What watch-winder features do I need?

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What watch-winder features do I need?

Post by missF »

Hi knowledgeable friends.
I’ve been musing about getting a double watch winder since I posted on Des’s ‘Less is more’ post this morning. I just prefer my watches ticking, warm and alive, and now have an amazing (for me) three watch collection that I’d like to keep that way.

So - a quick look on eBay shows me that winders come in a big range of prices. I just wonder what I get for those prices and what I need?

Is it worth paying more for a quieter motor?
What are the various turn directions and variabilities about? (Isn’t it enough to just turn it simply in one direction at one speed?)
Do you pay for longevity? Are they repairable?

Have you bought a winder in the past and ended up not using it? If so, why??

Any thoughts gratefully received :D
watching you fail in your quest for a “one watch” has been great entertainment
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Re: What watch-winder features do I need?

Post by 0uatiOW »

In no particular order, please consider the following:
  • Japanese Mabuchi motors are almost silent and worth paying for.
  • How many watches will you want to wind? Consider your expansion plans and if appropriate, get spare slots.
  • Wired power or battery? These things run all day and night - no idea how long a batter will last, as I use wired power.
  • Repairs? Difficult to find someone to do it, and arguably not economically worth it. If you know what you are doing (I don’t!) , you can replace the motor yourself, however, I could not find a way to access the motor without dismantling the whole box.
  • Different movements need different turns per day, 7750s wind clockwise, most ETAs & Sellitas wind bi-directionally, so at least some degree of choice is needed.
That’s all I can think of for now. You can get good winders on eBay or Amazon - avoid the cheapest, but no need to spend several hundreds of £s.
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Re: What watch-winder features do I need?

Post by missF »

^^^
Thank you! That’s really helpful. :D
watching you fail in your quest for a “one watch” has been great entertainment
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Re: What watch-winder features do I need?

Post by StrapMeister »

One thing to take into consideration are the winder modes, i.e. Mode 1 - 6 Minutes time interval for every 2 minutes clockwise winding; Mode 2 - 6 Minutes time interval for every 2 minutes counter clockwise winding; Mode 3 - 6 Minutes time interval for every 2 minutes Counter clockwise winding; + 6 Minutes time interval for every 2 minutes clockwise winding; and so on.
Note: Not all winders are the same or have the same options.
I have this one https://www.amazon.co.uk/JQUEEN-Winders ... inder+quad.
A better indication of its size and functions are in this listing https://www.ebay.com/itm/324267168242.
I use Mode 5.
One thing I noted is that the cushions are very small. So if you a large wrist (7"+) and, in particular your bracelet is sized as such, it will only loosely fit. Not a big issue but something worth noting. Obviously this doesn't apply to standard straps with dress buckles.

You'll find the different turn direction and turns per day info. here: https://www.orbita.com/winder-support/
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Re: What watch-winder features do I need?

Post by nbg »

missF wrote: Sun Sep 12, 2021 1:54 pm Have you bought a winder in the past and ended up not using it? If so, why??

Any thoughts gratefully received :D
About 7 years ago I bought a couple of the ones that CW used to sell. I thought they looked quite neat, although Mrs nbg wasn’t convinced by my view that it was necessary for me to place them in a kitchen unit; visible when the sliding door was opened.

I would come home from work and change to one of the two CW watches in the winder.

The novelty wore off. I still have them somewhere but no longer use them. I don’t wear any ETA/Sellita watches regularly enough to require a winder.

Now I manage quite happily without a winder, keeping three watches set and running at any one point. However I accept this would be more difficult if the watches I tend to wear regularly had a PR of about 38-40 hours.

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Re: What watch-winder features do I need?

Post by missF »

nbg wrote: Sun Sep 12, 2021 4:30 pm
The novelty wore off.
I’m very aware that in my case this is a possibility! :lol:
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Re: What watch-winder features do I need?

Post by downer »

At one time I had a fairly extensive winder set up...

Image

They were fairly inexpensive and for a couple of years they were nice and quiet. Eventually though, the (Mabuchi) motors became noisier and one or two stopped working. I purchased a few spare motors on ebay, but again they didn't last too long - so, when I retired I abandoned winders.

A short while later I did find I was missing the "ready to go" aspect of my watches so I started using a couple of other winders I'd acquired ("free" gifts with watches from Jura etc), but again, the noise became irritating, and I'm also the type of person that wants all my watches on winders or none of them on winders (I know, I know), so they're also back in the cupboard...

I do wonder if I'd purchased something a bit more expensive whether the noise issues would have been less of a problem.
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Re: What watch-winder features do I need?

Post by H0rati0 »

Lindsey

there have been a few recent threads discussing watch winders, a quick search/browse through would probably reveal more than you'd want to know!

I would say avoid expensive stuff (the difference is mostly in the finish) unless you want to display prominently, but do go for one with Mabuchi motors - it's true that they get noisier over time but it takes a few years. One thing I have found is that the vertical format work better as some watches do not wind well on the angled type, eg micro-rotor movements.

https://watchwinders.com is a site with a large selection of quality/full feature devices though a bit pricey unless you see something you like in one of their (frequent) sales.

nik

ps I do slightly regret not getting an illuminated model, but that's just so I don't disturb my wife when she's asleep and I want to put a watch back on wind - I'm sure Nero won't care :lol:
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Re: What watch-winder features do I need?

Post by missF »

StrapMeister wrote: Sun Sep 12, 2021 4:09 pm One thing to take into consideration are the winder modes,
So - it doesn’t take much reading about winders to realise that even professional opinion is split as to whether they are good or bad for watches, and whether or not winders are needed at all. No-one has done the long-term experiments to find out. So part of my question was heading in this direction- why are there exact tables of TPD for each watch? My wrist movement doesn’t conform to any particular number of turns per day, so why do I need to pay extra money for a winder with lots of different modes? Presumably my watch - within my lifetime- will be plus or minus just pretty fine regardless of what I do with it??

I think my question still is - what features do I really need? :-k
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Re: What watch-winder features do I need?

Post by H0rati0 »

missF wrote: Sun Sep 12, 2021 6:56 pm
I think my question still is - what features do I really need? :-k
Well, if you are going to push me:

Firstly I will say I have been using winders for more than 10 years and have not encountered any problems, certainly not excess wear, excepting poor winding performance due to angle of wind as mentioned above.

1. TPD: the vast majority of watches only need 650 to remain fully charged, why wind more than necessary? You need to check if you have any watches that require greater TPD and if so you'll need speed selection(s).
2. rotation: it is better to wind a bidirectional watch in both directions to distribute rotor bearing wear (what little there is) evenly, but some watches only wind in one direction so better to be able to select direction to do away with wasted motion which in theory leads to extra wear, but in practice is unnoticeable.
3. Duty cycle: only one is really necessary, the ability to distribute the TPD and rest periods evenly throughout the 24 hours.
4. Independent rotors. It is useful to be able to stop/adjust a particular rotor without affecting the others so you can change settings or remove/mount a watch, but not essential.

Everything else is icing, which of course one may or may not see as useful eg, some people prefer to "rest" overnight - personally I see no point. You might also want "speedwind" ie, let the winder charge up the watch from cold, but I never use it. Better to manually wind the watch into isochronism, set it and then just put it on charge or wear it.

Hope that helps.....maybe start with a cheapo from ebay, see what you actually use before investing in something more comprehensive/decorative?
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Re: What watch-winder features do I need?

Post by StrapMeister »

missF wrote: Sun Sep 12, 2021 6:56 pm I think my question still is - what features do I really need? :-k
Well frankly you don't need any of them!
Just a finger and thumb to wind the crown.
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Re: What watch-winder features do I need?

Post by missF »

Thanks Nik and Nigel, for helping me out even when I’m being a bit stubborn :oops:
My reason for asking all this in the way I’ve asked it is because with gadgets there’s no point in me diving in just to end up with expensive paperweights in the back of a cupboard within a few years. So I don’t want to ask ‘what can I get?’, I just want to ask ‘what do I need’...

It’s clear that I only ‘need’ a watch winder for existential reasons. The ticking second hand has nothing to do with the long term functioning and maintenance of the movement and everything to do with the fact that stopped watches trouble me on a very deep level! :lol:

I’ve found an orange winder. I like the colour. It has Mubuchi motor. And one of the mode settings looks fine. Maybe that’s the one for me. :D
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Re: What watch-winder features do I need?

Post by Wolfman53 »

AMJ Watches give you a 'free watch winder' with every watch purchase over £2,000.........
but then you will need another watch winder for your new watch!

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Re: What watch-winder features do I need?

Post by missF »

Wolfman53 wrote: Sun Sep 12, 2021 8:38 pm AMJ Watches give you a 'free watch winder' with every watch purchase over £2,000.........
but then you will need another watch winder for your new watch!

Sent from my SM-G780G using Tapatalk
I see the thinking in their sales tactics! :lol:
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Re: What watch-winder features do I need?

Post by Amor Vincit Omnia »

My local AD gave me a free watch winder with my Speedy Moonwatch.

Read that again.

Got it? :D
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