Mechanical Watches and Servicing

ACCESSORIES · GLOBAL

Mechanical Watches and Servicing

Automatic and manual, accuracy, servicing intervals and living with one

A mechanical watch is less accurate and more demanding than a quartz one, which is precisely why people buy them.

Automatic and manual

An automatic winds itself from wrist movement and needs wearing regularly or it stops. A manual watch is wound by hand, usually daily, which some people find a pleasant ritual.

Power reserve is how long it runs unworn, commonly around forty hours and increasingly longer.

Accuracy

A mechanical watch gaining or losing a few seconds a day is normal and within specification. Chronometer certification tightens that to a defined daily range.

A quartz watch keeps time to seconds a month. Buying mechanical means accepting worse timekeeping in exchange for the mechanism.

Servicing

Oils dry out and parts wear. Manufacturers commonly suggest a service every five to seven years, and a full service is expensive — frequently a significant fraction of the watch's value.

Factor that in before buying, particularly on an inexpensive mechanical watch where a service can cost more than the watch.

Winders and stopping

There is no harm in letting an automatic stop. A watch winder keeps it running for convenience on a calendar watch rather than for the watch's benefit.

Water and magnetism

Never operate the crown underwater, and have the gaskets tested if you swim with it. Magnetism from speakers, laptops and bag clasps affects accuracy and is easily corrected by a watchmaker.

Shocks

Avoid wearing one for racket sports, hammering or golf, which is where balance staffs break.

Straps and sizing

A strap changes a watch more than anything else you can do to it. Measure the lug width in millimetres, and quick-release spring bars let you swap straps in seconds.

The watch should sit on top of the wrist without rolling, with room to slide a finger underneath.

Insurance and records

Photograph the watch, record the serial number and keep the papers separately. Home contents policies cap individual items low, so list anything significant.

Buying sensibly

Buy from an authorised retailer with a warranty, keep the box and papers, and treat a current model at a fraction of retail as a warning rather than a bargain.

Previous-generation references frequently do everything the current one does at a considerably lower price.

Quartz alongside

A quartz watch keeps time to seconds a month, needs a battery every few years and costs far less to maintain. Many people end up with one of each rather than choosing.

Solar and radio-controlled quartz removes battery changes and time setting entirely.

Buying used

Ask when it was last serviced, and check the case and lugs for over-polishing.

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