Horologii

What is a manual winding watch?

A manual winding watch is a mechanical timepiece that must be physically wound before it can work.

Within a manual winding watch, you will find combination of tiny, intricate components that work together to power the functions on the dial. The sole provider inside a mechanical movement is something called a mainspring. For the watch to start ticking, the mainspring must be wound up to then transfer the energy through a series of gear components including a balance wheel and an escapement, regulating a release of energy to power the watch.

How do you wind a manual winding watch?

Unlike an automatic mechanical watch which winds itself through the motions of your wrist, a manual winding watch must be physically wound by the wearer. Rather than having an oscillating rotor to wind the mainspring, manual winding watches are powered by winding the crown usually found on the right-hand side of the case.

By twisting the crown, you will begin to wind the mainspring. The energy created within the mainspring is released to power the functions on the watch.

How often do I need to wind my manual winding watch?

Every manual winding watch has a power reserve. These can vary depending on the type of watch and movement you have but they are usually somewhere between 38 hours and 240 hours. This means that once the watch is fully wound, you will not have to wind it again for that length of time. You can find more information on watch winding here.

How many times do I need to wind my manual winding watch to get it powered again?

Most watch manufacturers suggest turning the crown between 30-40 times to get the watch fully wound again if it has lost all power.

How do I know when my manual winding watch is fully wound?

Most manual winding watches are equipped with a system where you will begin to feel some resistance once the watch is fully wound, some also make a faint ‘click’ sound. If your watch is not equipped with either of these features, you can feel confident knowing it is likely to be fully wound after 30-40 crown turns.

Can I over wind my manual winding watch?

It is highly unlikely that you will damage your manual winding watch by over winding it.  All well-made manual winding watches are equipped with a mechanism within the movement that disengages the winding gears from the mainspring once it is fully wound. This way you can feel confident knowing that you are not causing any damage to the movement if you continue to turn the crown once it is fully wound.

You can find a stunning range of manual winding watches here.