Hand clearance is the tiny gap that lets a watch’s hands pass one another without touching.
The hour hand sits lowest, the minute hand above it, and the seconds hand highest. Each must sit level and clear the dial, applied markers, the other hands, and the underside of the crystal.
If one hand is fitted too low, bent, or tilted, the watch may stop at the same point every hour. A seconds hand that brushes the minute hand can also create an intermittent fault that is easy to miss on the bench.
This matters especially in custom builds. A thicker dial, tall indices, stacked GMT hands, or a different crystal can reduce the available space even when every part is sold as “compatible.”
Practical check: before closing the case, rotate the hands through a full 12-hour cycle and inspect the stack from the side. Test again after casing the movement.
The lesson: compatible parts still need physical clearance.
