Omega calibre 283 test case

In a recent post, the topic of an Omega calibre 283 “Chronometre” (sic) in an 18-karat case came up. The poster was questioning whether he should return it because its rate was quite erratic. Showing a variation of as much as 90-seconds per day on a Timegrapher! His question was whether the posted performance figures were within a standard that should be accepted, considering the watch was about 70 years old. The consensus was that the watch had a refinished dial with the word chronometre having perhaps being added. Turns out that there is evidence that some calibre 283s were produced as chronometers. The watch may have been made as a chronometer, but the performance sure was not that of a chronometer.

I decided to service my Omega calibre 283, and to fuss with it a bit, to see what sort of performance one might expect out of a bog stock 283. Well, initially, the performance I experienced was vastly improved over the performance exhibited by the questionable performance by the aforementioned chronometre. But I wasn’t entirely happy with the performance I was getting. It wasn’t bad, at a delta of 13 seconds between the fastest and slowest positions on the Timegrapher, and a 6 second in 24-hour variation on the wrist.

So on Sunday, I spent some more time on it. There was a minor problem with the poising of the balance wheel which I remedied. Back on the Timegrapher for further regulation, and back onto my left wrist.

As of the picture I have just posted this morning, it is dead on, to the second, in 16 hours! I’ll endeavour to remember to wind it to keep it running, to see how long the watch will continue to perform like this. (It is now on a leather strap which replaced the bracelet shown in earlier photos.)

The Omega 283 has gained six seconds in 36 hours. When worn on the left wrist, it had gained 8 seconds in 24 hours. Switching it to the right wrist, and it has dropped back 2 seconds. By choosing the right time to switch from wrist to wrist, chances are I will seldom have to re -set it.

Gaining 5 seconds per day. This thread was meant to assist a previous poster conclude what sort of performance an Omega calibre 283 was capable of. But with individuals such as @ghce making a joke out of my efforts with his “can you be my Dad” comment, the experiment ends here!