YES Watch V7 : Bezel Insert Change

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The purpose of a bezel on a watch is to secure and protect the crystal.

A rotatable bezel can also be used to mark/measure time, track directions, and perform calculations. 

A bi-directional, rotating bezel allows for tracking and adjusting to different time zones when traveling. A well-known example of this is the Rolex GMT-Master II with its 24-hour bi-directional bezel…and of course, the titanium YES V7 WorldWatch.

Bezel Removal

Exchanging a rotating bezel insert on a watch typically requires a specialized tool to carefully pry off the old bezel. However, swapping an insert is a lot easier!

With the YES V7 watch, swapping an insert is done by inserting a thin piece of metal—a razor blade in our case—at the edge between the bezel and the watch crystal and working the blade around the glass.

Don’t worry, the sapphire is more than tough enough to handle this 😉

We had no problem lifting the old insert off the bezel ring. We took a lot of care to not bend or damage the removed insert, as we may want to swap it back in the future.

Here are the two bezel inserts side by side. We know this is a preference, but we find that the numeric insert is less crowded and a lot easier to read than the Roman numeral one.

With the old insert freed, the new one can be  installed once the plastic covering the adhesive backing is removed

Firmly pressing the insert onto the bezel and ensuring that it is properly seated completes this DIY project….all in less than 10 minutes, not including time required for photos 🙂

Link to the item mentioned:

• YES WorldWatch V7