Hi everyone,

I bought a new POC 9300 from my local AD in february. It has been used in rotation with other watches and has been wound approx once a week when the power reserve has run out (I don't own a winder). I have been very careful with it.

It has worked perfectly until today when it suddenly stopped. It had lots of power left in the reserve. When I try to wind it the rotor starts spinning. It won't start by movement either. It might seem like the spring is dead and detached from the rotor somehow.
Does anyone have any tips that I can try out before I deliver it to my AD tomorrow for a check up? I don't want to be without my POC for weeks, or in the worst case, months.

Thanks in advance!

 

If the rotor is spinning like a top when you wind the crown, it suggests that the reversing wheels are not disengaging during manual winding. However this would not stop the watch from working, so it appears from your description there is more than one problem possibly.

There are a number of issues that can affect these watches, so DLC barrel problems, worn pivots on the balance with the anti-magnetic versions, etc., so I don't think there's anything that you can pinpoint at this stage. Giving Omega information will not change how quickly the watch gets repaired, so best to let them diagnose what's wrong when they have it in their hands.

Cheers, Al

 

I'll drop it off at my local AD tomorrow and see what they say. Hopefully their in-house watchmaker can figure it out, but I fear it'll have to be sent to Omega.

Thanks for the reply, Al!

 

Maybe Russian hackers got inside? [emoji50]

 

[ insert @Archer 's standard warning about in-house "watchmaker" here ]

 

Does this mean the movement is less reliable than others?

 

It depends what others you compare it to. Almost all new movements have growing pains and modifications made to them over their production life span...this is no different.

 

Can you comment in regards to Rolex 4130 or Blancpain F385?

 

I only can share my non-professional view.
On paper F385 is very good but in reality all 3 people that I personally know which bought Bathyscaphe Chrono had problems with the movement during the 1st year of ownership.
I owned Speedmaster 9300 for 3.5 years and can not say anything but superlatives about this movement.

 

Thanks, that's what I suspect. I really like the Bathyscaphe Chrono but am very hesitant to buy it. It's a new movement and expect problems but being a low volume movement, I wonder if it will take a long time for all the bugs to be worked out.

 

Status update:
The watch is back from Omega. Only took two weeks, which I'm very happy about.

They said the watch was in immaculate condition except for one thing; they had to change the "automatic wheel". I have no idea what that wheel is, maybe the balance wheel? @Archer

 

No such part with the name "automatic wheel" in the 9300. Unlikely they would replace the balance for this specific problem, unless it was one that had suffered from premature wear on the balance pivots...but then I assume they would have said they replaced the balance...

Did they return any parts? If so, post a photo.

 

Hello Al, have you found out that pivots in these new anti-magnetic calibers are softer, and then more prone to wear than pivots in older calibers?
regards, Tapio

 

It's a known issue that Omega has a fix for...

 

Mine is hassle free. Been with me almost three years without flaw. Love it.