A workshop that
still moves slowly on purpose
Chandra began as a one-bench atelier and has stayed small. We are not trying to grow into something else.
← Back to HomeHow Chandra came to Yaowarat Road
Chandra opened in 2008 on a short stretch of Yaowarat Road in Samphanthawong — a corner of Bangkok that has long been comfortable with patience and skilled hands. The workshop was started by Nattawut Chandra, a watchmaker who had spent a decade learning the trade in Bangkok and Geneva before deciding he preferred a quieter practice to a larger one.
The name has stayed the same. The bench has changed only in the tools placed on it. Nattawut still oversees every movement that passes through, and the small team around him shares the same preference for conversation over transaction. A watch left with us is not a job ticket. It is something someone cares about, and we try to treat it that way.
Over sixteen years the workshop has looked after pocket watches brought across by older families, military timepieces, Japanese automatics picked up in weekend markets, and Swiss pieces worn daily until they needed attention. Each comes with a different kind of weight and a different kind of hope for what it might become again.
"To keep mechanical watches running and readable long after the world has moved on to other things — without erasing the marks they have earned along the way."
Years working from the same address in Yaowarat
Mechanical and automatic movements, Swiss and Japanese
Photographic records for every restoration project
The people at the bench
A small group. Everyone works directly with watches — there is no back office separate from the work.
Nattawut Chandra
Master Watchmaker & Founder
Trained in Bangkok and Geneva, Nattawut has been working with mechanical movements for over twenty-five years. He examines every piece before it is opened.
Praewa Kijmanee
Movement Technician
Praewa handles full service and regulation work. She has a particular patience with complicated vintage calibres and has been with Chandra since 2014.
Anon Teeraphon
Case & Dial Conservator
Anon focuses on case conservation and dial work, keeping an eye on what should be left alone. He photographs restoration stages and manages owner correspondence.
Standards we hold ourselves to
Written Assessment First
Every watch receives a written condition note before any work begins. You read it, ask questions, then decide whether to proceed.
Original Parts Where Possible
We source period-correct or manufacturer parts for vintage work. Substitutions are discussed and agreed upon before fitting.
Correct Lubricants by Calibre
Each movement type calls for its own lubricants. We follow manufacturer guidance and use current watchmaking oils rather than general alternatives.
Multi-Position Regulation
Timing is checked across multiple positions on a timing machine. A watch that only keeps good time face-up is not well-regulated.
Secure Handling & Storage
Watches in our care are kept in individual trays in a locked cabinet when not on the bench. Each piece is logged with a reference number on arrival.
Open Communication
If something unexpected arises during work, we contact you before continuing. No one likes a surprise addition to an invoice.
A trade that rewards patience more than speed
Mechanical watchmaking is an unusual trade to practise in a city that moves as quickly as Bangkok. Most of the knowledge is in the hands — how a jewelled pivot feels under a louvre, the sound a worn click spring makes, the colour of oil that has aged past its useful life. These things take years to read correctly, and they cannot be found in a manual.
At Chandra, the work has stayed focused on mechanical and automatic movements because that is where the team's depth lies. Quartz watches run for a long time on a new battery and a clean contact — they do not need an atelier. Mechanical watches do, and they deserve one that knows the difference between a watch that simply needs oiling and one that needs careful thought before a tool is picked up.
Vintage restoration is the work that asks the most. A dial with a sixty-year-old lacquer surface, a mainspring that is no longer in production, a case that has been polished once too often and is close to losing its chamfers — these need someone who understands what the piece was, not only what it is now. We are fortunate to work on pieces like this regularly, and we take the responsibility seriously.
Come and see the workshop
We are on Yaowarat Road, open Monday to Saturday. Walk-ins are welcome, or send us a message if you'd like to arrange a specific time.
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