Probably a stupid question, but at this price I'd like to get it right...

How do you wind a 3861 movement Speedmaster? The handbook just says to wind it... I haven't owned a watch that needs winding for over 50 years. I used to just roll the crown back and forth for a minute or so and leave it at that, but those watches were the cheapest around.
Should I only roll the crown 'forward', i.e. clockwise? Should I do it once a day (part of evening routine), and wind until it goes stiffer?

This is a really impressive watch - this is day four, and it's still exactly where I set it.

 

Hi and congratulations on the Speedmaster!

Yes, I just use my finger and thumb to roll the crown forward (clockwise - never backwards) until it reaches an obvious stop. I usually wind mine every morning while drinking my coffee.

Best regards,
FC

 

Perfect, thanks.

 

I've been winding mechanical watches for more that 50 years, and Speedies for the last twenty.

99% of manual watch movements, and quite a lot of manual movements could not care less which process you adopt.
The movement is designed with a reversing clutch and a click (or lock) to stop the watch being "unwound".

There is no problem whatsoever with winding backwards and forwards, that is what the watch was designed for.

 

Works the same for a 3861…apart from you get hacking seconds which is a bonus.

I always wind clockwise as per the video (including my 3861)

 

Wind it until the crown hits a hard stop and won't go any further. Whether you go in one direction or back and forth is immaterial.

 

I have had my Speedy for a few weeks now. When I started out I would wind until I thought I could feel it getting stiffer and then stopped because I didn’t want to risk over winding it. Once I got more used to it I just continued until it stops winding, there is a clear point where it stops. I find about 20 winds per day fully winds the watch.

 

The winding mechanism is designed for the winder to be rotated either way. It only tensions the mainspring when turned clockwise but it does no harm whatsoever to move the thumb/forefinger back and forth when winding.

Stan.

 

You're doing just fine.
It will all come back to you just like riding a bike

Personally, I only prefer to wind in one direction.
That is because when we wind back and forth. It effectively doubles the wear and tear on the o-rings in the Crown tube.
It's just my own sympathetic approach

 

How about optimal RPM? How fast, or slow, do folks go when winding?

 

When wearing any manual wind movement, It’s best to fully wind the piece in the morning when you put it on.

For a non automatic wind untill it hits a hard stop. It’s very difficult to over wind and you will know when it hits the stop.

 

Good question.
If one winds slower(more gentle) the loading on the mechanism is going to be less.
Whether the lubrication is up to protecting the contact points when winding at a faster pace or not is probably the key consideration. But we are likely to be going down the path of having a useless massderbate around the Boundary lubrication state vs Mixed, etc, etc
Personally, I take my time
It's just more enjoyable that way to simply be in the moment
Besides, I also like to savour the winding feel of different high quality watch movements.
I quite like the 1861 and the 9S64, but any of them in that class are nice in their own way

 

When I wind my SMP, I turn/roll the crown along the side of my pointer finger, up to the knuckle of my second digit just to get a bit more wind with every turn. I wind my SMP every morning and it takes between 27-30 turns. If it has zero power reserve, it takes about 60 turns. I stop when I feel a bit of resistance.

Hope that helps! Congrats on the new piece!

 

Great info, thanks all. I'll switch from evening to morning, I think - as I'm in the workshop a fair bit of the day I tend not to wear it every day, so it's worth getting into the habit.

 

That's a good point, which I hadn't really thought about. I'm now winding in just the clockwise direction - it's no problem to do so and it must at least slightly reduce the wear and tear, Thanks for the observation.

Stan.

 

As fast as an F1 team in a pit stop, over here

 

I'm still trying to figure out how much to wind. I wind clock wise until there is a bit of resistance with rebound coil back of the crown. Is that when I should end ? I haven't been able to gather the full 48-50 hours reserve, as a matter of fact, I was able to get only 30 hours reserve. I sent it to Omega as watch still under warranty. They sent back stating the watch is accurate and complete within specifications.
A detail suggestion/ description of winding dully would be much appreciated.

 

When theres a bit of resistance and slight rebound, you're close but still not fully wound.
There is a very obvious almost solid stop when you're fully wound.

 

I suppose it's common knowledge, but you shouldn't wind it while on your wrist.

 

Keep winding the crown until it physically won't turn anymore, then it is fully wound and it'll run for about 62 hours (3861), or 52 hours for an 1861. Anything less is not fully wound, if you are getting only 30 hours run time you aren't even close. Keep winding, you won't break anything, they are designed to be wound fully.