Build your own watch in an afternoon.

The Modding Bench is the only watch making class in Sydney where you actually walk out wearing a working mechanical watch you built with your own hands. Not a two-hour boutique masterclass, not a three-year TAFE qualification — a four-hour hands-on workshop in Surry Hills, run by Ash, beginner-friendly, female-led.

What's a watch making class actually like?

You arrive at our bench in Surry Hills with no experience required. We sit you in front of a parts library — Seiko-ecosystem automatic movements (NH35, NH36, NH38, NH05, or NH70 for the more advanced builder), a wall of dial options, hands in every finish, leather and steel bracelets, cases in 36mm to 42mm. You pick the combination you want. With nearly 1.7 million possible variations, no two watches built at our bench are alike.

Over three-and-a-half to five hours we walk you through every step: opening the movement, setting the dial feet, fitting the hands one-by-one with watchmaker's tweezers, casing it up, fitting the crown, attaching the bracelet. We test every finished watch on a timegrapher before you leave — most builds settle within plus or minus 10 seconds per day.

How is this different from watch repair classes?

Most "watch classes" in Sydney are repair-and-restoration workshops where you learn to take a movement apart and put it back together. You don't keep a finished watch. We're a watch assembly school — you build a new watch from current parts, and the watch is yours to keep.

What does it cost?

• Foundation build — $595 per person. Any of our eight movements — NH35, NH36, NH38, NH05, NH70, Miyota 8285, VK63 chronograph, or VJ24 quartz. 3.5–4.5 hours.
• Premium build — $795 per person. Foundation build plus our exclusive Modding-Bench-designed custom cases (small-run, not sold anywhere else) and select premium dials. Includes a custom presentation watch case to take home.
• Couples — $995 for two builds side by side. Adjacent benches, photography, refreshments included.
• Party — from $485 per head, minimum 6 people. Bucks parties, hens nights, work team-building.

Every movement costs the same to build — we don't charge more for smaller or more delicate calibres. Everything is included: movement, dial, hands, case, crown, bracelet, all tools, instruction, timegrapher regulation, and the finished watch.

Where in Sydney?

We run classes from a workshop in Surry Hills, a short walk from Central Station. The full address is shared after booking. Saturday and Sunday afternoons.