Manual Wind
Manual-Wind watches operate by rotating the crown (clock-wise) which winds up the Mainspring. Once the mainspring runs out of power, the watch stops and must be re-wound. It is important to not overwind a manual-wind watch (you will feel a significant amount of tension while winding). The typical power reserve for a manual watch ranges from 24-48 hours. However, new models from companies such as Panerai, Patek and Jaeger Lecoulltre have significantly longer reserve times (up to 8 days).
In Review
Expectations
-Typical -10 - +10 SPD
- 24-48 hour reserve
- 5 year service interval
Advantages
-Purest form
-Very reliable
-Very Long Lifetime
Disadvantages
-Can easily overwind
-Must wind regularly
-Sensitive to shock
-Sensitive to magnetism
-Affected by gravity
Automatic
Like Manual Watches, Automatic Watches (the majority) can be manually wound and hold a power reserve. Automatic Watches are also wound through motion, by the oscillation of a weight which is set into motion through wear or movement. Automatic watches cannot be overwound as the mainspring features a slipping mechanism.
Users expect Automatic watches to run continuously. In order for this to happen a sufficient reserve must be supplied to the mechanism. If the reserve is insufficient, the watch will perform poorly and/or stop. If an individual has a number of automatic watches, it is strongly advised that a watch winder is used to power the watches not being worn.
It is imperative that all Automatic watches are fully wound prior to leaving the store.
An Automatic timepiece must maintain a minimum amount of power to run efficiently. Very low power levels cause timing fluctuations and stoppages. If an individual is not active enough to wind his/her watch through motion, he/she must wind the watch manually. If an individual has not worn his watch for several days and it has stopped, it is strongly recommended that the watch be wound prior to wearing, as many individuals do not fully build up their reserve through motion alone (not enough physical activity).
The above has been simplified for the sake of brevity. Power reserve and amplitude are rather complicated concepts. But the underlying theme is that the movement needs a minimum amount of power to perform within tolerances. The source of the power can either be motion or hand-winding.
In Review
Expectations
-Typical -7 - +7 SPD
- 36-48 hour reserve
- 3-4 year service interval
Advantages
-Self-Winding
-Can also manually wind
-Can not over wind
-Very Long Lifetime
Disadvantages
-Will stop if not worn/wound
- Extra components to fail
- Sensitive to shock
- Sensitive to magnetism
- Affected by gravity
Quartz
There are a variety of different types of Quartz watches. Some quartz watches made by companies such as Timex or Nike are basically little computers and have no wheels or gears.
Hyde Park only performs full-service on fine quartz timepieces. These quartz timepieces possess a full wheel and gear system. The power source is the significant component which distinguishes these quartz watches from their mechanical counterparts. These watches are powered by a battery rather than a wound spring. Of course other differences exist, but it is important to understand that these watches still perform in a mechanical fashion, and require maintenance.
In Review
Expectations
-Typical -2 - +2 SPM
- Battery lasts 24 months
- 5 year service interval
Advantages
-Steady power supply
-No need to wind
-less expensive maintenance
-Extremely accurate timing
-Not sensitive to magnetism
-Not affected by gravity
-Less sensitive to shock
Disadvantages
- Frequent battery changes
- Electronic malfunctions
- Shorter Lifetime
GMT
Quite difficult to describe in written form, this function allows you to view two timezones simultaneously on your watch. The second register is generally displayed on the rotating bezel of the watch, with the numbers 1-24 for the hours. The minute hand is used as minutes indicator for both zones. The GMT hand moves at half the speed as the regular hour hand, as it only rotates around the dial once during a 24 hour period (since it utilizes military time displayed on the bezel). The regular hour hand must rotate around the dial twice within a 24 hour period.
In Review
Expectations
- 4 year service interval
Advantages
-View two time zones
Disadvantages
- More expensive maintenance
- Slightly confusing to operate
Chronograph
This mechanism can either be quartz or mechanical. This watch will generally feature a set of push-buttons, subsidiary dials and stop-watch functions. In water-resistant models, the push-buttons may not be depressed while submerged in water (a few exceptions do exist).
In the case of most quartz models , if the recorder hands should become unaligned, it is possible to reset them through a manual process. This is not the case with mechanical models, which will require a moderate intervention to re-align the hands.
Basic Calendar
A date window where the timepiece assumes that every month has 31 days. Days must be reset on months that do not have 31 days.
Day Date
A window for the day and date are present. The timepiece assumes that every month has 31 days. Although the day stays consistent, the date must corrected for months that do not have 31 days.
Triple Date
Windows/Registers which display the date, day and month. This system assumes that every month has 31 days. Applicable corrections must be made to months without 31 days.
Annual Calendar
This type of timepiece features a special calendar system. This calendar system is designed to account for all months having 30 or 31 days.
The exception is the month of February. The only date adjustment is made on March 1st of each year, thus it is set annually.
Perpetual Calendar
This type of timepiece features a special calendar system. This calendar system is designed to accurately follow the date through all calendar cycles, including leap year.
Please be aware that this system can be rather difficult to set.
Power Reserve Indicator
Power reserve is a feature frequently featured in manual and automatic watches. This indicator tracks the amount of power remaining in the mainspring.
Moon Phase Indicator
This feature allows the cycle of the moon to be displayed on the dial.