The crown is used to set the time of minutes and hours, but how about seconds? My movement is a 551.

Michel

 

Connies have no ' hacking' feature with which to set the seconds

 

Wait till it gets to 12
Don't think many movements that old are hacking.

Search google for "Hacking movement,s" for more info when they came in.

 

Hmmm? Could you elaborate?

I did find a method, as suggested on another watch site, called "back-hacking". While in setting mode I slightly set the time counter-clockwise a few minutes and hold the crown between my thumb and index finger. This stops the seconds dial while I'm holding the crown. Does the trick!

 

Why is it so important to set the seconds hand? Just curious.

 

Change the time when the second hand gets to 12 quickly.

Don't worry about seconds myself, if my setting Quartz watch says 7.10 will set my watch to 7.10

 

Old watches are mostly meant for showing indicative time IMO.
If I need to see seconds, I open my iPhone. Very seldom needed for civilian use.
The hacking feature (basically the ability to stop the seconds hand when the crown is in the setting position) is mainly seen in military watches of that era. Most other people did not bother.
Cheers!

 

I'm sorta new to watches but it got me thinking that some people maybe did need a watch to be accurate to the second, for instance, someone working on a train, for which application precision watchmaking probably historically evolved. You would think that adjusting the seconds hand would be of use in those circumstances.

On a personal level, I don't need my watch to be that accurate. As a instrument engineer though, it find kinda cool that a portable mechanical device with a spring and mass can be accurate to a few seconds per day, which is equivalent to 0.001 %. Neat!

 

See your point, and obsession.
For timing of shorter durations engineers would rely on wrist chronographs. If higher resolution was needed, then dedicated "stop watches" was used - until quartz came along that is.
Do take a look at the Omega MegaSonic f720 if you are really interested in how far mechanical timing can be pushed (yea I know its a battery in there, but timing is mechanical after all). They had hacking seconds as well. It made sense!
http://electric-watches.co.uk/makers/omega/omega-megasonic/

Cheers!

 

Even 98% of the railroad approved watches were not hacking. I'm not saying all, because me knowing does not mean they don't exist. And setting was discouraged, except by an official watch inspector. For example The Hamilton 992b was a railroad grade watch yet the Hamilton 3992b, which is basically a center seconds 992b with the hacking function contracted for by the military is not railroad grade. go figure.

 

In your opinion, did users of railroad grade watches need second accuracy (in absolute terms & adjusted by the watch inspector) or required a watch that simply did not drift over time?

 

From what I have read, the biggest concern was the watch keep time to within 30 seconds a week. The NAWCC message board has many discussions and threads on the railroad time standards and its revisions over the years.

 

I have an elgin pocket watch with the case marked RR. I suspect it was a status symbol in my grandfather's day. vinn

 

Returning to Omega, the ship’s chronometer (different movements used, mine dates from 1905) had a hacking feature (see below).
The Cal.59-8D SCS (later became the Cal.120) dating from 1941 had a hacking feature. According to AJTT, this was used as a time reference on television.
Both movements were rated as chronometers.

 

Deafboy,

I ran across this while looking for something else:
http://mb.nawcc.org/showwiki.php?title=Railroad_Time_Service

 

Very interesting article. Thanks.

 

Damn you read fast!!

 

I'm stilling reading

 

Ouch! Old? Try vintage What's an iPhone?

 

A Millennials re-iteration of a pocket watch, see https://omegaforums.net/threads/now-we-know-what-that-small-pocket-is-for.35096/

Going to need bigger watch pockets.