I've been the proud owner of of a New, Old Stock Apollo-Soyuz 35th Anniversary Speedmaster (a.k.a. the Speediorite) for about three weeks. The watch is the mechanical equivalent of a contemporary Moonwatch (Cal.1861), except that it has a sapphire crystal and fancy-pants dial. I've been monitoring its timekeeping performance closely and am now familiar with its timekeeping characteristics. If the watch is worn continuously for 24 hours through one winding cycle, it consistently loses about 10-11 seconds/day.



If the watch is left at rest continuously for 24 hours in the Crown-Up position (through one winding cycle), it consistently loses about 2-3 seconds/day. In the course of a week-long wear/not-wear pattern of use, it loses an average of about 5-6 seconds per day over the week.

I'm one of those persons who freaks out about the prospect of being late for meetings, aircraft departures, etc. so I've been dealing with my watch's performance by intentionally setting the watch one minute ahead when I synchronize it with Atomic Clock time. It is my usual practice to synchronize all my mechanical watches with Atomic Clock time, once each week. Thus, even with my Speedmaster's continuous daily time loss, it will never actually be behind the correct time in the course of a week.

When I consider the absolute magnitude of my watch's timekeeping variability, seeing a consistent -3 second to -11 second range doesn't seem too bad for a non-chronometer certified movement. But I hate the particular side of the "zero line" that my watch is on. I would be much happier if my watch was running consistently in the +3 to +11 second/day range. So the question is, should I take it in to Omega to have it regulated? And, would Omega even consider this to be a problem that merits intervention? The watch is under its original manufacturers warranty.

What say ye, fellow Moonwatch-ers? To the shop, or not?

 

I'd wait a while knowing what I know about watches of the quality of your which have been dormant for a period of time. Given a period of "run in", you may find a gradual improvement over time, to the point where it will be performing closer to the standard you are expecting. Recently, forum member Mad Dog posted similar questions to yours re: his new Speedmaster. I was unable to find the thread. He started out with similar questions about the timing of his watch. I think it eventually resolved to his satisfaction without doing anything, as I recall.

 

Thanks @Canuck ! I really appreciate a jeweler's perspective.

 

@Canuck...that is correct, sir...in general, my Speedy Gonzales gains about 1-3 seconds per 24 hour period...good to go.

LATE ENTRY: I keep my recent regulation log handy as a rough guide...I keep it on the reverse side of the poly bag where Speedy Gonzales hangs out when not in use.

 

Appreciate your feedback @dsio. I figure I'll do what @Canuck suggests: wait a month or two more, and if the watch's behaviour remains the same as today I'll take it back to the shop and request that it be regulated into positive territory.

 

That's a good point. My Aqua Terra runs -2 seconds per day, which is still within spec. I've been thinking about getting it regulated to run fast. In the meantime, I just set my watch one minute ahead at the beginning of the month, so that I slowly loose that minute and get to even by the end of the month.

 

I bought a Seamaster 15 years ago. It's a chronometer. At first it was fast and I was not happy. I did not know much about watches and thought they would keep the time as good as quartz. I kept adjusting 1 or 2 minutes or so back every 2 weeks. After three years I decided to send it to Omega through a local jewelry store for service and regulation. It came back running slow this time. I forgot how slow but enough to irritate me and make me put it away. A month ago I decided to take it out again and read more about chronometer and COSC. Mine was running about 10 seconds slow every 24 hours, out of COSC's spec which is -4/+6 every 24 hours. I read online and saw this guy regulate his Seamaster. After spending about $40 on watch repair kit, I decided to regulate my Omega watch. It did it very carefully trying not to scratch either the external or internal parts. The guy online said it was one line for 5 seconds per day + or - when you adjust the screw. I did it !!! My Seamaster now runs between +1 sec a day or - 1 sec a day depending on the amount of time I wear it, put it down at night, the day when I am home or at work... After exactly 14 days, my watch now is only 1 sec behind. I use Watchville app to monitor my watch. Unless you send your watch to Bienne, Switzerland for service and they will regulate it for 15 days in 5 different positions and 3 different temperatures, I don't know if an Omega Center in the U.S. will do all that. Since I did not replace the rubber ring (seal), I will not submerge it in water when swimming. It did ran it under water when I cleaned it and it was fine.

 

Always nicer to do it yourself, if you can.

 

I was really debating but thought I could always turn the little regulating screw back to the original position.

 

Yes, an Omega Boutique in the US will regulate your timepiece free of charge. I brought my Planet Ocean LMLE into my local Boutique back in June when it was running 12 sec/day fast. They took it (for a frustrating 3-week period) and regulated it. I believe they only tested it for 4-days at 4-positions; not 15-days.

Anyhow, just thought I would share my experience as it relates to having an Omega regulated.

 

Thanks for the info.

 

Since I did not replace the rubber ring (seal), I will not submerge it in water when swimming. It did ran it under water when I cleaned it and it was fine.

Well, I think there is a reason why to use specialists to do specialized tasks....... Did you pressure test it? Did you check moisture inside the case after you ran it under water ?

 

No. I wish I could perform the pressure test

 

More to the point, it has been 12 years since it was serviced. Just saying.......

 

Well, it's been just over eight weeks since I first slipped the Extra Terrestrial on my wrist, so I figured it was time to get some regulating done. It's been consistent [pre-regulation] in its timekeeping, losing about 11 seconds per day in its slowest resting position [Dial-Up] and losing about 3 seconds per day in its fastest resting position [Crown-Up]. I contacted my tech-guy buddy at the local Omega Botique and asked him if he had experience regulating a Cal. 1861. He responded: "Not a problem!" I arranged to drop by the shop on a slow afternoon and he went to work immediately, stationing himself at a fairly well-equipped work bench right on the sales floor. He had the bracelet, caseback, and dust cover off in a flash and allowed me to admire the inner workings of my beloved Speedy: [you can click on the image to zoom in and view the 1861 in all its glory]




I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the finishing of parts which were never meant to be seen. I could also see that the much-discussed Derlin brake appeared to be metallic coloured rather than the Nylon-plasticy colour I'd seen in other photos of the 1861. I think the movement looks so good that once the factory warranty period has expired, I'll put a sapphire caseback on this Speedy.

The tech-guy and I agreed on a regulating strategy: using the electronic beat monitor as a guide, the watch would be regulated such that it ran two or three seconds fast per day in its slowest resting position -- Dial-Up. He turned one of the regulating screws (the little one off to the side, rather than the big obvious one) consulted the monitor, then waited a while to ensure that the entire system was stabilized before checking the oscillation rate in other resting positions. He spent about 1/2 hour monitoring, tweaking, and checking before closing up the watch, taking it into the back room for a pressure test, then putting the bracelet back on. I was in and out of the shop in 45 minutes total.

To date, I'm very satisfied by the result. The watch appears to lose about 1 second if it sits for 24 hours through one winding cycle in the Dial-Up position, and gain about 8 seconds if it sits for 24 hours through one winding cycle in the Crown-Up position. Through one short cycle of wearing and not wearing the watch for a day, it's averaging about 4.5 seconds gained per day. Not bad at all.

 

My 2005 Moonwatch was running close to 30 seconds fast per day. I was obviously disappointed since it was advertised as running about 12 seconds fast. When I had it apart it appeared to have never been serviced. Man that 1861 is pretty. I downloaded a really cool iPhone app called Hairspring to regulate it. I'm a musician. Guitarist, bassist and drummer. I wondering if the shock of drumming knocked it off kilter. It is on the snare wrist. Anyway, I tried my hand at regulating. Why practice on a cheap watch when you go right to the expensive one? No pressure . After about an hour of very small adjustments I got it to an average of -6 seconds for all positions. I stopped there as there was no way I was going to get it any closer the way my nerves were . I'll check it again tomorrow but it's already much, much better. It was gaining more than a second an hour. It's been dead nuts now for 4 hours. Much happier now.

 

Scundo - I'm a drummer and a watchmaker. The vibrations aren't going to be enough to move the regulator, however depending what style you play, the vibrations could temporarily slow the balance wheel. What you should be careful of is if the watch is Automatic. I didn't take note of the watch, though if the watch is Automatic then you could potentially vibrate the screw for the oscillating weight (automatic rotor) loose. Creating small vibrations consistently for long periods of time can also do damage to the ball bearings in the oscillating rotor. I've seen them destroyed with all the ball bearings flying around the movement because the tradesman who had the watch used an impact drill and sometimes a jack hammer. I have worked for Seiko and Omega in the past, and both watches have suffered damage from constant vibrations.

Jones In LA - I'm not one to advocate self timing as there are a lot of factors surrounding regulation and getting consistent results. I am all about giving it a go, but just do a hell of a lot of research first. So you know, the cost of a new balance wheel if you slipped wouldn't make your day. I you're interested in knowing more about the regulations system on your watches, feel free to PM me any time and I'll try to get back to you.

Z1109 - You are right about the specialist tools. The Omega specific tools are expensive, however your best friend in the end. The most important thing to remember about opening a watch is that you void the water resistance. You can't be certain if it's water resistant without getting it tested. You are guessing which could be detrimental to the watches health later on. You could have a minor leak which slowly corrodes the plating, and steel pinions over time. Moisture to an Omega dial is extremely bad.


I hope my comments are taken in the right way. All I want to do is help, educate and watch talk with you all. If I make a comment, please take it in a constructive way. If you want to know something then feel free to PM me as I'm a very approachable person with anything. I like to show people what I get to work on every day and explain what is going on.
Thanks Guys,

JT

 

Oh... whoops!!!! I forgot to write the original point.
Timing is up to the individual. However you need to take note as to whats going on. If the watch is running slow, then it may not be because the regulator wasn't adjusted properly. It could very well be that it needs a service.
Keep that in mind always when buying vintage or a watch older than 4 - 5 years old. Watches are like any other mechanical object. Regular intervention is the best prevention. Don't go by the old saying "If it ain't broke, don't fix it". I've never heard so much garbage in my life. I'm pretty sick of changing out vintage parts because people don't regularly service their watches.
Hope that helps.
JT

 

Thank you JT. I really appreciate the feedback. I'm sure I'll be in touch with questions. I'm very interested in getting more experience with watch repair. I do appreciate the advice. Seeing that my moonwatch is not a diver, I don't submerge it. I did remember that opening the case voids the water resistance. It will be serviced next year. This year I had my Mk III restored AND got the moonwatch. Any more spent on my hobby would've landed me in divorce court . This was the main reason I tried this. Ive been timing the watch since doing the quick and dirty regulations and it settled to minus 5 seconds 24 hours later. Sometimes being impatient can get expensive. Ive learned that the hard way on some projects. Especially when you screw up due to inexperience. I did my research and felt comfortable on the cal 1861. I would not attempt this on the very complicated MKIII. Luckily I didn't screw it up. I'm a tinkerer. I build electric guitars and enjoy learning new skills. It was just a matter of time until I opened up a mechanical watch. From now on though I practice on my cheapie Invictas. And I will be investing in some proper tools. Thanks again!