007]

You'll see holes on the side of the links that can be adjusted.

you need a special tool to press the spring pin in and pop the link. This is usually smaller than a pin. It cost me a couple of pounds to have mine done by one of these watch cabins - well worth knowing it's being done properly.

[Jules001]

I bought a watch for my daughter on Ebay from China and this needed to be adjusted. Mr Jules said we would need to take it to a jeweller to be done, but I Googled and found a site and between me and my daughter we managed to do it ourselves. There are little arrows almost unnoticeable until you are looking for them and this is the direction the pin needs to be pushed in to slide out, you can pull the pin out using tweezers or fine pliers and remove the section, it is just a case of taking out how ever many is necessary and then putting the pin back to join it together again, I think we took out about 4 links, but my daughter is a teenager so you might not have to remove so many. Hope this helps.

[TEAK36]

My missus bought me a watch for christmas, and the strap needed adjustment.In the box was a little tape measure that you mark with a pen where you want the adjustment made, and I just sent it back to the Manufatcurer for adjustment.I got the watch back in about 4 days, and it did not cost me anything.

If you take it to a local jeweller it will cost about a tenner, but some straps they are not able to adjust.

[StudentGal]

There are lots of different link types and ways to remove them. Most removals could be done with a skewer but if i were you I'd take it to a jeweler because you can wreck the bracelet if you're too vicious. Probably only charge �5 or so if they're a nice local one, Big chains might not even remove the links

[fiesata]

Buy a watch link remover from Ebay around a fiver including postage

http://search.ebay.co.uk/watch-link-remover_W0 QQfromZR41

they have saved me �'s over the years

[engineer45]

It is not really necessary to use special tools to remove a link. I managed with a pointy hole-maker from a cracker then tapped it gently with a hammer. It's a 3-handed job: one to hold the tool on the pin in the edge of the strap on a link marked with an arrow, one to hold the watch strap over the edge of solid surface--I used a tile--and one on the hammer. A drawing pin (thumb tack) is also a suitable size, but the head makes it harder to see the head of the pin in the watch strap. Having removed links, the pin gies back in in the opposite direction the the arrow.