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Dos and Don'ts, Manual vs Automatic

V
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Dear All,

I have a few questions as i do not have any experience with vintage watches.

i own an automatic omega speedmaster 125 and a manual flightmaster 145036, mk3.

i) is it ok to manually wind the automatic speedmaster 125 to get it going?
ii) it is ok to manually wind the flightmaster every morning or should i leave it to stop and then i give it the full winding please?
iii) my speedmaster has some condensation like marks on the dial that are visible only if you shine a birght light on the dial, is this something fixable?

Also by doing any of the above would you be really damaging the movement please?
can i know if the previous owners did any of the above incorrectly?

thank you.
 
snunez
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Welcome to the forum.

Winding is fine. You don't have to wind it full if it's an automatic. Just get it going and then wear it. You can 'top up' whenever you like. No need to let it wind down.

Can't answer iii without some pics.
 
V
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thank you. so if you manually wind the automatic without noticing that it is already running would that mean instant damage to the movement please?
 
Ravineman
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V vteec
thank you. so if you manually wind the automatic without noticing that it is already running would that mean instant damage to the movement please?
No. Wind your automatic anytime. I have been doing it for 30 years with no issues.
 
snunez
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There's no 'instant damage' unless you overwind a manual. You'll know it if you do that.
 
Archer
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Some answers:

i) is it ok to manually wind the automatic speedmaster 125 to get it going?

Yes, in fact it's recommended.

ii) it is ok to manually wind the flightmaster every morning or should i leave it to stop and then i give it the full winding please?

If you are wearing it every day, wind it every day. If you are not wearing it, let it stop until you do wear it.

iii) my speedmaster has some condensation like marks on the dial that are visible only if you shine a birght light on the dial, is this something fixable?

Sometimes they can be, but it's only something you would know for sure when your watchmaker tries.

Cheers, Al
 
redpcar
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snunez snunez
There's no 'instant damage' unless you overwind a manual. You'll know it if you do that.

Overwind is a term I don't like. You can fully wind the watch (a stopping point is easily felt). If additional CRANKING is done on the crown, you can break the mainspring. At this point, it will no longer run as you will have broken the spring (spring will have sprung 😉), the crown will turn easily at this point because the spring is no longer engaged. Sigh. I'm going around in circles.
 
janice&fred
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Yea I see them. Like Archer said just have a watchmaker take a look at it. Since it's merely on the inside of the glass I wouldn't bother with it until it is due for service. 👍
 
Lonestar
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V vteec
Thank you for your replies, much appreciated.

This is a picture of the Speedmaster dial, it is difficult to capture these condensation like marks unless with a flash or similar.

5DE4F4B1-FFD0-4943-B439-0B540358F6A2.jpeg

Welcome aboard - the picture is blurry but the patina on that 125 looks superb... maybe linked to humidity. Who knows...

Please feel free to share more (quality!) pics of that beauty here whenever you feel like it 😀
 
Lonestar
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V vteec
Thank you.
One final observation maybe can somebody please shed the light on, the clasp on my Speedmaster 125 was reversed, I asked my watch technician to put it on properly when he removed some links for me as it was too big, but I have seen some for sale with the same reversed clasp.
Why is this please?

14F6A1FF-49DB-4631-8F17-3035424C002B.png A8DA397B-0F2C-4B96-B9CB-3FCBB61C31B5.png CE17F622-02C5-4694-A1A4-10F0EBBF6BA8.jpeg 4DB6B79C-4FE0-4154-9771-6A4B5561EC01.jpeg 931047CD-87A4-445F-802E-A236F4F1C4C3.jpeg


Lovely 125 👍

Other than distracted moments from your watchmaker, I cannot think about a good reason to reverse this clasp....

Enjoy this fantastic watching good health and looking forward to seeing you participate here👍
 
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