Hi Folks, have a bit of a dilemma on winding technique for my recently acquired Seamaster Pro. It's my 1st automatic watch and I alternate between it and my Speedy Pro (both recently purchased).

Unfortunately, the Seamaster winds down and stops as I am not wearing it often enough because the Speedy gets more wrist time at the moment. Any recommendations to either acquires a watch winder or suggest a technique to keep the watch running. I imagine readjusting it all the time is not as healthy as keeping it running.

Thanks!

 

Plenty of good watch winders out there, from single watch winders to those that hold 50 watches for $40K. Check out Brookstone's for a good, inexpensive winder. I've been using a Wolf Design 2.7 Module for my Breitling and 2 Seamasters.

 

Can't agree with that recommendation. Had one of their single winders - it got noisier and noisier after a few months until it died in 3 or 4 years, and I didn't even have it running the whole time.

I have owned a TechSwiss 4 head winder for more than 6 years now and I'd take a look at their line if you want to save a few bucks.

 

Good to know about the Brookstone winder. I only went by the review linked below. I'm very happy with the Wolf Design.

http://gearpatrol.com/2013/03/08/wound-up-five-best-watch-winders/

 

Heard good things about Wolf and Orbita.

 

I just set mine when I'm ready to wear. Seems to me that continuous running on a winder would result in more wear than winding now and then. Admittedly it can be a PITA on a few of the non-quickset vintage & if I had a complicated watch e.g. annual calendar, I might consider.

Nontheless, for me, the best winder is my wrist.

 

I had the single and Ulackfocus is correct...thing got so loud wife insisted it leave the bedroom. Then, some family got us the quad for Christmas a couple of years back...so far, couldn't be happier!

Same brand...two totally different experiences

 

My first winder was a Rapport Perpetua from the UK. It looked of reasonable quality but within the first few months it got quite noisy. From there, I purchased a single winder from Orbita, then a 3 watch winder and travel winder from Orbita. They have yet to let me down. The quality is top notch but you do pay a little more.

Here a couple pictures of them:






Orbita has a website for technical specs about these winders.

Let me know if there is any other information, I could provide about these winders, which would help with your decision.

Paul

 

I bought a Rapport once, and very quickly returned it. Personally the only winders I would buy are Orbita. The company stands behind it's products and if you are lucky you can get good deals in the "scratch and dent" area of the web site, or at least you used to be able to.

Cheers, Al

 

I'm using Omega branded winders from Swiss Kubik. They are a bit expensive but I have them since 4-5 years. They are running very smooth by battery only. Have to change the 2 batteries once every year. I own 5 of them.
They are available at Omega Boutique.

 

Wolf 2.7 is great and inexpensive

 

Ask your favorite watchmaker how he feels about watch winders. I think you'll find almost universally that they all say that a winder does nothing but wear out your watch prematurely.

If you insist on keeping your Seamaster wound, wind it manually in the morning when you put on your Speedmaster.

Tom

 

Um, which will still make the watch 'wear prematurely' because it's still running. Then add the potential for wear or cross threading or even stripping the crown / crown tube threads since they have to be unscrewed and retightened each day so your recommendation of manual winding versus an automatic winder is counterproductive. I don't get how you think that's good advice.



EDIT: marking this thread with my search word. Ecclesiastical.

 

It was designed to run. It was designed to be wound with the movement of your arm, not some motor once a minute.

Me, I would let it run down and not worry about it. Note I said "insist".

As for cross-threading? If that's a serious issue, perhaps a person shouldn't wear a Seamaster Professional and get a Vostok Amphibia instead.

Tom

 

It was designed to be wound by a spinning weight. What difference does it make if the weight is spun on axis by a motor or by the random motion of your arm?

Again, I don't see your post as good advice. If you "insist" on keeping your automatic watch which is equipped with a screw down crown wound, a winder is much better than manual winding.

Now, please clear this up for me. Was it "designed to run" or is that going to do "nothing but wear out your watch prematurely"? Sounds like a contradiction.

 

Your arm winds the watch at random intervals that are not the same as the winder. The watchmaker will tell you, as multiple watchmakers have told me, that the winders put undue stress on the winding mechanisms, wearing them out faster than wearing the watch normally does.

If you want to call them liars, by all means do so. I won't.

The watch was designed to run as in the spring drives the wheels and it tells time. What else could I mean?

Note that I say to let it run down.

Be aware that I don't know who you are, and I honestly don't care if you think my advice is good or not. Anyone reading this can do some research and make the decision that makes sense to him.

But do ask your watchmaker about winders.

Last response by me, you can have the last word.

I wear a Speedmaster Moonwatch anyways.

Tom

 

This does not make a lot of sense If you really stop to think about it. It does not matter if the winding is done all at once, or done randomly throughout the day. If the winder is set correctly, and is only set to maintain the state of wind, not increase it, then using a winder will not put any "undue stress" on anything.

Certainly if your watch requires say 600 turns per day and you have the winder set for 1800 turns per day, then yes the winder will potentially cause some wear that is not needed. But also remember that the watch on your wrist is very possibly being wound more than it "needs" to be wound in a day. These watches are designed to be wound a lot, so this idea of "undue stress" is a little overblown. Certainly not something I would recommend against.

As a watchmaker I am pretty indifferent to consumer winders. If they are set correctly they are fine and make having a watch ready to go very convenient. It also does save wear and tear on the manual winding parts, and in some cases (depending on the movement) it is preferable to wind using the automatic, for example on an ETA 2824 or 2836 movement. Constant manual winding of these movements can lead to premature wear of the crown wheel boss on the barrel bridge, which is a weak spot.

Cheers, Al

 

I think I will take you up on the last word since you graciously offered it.

Somebody somewhere please show me conclusive evidence that use of a watch winder puts excess wear on a watch. Not hearsay, not guessing…. actual documented proof.

Since there's no heat involved in a watch's "motor", the only thing that will cause excessive wear is lack of lubrication. As long as the watch is properly lubricated and properly constructed (ie: jeweled in the necessary places) there's simply no way a watch 'wears out' because of the pattern of motion it's subjected to by a winder. As a matter of fact, it's simple common sense that a winder's repetitive motion on one axis is less likely to cause stress of any kind compared to the random motions of a human arm.

 

I've heard both arguments, but the camp that states that it causes wear has the burden. Where is the evidence that it causes wear?

I would imagine it would be very difficult for a watchmaker to say a winder causes wear. How would you determine that wear is the result of a watch sitting on a winder? How would you know the full history of the watch wearer to determine this? Would you just take the customer's word that he uses winders all the time and conclude that must be it? That's a very big conclusion.

I guess this would be a good experiment to try for myself one day. I'll buy two of the exact same watch. One I'll wear and never use a winder, the other just sits on the winder, and follows the recommended spin. I'll leave it for 5 years, the time usually a watch is needed for maintenance. After 5 years open it up and exam part by part the difference. It's not scientific by any stretch, but it's something that might yield interesting results.